Students and faculty have returned – new students have arrived – classes have begun – and the campus of Fort Hays State University is settling in for another year of activities. Here at the Alumni Association we are set to launch several opportunities for FHSU alums to gather throughout September.

On September 6, alumni and friends will gather for a pre-game party at the lovely Golden Hotel, Golden, Colo., prior to the FHSU vs. Colorado School of the Mines football game. Meanwhile – back in Dodge City – alumni and friends will be gathering for the annual Boothill golf tournament. Registration for both events can be made by calling 1-888-351-3591 or going online at www.fhsu.edu/alumni/eventrsvp.shtml.

On the following Saturday, September 13, the Alumni Association will be hosting an hospitality tent on the east side of Lewis Field prior to the FHSU vs. Washburn game beginning at 5:30 p.m. All Tiger supporters are welcome and invited to the “big tent” for food, drink, and the entertaining sounds of "Warm Guns," a three-person easy listening band..

And last – but certainly not least – is FHSU Homecoming scheduled for September 25-27.  The weekend is jam-packed with gatherings and celebrations all geared toward celebrating the friendships developed at FHSU. For more information – or to register for events – please call 1-888-351-3591 or go online at www.fhsu.edu/alumni/homecoming.shtml.

Now is the time to take advantage of these wonderful opportunities to gather with FHSU alumni and friends, so please do not wait to register!

Plans are underway for the 31st annual Tiger Call phonathon, the annual fundraising campaign for scholarships at Fort Hays State University. But this year there will be a few changes to the process. Tiger Call will now take place from September through April, instead of during a five-week period in October and November. “With more than 43,000 alumni, it has become unrealistic to expect to reach everyone during a five-week period of time,” said Melanie Bailey, director of annual giving at the FHSU Foundation. “All members of the Tiger family will have the opportunity to make their investment in the future of FHSU. The time they are contacted may be later in the year.”

Transitioning to an electronic record-keeping system this year will make handling donations and records more efficient.

Tiger Call not only provides funding for scholarships but also offers much-needed assistance for academic departments and athletics. Bailey encourages alumni to participate by taking a call from a Tiger caller. “Your donation creates opportunities for students, keeps the university strong and vibrant, and demonstrates your pride to be part of the Tiger family that cherishes its memories while providing for the future.”

It’s time to get the 2008-09 Tiger Sports season underway, and now is the time to join Tiger Club. 

The first Tiger Club luncheon took place on August 27 in Victor E. Lounge at Gross Memorial Coliseum. This opportunity gave club members a chance to meet several new head coaches for the 2008-2009 season, as well as renew friendships with the returning coaches. The $75.00 per person membership goes towards athletic scholarships, so the amount is deductible, and will remain the same as last year. Because of continued rising costs, the luncheon each Wednesday will be $8.00 per meal. Each week members will have the chance to hear from coaches and student athletes after the meal.

If attendance at the Wednesday noon Tiger Club is not always possible, there is also a free cookout scheduled at the south end of the west stadium before each home football game. During basketball season, food and soft drinks will be served in the Tiger Room prior to the games. The food for these activities is donated by various area businesses, so they are free to all Tiger Club members.

The six Regent universities in Kansas have come together to help the American Red Cross save lives. The Red Cross needs nearly 20,000 pints of blood during September and October to meet the needs of hospital patients. At the top of the blood wish list are the "O’s"—both O pos. and O neg. According to the Blood Watch Alert from the American Red Cross, there are only 58 pints of O pos. and only 14 pints of O neg. on the shelves today. However the minimum level to meet the needs of hospital patients every day is 94 pints and 31 pints respectively.

You can become part of this lifesaving endeavor by giving blood and voting for your university. The process for donating is as easy as 1-2-3. One, show a photo ID, read donation materials, and answer a list of health history questions. Two, receive a mini health exam. Three, your arm will be prepared for the donation process which normally takes about six to 10 minutes. At that time you will be offered refreshments to help your body begin replacing the blood you donated.

Vote for your alma mater by turning in the ballot below at the blood drive. The university alumni association with the highest percentage of blood donors across Kansas will receive a trophy and bragging rights for the entire year. Emporia State University took the honors in 2007. So Tigers......let's show Kansas what we are made and help save the lives of fellow Kansans!

Please complete & print the following information:

Name:______________________ Phone #____

University:______________________________

Email:__________________________________

The English department will host its 46th annual Fall English Workshop on Friday, September 19, 2008, in the Memorial Union from 8:00 - 2:30. Running concurrently will be a Young Writers and Readers Seminar for high school students, who will participate in a Literary Quiz Bowl and Grammar Games--and will choose between Poetry Writing and Fiction Writing sessions as well. 

For more information, visit the department's website at www.fhsu.edu/english or contact Cheryl Hofstetter Duffy '84, the workshop chair at (785) 628-5317.

The Fort Hays State football team will be continuing the Junior Tiger program this season, and it is free to all who sign up. Registration is Saturday, September 13, from 7:30-8 am at Lewis Field Stadium. If participants are unable to register the first week, they can sign up at a later date. The sessions will take place on Saturday mornings preceding each Fort Hays home football game from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m.

The Junior Tiger program provides all boys and girls the opportunity to learn and practice football skills under the supervision of the coaches and players from Fort Hays State University. Junior Tigers is open to all kids from grades K-6. The hour-long session will involve warm-up, football drills, and touch football games each designed to maximize fun and participation. As a Junior Tiger, the students receive one hour of free football instruction, autographs from their favorite Tiger players, a chance to meet the Tiger coaches and players, and free admission to that week’s home game.

At FHSU, a unique new course is challenging students to invent the best future possible. Through a partnership between the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), the New York Times, the American Association for State Colleges and Universities (AASCU), and eight participating institutions of higher education, students are provided information on the seven greatest trends that will shape their future.

The purpose of this course is to educate and encourage the development of globally competent citizens and leaders. Students will be asked to think deeply about their world, current issues, their local environment, and their personal responsibility as global citizens.

Using the framework of “Seven Revolutions” (7R’s), seven key worldwide trends identified by CSIS analyst Erik Peterson, this project integrates resources from CSIS, The New York Times and other sources into a repository of materials for college faculty and students.

For more information contact Dr. Curt Brungardt ’81, at cbrungar@fhsu.edu.

Dr. Gary D. Brinker has accepted the position of director of Fort Hays State University’s prestigious Docking Institute of Public Affairs. He will also become a member of the university’s Department of Sociology and Social Work. He replaces Dr. Brett Zollinger, who will become chair of the Sociology and Social Work Department, replacing Rose Arnhold ‘63, who is returning to full-time teaching.

Brinker comes to FHSU from Missouri State University, Springfield, where he taught in the Department of Sociology and served as director of the Center for Social Sciences and Public Policy Research.

Brinker majored in sociology at Baylor University, Waco, Texas, where he earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees. He said he was “fascinated by the discipline,” so he decided to pursue a terminal degree in Baylor’s Doctoral Program in Applied Sociology.

Brinker received his Ph.D. in Applied Sociology from Baylor University in 1997 and accepted a tenure track position as an assistant professor in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology. He also was appointed Associate Director of the Center for Social Research at Southwest Missouri State University (now Missouri State University). In 2002, he was tenured, promoted to associate professor and assumed the position of director of the newly named Center for Social Sciences and Public Policy Research. In 2007, he was promoted to full professor, continuing to do applied community research.

Tiger athletic fans have greater access to Tiger Sports than ever before. Fans world-wide can listen to live audio broadcasts with Voice of the Tigers Gerard Welbrock on Mix 103 at 103.3 FM or via the Internet at http://www.tigersports.net/. Recorded interviews and other information is also available on this site.  Football and basketball videos are available live world-wide over the Internet through the Penn Atlantic Web site at http://www.pennatlantic.com/main.php.  KFHS, the Fort Hays State University Television station shoots video of all home games. This video is provided live to Penn Atlantic for Internetcasting and is distributed on a delayed basis a few days after home games to more than 50 Kansas communities that are part of the Nex-Tech Cable system and four communities that are part of the Eagle Communications Cable system. When the Tigers are on the road for conference football and basketball games, the home team will provide a videocast to Penn Atlantic.

Fans also can follow live stats throughout the games via the Athletics Web site at fhsuathletics.com/livestats.

The Kansas Youth Leadership Academy is getting ready to kick off the 2008-2009 middle school and high school seminar season. This year’s theme focuses on leadership concepts, mentoring, teambuilding, problem-solving, and anti-bullying concepts. The seminars include fun and interactive activities as well as academic sessions. KYLA will be traveling to six locations throughout the year, including three new locations around the state of Kansas.

Locations and dates include the Northwest Kansas Educational Service Center in Oakley, on September 16 and 17, Seward County Community College in Liberal, on September 30 and October 1, Allen County Community College in Iola, on October 15 and 16, and Sternberg Museum in Hays, on October 21 and 22. Spring dates include The University of Kansas in Lawrence, on January 20 and 21, and Hutchinson Community College in Hutchinson, on January 27 and 28, 2009.

For more information about seminars or other KYLA events, please visit www.developingleaders.org, send an email to kyla@fhsu.edu, or call 785-628-5399. KYLA is excited for the year ahead!

The 61st High Plains Band Camp was a tremendous week running July 20-23, with 225 students arriving from across Kansas, and as far as Nashville, TN, for an intense seven days of rehearsing, learning, and fun.

Campers auditioned for one of four Wind Ensembles, under the direction of David & Winona Holsinger (Lee University), Jeff Jordan (FHSU Director of Bands), Sid Showalter (Hutchinson Public Schools) and Johannah Cox ’78, (Lawrence Public Schools).  In addition to the Concert Bands, students auditioned for jazz ensembles and 16 other Chamber Music groups. 

Throughout the week, students were coached and heard stellar performances by guest artists including tubist Ed Jones ’83, (Fort Worth Symphony), trombonist Jimmy Clark (Dallas Wind Symphony), jazz bassoonist Michael Rabinowitz (New Jersey artist), pianist & vocalist, Mark Shilansky (Berkley School of Music), and flautist Jennifer Rhyne (Pacific Lutheran University).

The Science & Mathematics Education Institute at Fort Hays State University was hard at work over the summer hosting several camps for middle school aged students. The purpose of these educational camps is to encourage the younger generation to participate in science and math and eventually to pursue a career in the field.

The first of the three summer camps was the 3rd Annual Girls’ Mathematics & Science Camp. The week-long, on-campus camp provided girls entering the 8th grade the opportunity to meet distinguished women who have a career in math or science, including a KBI agent, optometrist, psychologist, and a science teacher, just to name a few. The girls also participated in activities such as astronomy, geocaching, blood splatter analysis, and soil sampling. 

Jason Johnston, a Topeka STARBASE Program Instructor spent a week at FHSU to facilitate the STARBASE Camp which took place June 16-20. Both boys and girls participated in the camp and learned about Newton’s Laws of Motion, Bernoulli’s Principle, Model Rocketry, and Space Exploration.  In addition to learning about the laws of math and science of space and flight, campers built model rockets that were launched during the graduation ceremony for their parents to see.

The final camp for the summer took place from June 23 to June 27. Youth attended the Fast Track Science Summer Camp and learned about physics and mathematics by building and racing model cars. The campers worked in groups throughout the week to learn about speed, distance, force, and factor labeling.  At the end of each day, the teams earned points by racing their cars, and at the end of the week, those with the highest score were awarded a prize!

FHSU faculty from the science, mathematics, and computer departments volunteer their time to be presenters and ensure the continued success of these programs. Through generous funding and much appreciated volunteers, these camps continue to help area students learn and live mathematics and science. For more information about the Science & Mathematics Education Institute, go to http://www.fhsu.edu/scimathcenter.

Fort Hays State University's Dr. Mark Bannister ’85 has been selected as a senior fellow of the International Telecommunications Education and Research Association (ITERA).

Bannister is chair of the Department of Information Networking and Telecommunications and director of the Information Enterprise Institute at FHSU. He is also a senior policy fellow of the Docking Institute of Public Affairs. Bannister teaches course work on legal issues and management of information technologies. He also supervises and participates in research and programming on telecommunications, strategic planning, and community development.

He has published academic articles in publications including The Federal Communications Law Journal, Economic Development Review, Economic Development Journal, Kansas Policy Review and the Kansas Business Review. His writing and research focuses on telecommunications and technology regulation, intellectual property, information security, and economic development.

As chair of the Department of Information Networking and Telecommunications, he has overseen the growth of the program from 58 undergraduate students in 1999 to more than 300 current undergraduate and graduate students. The department was named by ITERA as the "Outstanding Undergraduate Program of the Year" in 2008.

The Associated Press covered all of the events in Beijing, gathering a group of several hundred staffers from around the world to do it. Charlie Riedel, ’83, was one of them. He was in Beijing for about three weeks and covered numerous events: Shooting, Table Tennis, Hand Ball, Softball, Basketball, Beach Volleyball, Weightlifting, and Baseball. He also covered the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, both from outside the stadium. This was Reidel’s first exposure to Hand Ball and he said, “It's probably the most fun sport I have ever covered.”

Attached is a photo someone took of him while he was covering Table Tennis. The Chinese characters on the wall behind him translate into "One Dream."

This year, among other things, Riedel has covered the BCS Championship game in New Orleans, the Superbowl, the Kentucky Derby, a Grand Prix race in Montreal and the US Open in San Diego.

The FHSU Alumni Association wishes to thank Charlie’s wife, Denise (Stegman) Reidel ’86, for providing this information.