New "Outside the Classroom Curriculum" Press Release

Pitt to Offer Students Opportunity to Develop Professional Skills Through
Extracurricular Experiences in a New Program
Outside the Classroom Curriculum to be implemented this fall

PITTSBURGH-Beginning this fall, the University of Pittsburgh will
introduce the Outside the Classroom Curriculum (OCC), a Universitywide
initiative that includes a structured series of extracurricular programs
and experiences designed to complement students' academic studies. It is
designed to help students develop important personal attributes and
professional skills needed for future success.

The OCC is based on the ideals of the Pitt Pathway that emphasize a
student's journey to academic, personal, and professional success. OCC
will engage participating students in a curriculum that focuses on nine
key areas: leadership development, career preparation, communication
skills, healthy lifestyle, understanding diversity, a sense of self,
community participation, appreciation for the arts, and service to others.
Derived from goals for undergraduate students established by Pitt's Office
of the Provost, OCC was developed by a campuswide committee.

Students who complete the OCC requirements will receive an Outside the
Classroom Curriculum "transcript" that will document their participation
in the events and programs of their choice; they also will receive a green
cord of distinction to wear at commencement. Most importantly, students
will have numerous opportunities to gain and sharpen skills that will make
them more successful as students and Pitt graduates.

According to Pitt Provost and Senior Vice Chancellor James V. Maher, when
employers and admissions officers at graduate and professional schools are
surveyed, they consistently respond that they are seeking graduates who
write and speak well, have excellent computer and mathematical skills,
demonstrate sophisticated quantitative reasoning, think clearly, read
critically, make good decisions, and understand the diversity of our
society in the United States as well as in cultures of the world.

"In short, they are looking for a sophisticated, well-rounded person,"
said Maher. "What excites me about OCC is that our campus collaborated to
develop a structured way for students to accomplish this goal. This
enhanced Pitt Pathway is flexible, yet intentional; it is designed to
encourage and challenge. It provides a platform that allows students to
explore and take risks, yet at the same time be recognized for doing
things they naturally do and like to do. We look forward to positive
results as students embark on their academic journey."

"We want to help students maximize their Pitt experience and gain a
competitive edge in whatever field they choose to pursue," said Kathy
Humphrey, Pitt vice provost and dean of students. "From the moment
students arrive on campus, we want them to be thinking about their
future-what skills and attributes they should be developing both in and
outside the classroom. Mostly, we are eager to help students be
transformed into the men or women they want to become. OCC will complement
Pitt's world-class education by offering a structured way for students to
develop holistically-intellectually, culturally, socially, emotionally,
and professionally."

Incoming freshmen will be introduced to OCC at orientation training
sessions. In addition, resident assistants will conduct training sessions
on each floor of the residence halls to help students determine which
programs and activities are best suited for them. Several of the
orientation programs fulfill OCC requirements, giving freshman a
jumpstart. Second-year students and upperclassmen are being encouraged to
join the program as well.

Pitt's undergraduate schools, who participated in designing OCC, will
provide support through administrators who will encourage students to
chart a course of action to maximize the benefits of the various programs
within their units. In addition, many schools offer programs that will
satisfy the requirements of OCC.

The University will use a software package customized by Pitt's Computing
Services and Systems Development that will be accessible through
my.pitt.edu. The software will enable students to track their progress by
using a checklist for each goal category. Students will have the ability
to register for programs, track their attendance through the use of a
swipe card system, and ultimately generate a transcript.

Advising for the beginning of fall term

Yes, summer is almost over and the fall term is almost here.

Please note: I will be out of the country the week of August 18 at a conference and doing some library research. This means that I will not be available to meet between August 18 and August 22 and my e-mail access may be limited.

IF YOU HAVE NOT REGISTERED FOR THE FALL TERM, GET IN TOUCH WITH ME ASAP to schedule a meeting next week, the week of August 11, if you are in town, or via e-mail, if you are out of town. If you have not registered (and you were not on study abroad last spring), you will have to pay a penalty fee. However, yuou must be registered by Monday August 25 (the first day of classes).

If you need other advising, feel free to e-mail anytime between now and the beginning of the term and I will try to answer your question. But keep in mind that I may not be able to answer you during the period August 16-24.

My regular drop-in office hours in the fall term will be Wednesdays, 1-2:50 pm. However, I will have additional drop-in hours during the first week of the semester as follows:

Monday August 25: 1-3 pm
Tuesday August 26 9:30-11:30 am
Thursday and Friday -- TBA

Enjoy the rest of the summer.

Fall courses

If you are still looking for Fall term Religious Studies courses:

There are seats remaining in Religion in Early America, Wisdom, Modern Israel (check recitations), and Japanese Religious Traditions.
A few seats for Religions of the West that had been held for freshmen will be released this week.

Feel free to e-mail me if you would like to add one of these course--or fill out an add/drop in the Registrar's office. (Advisor's signature is not required for an add-drop.)

Fall Break! Monday on Tuesday!

Sorry about all the exclamation marks: the formatting must have gotten funny when I pasted from the PDF:

Office of the University Registrar 220 Thackeray Hall
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15260
!
To:!!! ! Members!of!the!University!Community!
Subject:!!! Important!Notice!Regarding!the!Academic!Calendar!
!
Please!note!that!the!University!Academic!Calendar!for!Fall!2008!includes!a!one"day!Fall!Break!for!
students!on!Monday,!October!13,!2008.!!Classes!will!not!be!held!on!this!day.!!To!maintain!the!required!
minimum!number!of!class!meetings,!Monday!classes!will!meet!on!Tuesday,!October!14,!2008.!!Tuesday!
classes!will!not!meet!the!week!of!October!13.!!
University!offices!and!buildings!will!remain!open!and!staffed!during!Fall!Break.!
The!shifting!of!Monday!classes!to!Tuesday!and!the!cancelling!of!Tuesday!classes!during!the!week!of!Fall!
Break!may!be!confusing!at!first.!!However,!the!experience!at!other!institutions!seems!to!be!that!this!
works!as!long!as!everyone!is!well!informed!of!the!changes.!!Your!assistance!in!getting!the!word!out!will!
be!needed!to!make!this!a!success!at!Pitt.!!In!particular,!ALL!FACULTY!TEACHING!COURSES!AFFECTED!BY!FALL!
BREAK!ARE!ASKED!TO!NOTE!THE!CHANGE!ON!THEIR!SYLLABI!AND!MAKE!ANNOUNCEMENTS!THE!FIRST!DAY!OF!CLASSES!AND!
REGULARLY!THROUGHOUT!THE!TERM!PRIOR!TO!THE!FALL!BREAK.!
In!the!past,!the!Fall!Calendar!has!included!14!class!meeting!days!on!Monday,!Wednesday,!Thursday,!and!
Friday,!and!15!on!Tuesday.!!As!a!result!of!the!change!to!the!Calendar,!there!will!be!14!meeting!days!for!
classes!each!day!of!the!week!in!Fall!2008.!!!
Programs!that!do!not!follow!the!University!Academic!Calendar!are!not!affected!by!this!change.!!!These!
include!the!first!professional!degree!programs!in!Medicine,!Dental!Medicine,!Pharmacy,!and!Law,!as!well!
as!the!Joseph!M.!Katz!Graduate!School!of!Business.!!The!Calendar!directs!students!in!these!programs!to!
their!Dean’s!Office!for!information.!
Copies!of!the!calendar!have!been!distributed!separately.!
!
!

Korean Film Festival

After a break for the 4th of July, the SOUTH KOREAN FILM FESTIVAL resumes this THURSDAY at 8pm in 120 DAVID LAWRENCE HALL.



The newest and most spectacular films from the series are still ahead, including:



This week, July 10: SOPYONJE (Im Kwon-taek, 1993)

Possibly the most famous Korean film ever made, Sopyonje was the first Korean "blockbuster," drawing more than 1 million viewers to theaters in S. Korea. A serenely beautiful period piece set in part during the Japanese colonization of Korea, this film brought renewed attention to the art of p'ansori, the telling of stories through song. An elegiac tale of three itinerant singers, it also has political overtones.



July 17: THE DAY A PIG FELL INTO THE WELL (Hong Sang-su, 1996)

Critically acclaimed and award winner at many film festivals, The Day a Pig Fell Into the Well innovates film structure by interweaving four narratives, following various characters seemingly at the end of their rope. Made one of the major auteurs of New Korean Cinema, this difficult and ambitious film pries into the violence and desperation of modern life.



July 24: I'M A CYBORG, BUT THAT'S OKAY (Park Chan-wook, 2006)

Cult director of the revenge trilogy (Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, Oldboy, Lady Vengeance), Park brings his odd sense of humor to this tale of patients in a mental institution, including one girl who fancies herself a cyborg. Co-starring Jung Ji-hoon (better known as the Asian pop star "Bi" or "Rain"), this quirky love story revisits the theme of the difficulty of communication.



July 31: SECRET SUNSHINE (Lee Chang-dong, 2007)

This intense and brutally realistic film won its star, Jeon Do-yeon, the Best Actress Award at the Cannes Film Festival. A haunting investigation of loss and the aftermath of trauma, Secret Sunshine uses cinematic language to show us images of pathos-filled beauty.





More detailed descriptions of the films are available on the Film Studies Events page: http://www.pitt.edu/~filmst/events/fy07-08events/Korean_Film_Festival.pdf



*All films are Thursdays at 8pm in 120 David Lawrence Hall on the Pitt campus. Screenings are free and open to the university community. Films will be projected from DVD.*



Co-sponsored by the Film Studies Program. If you have any questions or comments, please email Tanine at tanineallison@gmail.com , Seung-hwan at tonio1017@gmail.com, or Candice at candicewilson@hotmail.com.

Program at Harvard Divinity School for Undergraduates

Greetings!

I am following up to a Save-The-Date email sent in June regarding HarvardDivinity School's second annual "Diversity and Explorations Program," a
multicultural outreach initiative which will take place October 22 through
24. We want to let you know that the application materials and more
detailed information about the program are now available on our website.

To access the 2008 Program Application, please click here:
http://www.hds.harvard.edu/afa/visiting/events.html#diversity

To download a flyer with further information about the program as
well as a tentative schedule, please click here:
http://www.hds.harvard.edu/afa/pdfs/2008%20Flyer_%20DivEx%20(Legal%20Versio
n)%20PDF.pdf

Please feel free to contact our office at admissions@hds.harvard.edu or
call (617) 495-5796 if you have questions about the program or would like
to update to your contact information.

Best regards,
Angela Counts
Assistant Director of Admissions
Harvard Divinity School

Just like eating Levy's Rye Bread...

You don't have to be Jewish to take this survey. This e-mail came from a colleague who researches Jewish languages and asked me to spread the word as widely as possible to both Jews and non-Jews.

You are invited to participate in an interesting and entertaining survey
about language. Essentially, we’re asking about the spread of Yiddish
(and some Hebrew) among English speakers in North America. We’re
turning to both Jews and non-Jews to answer questions like these: Who
uses Yiddish words like “shmooze” and “daven” and phrases like “Money,
shmoney”? Why do some people say “temple” while others say “shul”? Who
prefers biblical names for their babies? Your responses will help us
answer these and other questions, and you might learn something about
yourself in the process. Please set aside 15-20 minutes, and click on
this link to participate.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=9eQwWyblG_2b8ixLqbt6QFhg_3d_3d

Please forward this e-mail to your friends and family. We are hoping to
get thousands of responses from people of all religions, ages, and
regions of the United States and Canada. If you have any questions,
feel free to e-mail Prof. Sarah Bunin Benor or Prof. Steven M. Cohen .


Sincerely,

Prof. Sarah Bunin Benor
Prof. Steven M. Cohen
Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion

PS From AS: the Levy's Rye Bread is an old commercial; ask your parents or maybe your grandparents...

RISING SENIORS AND JUNIORS TAKE NOTE: FULBRIGHT NSF INFO SESSION TOMORROW

Date: Friday, June 20, 2008
Time: 10 AM - 12 Noon
Where: Babcock Room, University Honors College,* 36th floor of the
Cathedral of Learning

Need Funding for Graduate School Study-Nationally and Abroad ?
Do you enjoy doing research?
Have you ever thought about getting a Ph.D.?
Would you like to teach English abroad?
Do you want to do research or take coursework abroad?

If you are a current senior or in your first year of graduate school, come to a workshop on writing proposals for the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program. The workshop will help you understand what NSF and Fulbright are looking for, will help you write a competitive proposal, and will help your referees write better letters of recommendation for you.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) offers 3-year graduate fellowships (tuition and a monthly stipend) to students in science, math, engineering and the social sciences to be used at ANY school in the US or abroad . The Fulbright Scholarship provides funding for 1 year to teach, reserach, or take coursework in one of over 100 countries.

Come to the workshop even if you're not positive you are interested in a Ph.D. or study abroad; writing a fellowship proposal can help you decide!

*To get to the Babcock Room: Take the Cathedral of Learning elevator to the 36th floor. Go to the front desk and make a right toward the window, and another small elevator will be on your right. Take this elevator to the 40th floor. The Babcock Room will be in front of you when you get off the elevator.


Amy Eckhardt
Director of National Scholarships and International Programming
University Honors College
University of Pittsburgh
ave@pitt.edu

Job Opportunity in DC

Editor Position at Biblical Archaeology Review

Assistant Editor. Biblical Archaeology Review (BAR), a non-sectarian bi-monthly magazine, is seeking an editor for its magazine and website. With a circulation of ~160,000, BAR is the premier popular magazine in the field of Biblical archaeology. We’re looking for someone with strong writing and editing skills who can also help us expand our website (http://www.bib-arch.org) and keep its content fresh. If you love words and ancient history but also know what CMS, SEO and RSS feed mean, we’d like to talk to you. Familiarity with Adobe InDesign a plus; 2-4 years experience; salary 30s. Send letter, resume and recent writing samples to BAS EDITOR, 4710-41st St. NW, DC 20016 or email: bas@bib-arch.org.

Lecture on Rumi March 9

ELEPHANTS BY CANDLELIGHT:

INSIGHTS ON THE POETIC SOUL OF IRAN

Friday, May 9, 3pm, 4130 Posvar Hall

Dr. Fatemeh Keshavarz-Karanrustafa, chair of the Department of Asian and Near
Eastern Languages and Literatures and professor of Persian and comparative literature
at Washington University in St. Louis, and author of Jasmine and Stars: Reading More
than Lolita in Tehran, will discuss her extensive study of the poetry of Rumi and the
influence of the poetic spirit on contemporary Iran.

Sponsored by the Global Studies Program of the University Center for International Studies at the University of Pittsburgh, and by the John & Lauretta Leone Memorial Fund