DSC Business Students Place in Global Simulation Competition
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Dec. 17, 2004) In its third semester of competition, Dixie State College entered the Capstone Challenge, an international business simulation competition, this fall semester and recorded its best showing so far.
Competing against 130 other colleges and universities, Dixie State's R.J. (Rory) Mathews and Neils Nisson earned eleventh place, the highest ranking of any Utah college or university. Another DSC team, composed solely of Kody Young, came in twenty-first place. Rankings were based according to highest cumulative profit. All three are senior students in DSC’s business administration program.
This fall’s competition featured colleges and university teams from all around the world, from Sung Kyun Kwan University in South Korea and Istanbul Bilgi University in Turkey to the University of British Columbia (first place team) and DePaul University.
Once each semester, Illinois-based Management Solutions, Inc., which owns the simulation invites students using their simulation to enter the intercollegiate global competition. Students are normally either upper division business students or graduate business students.
DSC business professor Dr. Bill Christensen said each team competing in the Capstone Challenge had to make decisions about research and development, advertising and promotion, production, and finance. Throughout the semester, each student team ran a company over the course of approximately six simulations, the equivalent of nearly 50 years of business decisions.
Teams made simulated sales and accumulated profit based on their performance against five computer-managed teams. DSC’s eleventh place team eared a cumulative profit of $297,495,971, with DSC’s twenty-first place team earning $225,695,771. Earnings ranged from $468,738,060 to $188,034,299 in the competition.
“The idea is to give students the opportunity to integrate what they have learned in their various business courses in a near-real business experience,” Christensen said. “The simulation is good enough that it is also used to train top business executives around the country.”
Christensen uses the simulation competition as part of the curriculum for the college’s strategic management course, the culminating course of the college’s four-year business administration degree. He believes the competition benefits his students, and he plans to continue entering the competition each semester.
“This was an outstanding showing from our students representing DSC's relatively new four-year business program,” Christensen continued. “I hope that future students will be able to build on this success and do even better.”

DSC's Jekyll and Hyde Cast Receives Honors
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Dec. 16, 2004) Dixie State College’s recent production of Jekyll and Hyde was performed locally in the new Eccles Fine Arts Center, but many outside St. George and even the state have begun taking note, and the honors are beginning to pile up.
The entire cast of the production has been selected to perform at the regional conference of the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival, to be held Feb. 7-13, 2005 in Phoenix, Ariz.
The Dixie State production was one of seven college and university productions selected to take part in the festival in the region, which includes California, Utah, Nevada, and Arizona, and was the only two-year theater program invited to perform.
“This is a tremendous honor for us,” said Varlo Davenport, director of theater at DSC. “To be selected one of seven from among the dozens and dozens of participating universities, including graduate programs, is a huge credit to our program at Dixie.”
In addition, three members of the cast – Skyler Scott (as Henry Jekyll/Edward Hyde), Katelyn Johnson (as Emma Carew), and Allie Eddington (as Nellie/Esemble) – have been nominated to audition for the prestigious Irene Ryan Acting Scholarship at the same festival.
“We’re so proud of the Jekyll and Hyde cast and of these young actors who have been nominated for the Irene Ryan Scholarship,” said Dr. Robert Huddleston, DSC president. “It speaks to the quality of our theater program.”
In Phoenix, all seven participating shows will be adjudicated, with the possibility of one or two of those productions being selected to perform at the national festival at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., all expenses paid. The regional festival productions will be judged by a panel of three judges selected by the Kennedy Center and the KCACTF national committee.
Started in 1969 by Roger L. Stevens, the Kennedy Center’s founding chairman, the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival is a national theater program involving 18,000 students from colleges and universities nationwide, which has served as a catalyst in improving the quality of college theater in the United States. The KCACTF has grown into a network of more than 600 academic institutions throughout the country, where theater departments and student artists showcase thei r work and receive outside assessment by KCACTF respondents.
The St. George performance was the second theater production to be staged in the new Eccles Fine Arts Center and was greeted with several sell out performances. In addition to Scott, Johnson, and Eddington, cast and crew members include:
Characters Actors
Gabriel John Utterson Aaron Meadows
Sir Danvers Carew Bruce Bennett
Henry Jekyll/Edward Hyde Skyler Scott
Ryan Norton
Simon Stride/Ensemble Nathan Copier
Lady Beaconsfield/Ensemble Shandra Blake
The Bishop of Basingstoke/Ensemble Ryan Christenson
Lord Savage/Ensemble Brent Palmer
General Lord Glossop/Ensemble Spencer Marshall
Sir Archibald Proops/Ensemble John Graff
Emma Carew Katelyn Johnson
Lucy Harris Holly Pease
Nellie/Ensemble Allie Eddington
Spider/Ensemble Skyler Jewell
Poole/The Inmate Ryan Norton
Skyler Scott
Bisset Chris Snyder
Guenevere Kiki Shakespeare
People of London:
Beggar/Ensemble Bryan Stephenson
Newsboy/Ensemble Taylor Williams
Red Rat Girl /Ensemble Sam Cummings
Red Rat Girl/Ensemble Chelsea Carnahan
Red Rat Girl/Ensemble Lindsay Williams
Laundress/Ensemble Jessica McKeehan
Flower Seller/Ensemble Quinn Drake
Porter/Ensemble Shawn Mattson
Crew:
Director Varlo Davenport
Vocal Direction Ken Peterson, Ph.D.
Orchestra Direction Scott M. Tanner
Choreographer Wendy Turner
Set Design Brent Hanson, Ph.D.
Light Design Joseph L. Eddy
Sound Design Josh Scott
Costume Design Andrea Davenport
Technical Direction Josh Scott
Stage Manager Isaac Spafford
Properties Mistress Tanya Roundy

Students of the Semester Named at Dixie State College
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Dec. 15, 2004) As fall semester draws to a close at Dixie State College, 18 students recently received Student of the Semester honors. Individual departments on campus made the selections based on academic and extracurricular achievement of the students. A faculty representative from each department was on hand to present the students the awards.
Ryan Hardison, a junior from St. George, received the honor in the area of art. Karen Stokes, a sophomore from St. George, was named business/office administrator Student of the Semester. In the area of communications, Tennille Olsen, a freshman student from North Ogden, received the award. Carla Neilson, a senior from St. George, received computer science honors. Kurt Marchant, a freshman from Beaver, received the award in the area of developmental studies.
Danyelle Evans was named dental hygiene Student of the Semester. Diane Winger, a senior from St. George, received the award in the area of elementary education. In English, Elizabeth Jensen, a freshman from Salt Lake, won the award.
Kellie Cove, a freshman student from Enterprise, received the award in the area of education and family sciences; Shannon Kay Stead, a sophomore from St. George, in humanities; Claucia Talbot, a sophomore from Hurricane, in humanities (Hurricane Center); Cynthia Heaton, a sophomore from St. George, in mathematics (Hurricane Center); Brant Nikolaus, a sophomore from St. George, in mathematics; Tammy Lewis, a senior from Kanab, in nursing; Kendalee Richardson, a sophomore from St. George, in science; John Smith, a sophomore from Burley, Idaho, in social sciences; Mason Petersen, a freshman from Ogden, in theatre arts; and Elizabeth Stucki, a junior from Cedar City, in visual technology.

Huddleston Calls It a Career
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Dec. 14, 2004) After nearly 12 years at the helm of Dixie State College, college president Dr. Robert Huddleston is moving on. That announcement was made today and will take effect June 30, 2005.
DSC’s fifteenth president, Huddleston came to Dixie in 1993 from Gateway Community College in Phoenix, Ariz., where he served as dean of instruction. After first landing at Dixie, it was reported that Huddleston wanted for Dixie what Gateway had gotten – growth. “Give me six months and I’ll tell you how much,” he told St. George’s Daily Spectrum at the time. Twelve years later, enrollment at Dixie State has grown from 3,000 to over 8,000. Full-time enrollment has also more than doubled.
“It’s time for new leadership at the college,” Huddleston stated. “I’ve had a different emphasis than Dr. Alder during my time here, and there’s no doubt my successor will take the college in a new direction. Periodic change in leadership is appropriate and healthy.”
Huddleston has become known for his vision and will perhaps be most remembered for his role in establishing Dixie College as a four-year state institution in 2000. Two bachelor’s degrees were introduced at the college at that time. Two years later, the college added an elementary education degree, a nursing degree in 2004, and is now eyeing a fifth degree in communications.
“President Huddleston has guided many significant changes, but I think his development of the health sciences and bachelor’s degrees will ha ve the most lasting impact on the College,” said vice president of college services Stan Plewe, who has now served with four different DSC presidents. “We are a very different institution in many ways than we were when he was first hired. It has been a very enjoyable experience to see the growth and improvements during the Huddleston years.”
During his tenure, the number of buildings on campus has also grown extensively. He led the charge to assume full ownership of the former Dixie Convention Center, which is now home to a computer center, fitness center, a fine and performing arts auditorium, and a basketball arena. He acquired the former LDS Institute Building and a former Harmon’s grocery store, which now headquarter the college’s art and math departments along with several other programs. And he played a key role in obtaining funding for the Udvar-Hazy Business Building and Eccles Fine Arts Center, and is currently leading the charge to build a facility dedicated entirely to the health sciences.
One of Huddleston’s mantras has been accountability. Under his leadership, Dixie State has gained a reputation in the eyes of many as one of the best-managed institutions of higher learning in the state. The college’s annual report each year and plan for institutional effectiveness have been praised by many and have been a testament to his commitment to accountability. Fundraising has been another. The college has raised an average of $3 million each year under his leadership and millions more in deferred gifts.
“Bob Huddleston has been incredibly far-sighted in his vision of Dixie’s potential,” said associate vice president of advancement Bill Fowler, who also has worked with four Dixie College presidents. “He has been a tremendous asset for Dixie in working with the Legislature, and is highly respected and admired by the Regents and the Utah System of Higher Education Council of Presidents. He loves Dixie State College and has been the point man on every critical issue that has brought success to Dixie.”
Economic development has been another focus of Huddleston’s. He established the first paid professional position for economic development in Washington County, which continues to be headquartered on the Dixie campus. He organized the Leadership Dixie Committee, the mission of which has been to develop a corps of informed, qualified individuals capable of providing dynamic leadership for Washington County, and chaired the first year of its operation.
A former baseball player drafted by two major league baseball teams, Huddleston has also been a supporter of intercollegiate athletics. Prior to his arrival, the college had won a single national championship. Since 2000, Dixie has won four additional national championships, one of which was captained by volunteer head soccer coach Linda Huddleston, his wife. Currently, the college is eyeing a jump to the NCAA Division II level in order to better align its athletic department with the academic mission of the college.
Huddleston will take a year’s leave of absence and then begin teaching in the business department at Dixie State College beginning fall semester of 2006. He has taught an accounting course at the college for the past two years.
“My family and I love Washington County and are grateful for the opportunity to stay,” Huddleston continued.
The search for a replacement for Huddleston will begin immediately and will ultimately be determined by the Utah State Board of Regents.

Fine Arts Center Receives Award
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Dec. 10, 2004) The new Dolores Dore’ Eccles Fine Arts Center at Dixie State College was the recipient of three awards at the annual Intermountain Contractor Best of 2004 awards ceremony held this month in Salt Lake City.
The facility received awards for “Best Architectural Design,” “Best Higher Education Design,” and also received the “Best Public Project Design Silver Award.”
Particularly impressive to the Intermountain Contractor judging panel was that the design of the building accommodates three different arts disciplines – theatre, music, and fine arts – but also that the design and materials used in the facility reflect the look and feel of the southwestern corner of the state.
The theatrical wing of the facility includes a 510-seat main stage theatre and an intimate black box theatre that seats up to 150 people. The building also includes a 250-seat concert hall, a 5,000 square foot art gallery, an outdoor amphitheatre, rehearsal areas, faculty offices, and classrooms. A section of the former fine arts building was also preserved and renovated into two dance halls.
Intermountain Contractor received nearly 50 entries this year for construction and design projects from both Utah and Idaho. Winners were selected based on design quality and innovation, craftsmanship, contribution to the industry, solutions to unique design challenges and construction challenge and overall excellence. Size or cost of a project was not considered.
Other notable projects receiving honors included the Huntsman Cancer Hospital (Project of the Year), the Cedar City Library, the Brigham Young University Athletic Complex, BYU’s Joseph F. Smith Building, KUTV’s new Main Street Studios, the Utah State Capitol East & West Annex Buildings, the renovated First Presbyterian Church in Salt Lake, and Fossil Ridge Intermediate School in St. George.
Earlier this year, the Eccles Fine Arts Center also received the 2004 Honor Award presented by the Utah Society of the American Institute of Architects. The Eccles Fine Arts Center was designed by Gould Evans Architects. The general contractor was Layton Construction. College employees intimately involved in the project include vice president of college services Stan Plewe, executive director of campus services Ned Carnahan and his staff, and the fine arts faculty.

DSC to Present Faculty Christmas Concert
( St. George, UT — Dec. 10, 2004) Christmas lights are glittering, shopping sales are everywhere, and the Christmas spirit will be felt in abundance at the Dixie State College Faculty Christmas Concert to be held Friday, Dec. 17, at 7:30 p.m. in the new Concert Hall of the Eccles Fine Arts Center.
The Yuletide concert will feature beloved Christmas music, both sacred and fun, instrumental and vocal, all performed by DSC’s full-time faculty, as well as some part-time faculty and staff members. Sponsored by the Cultural Arts Department, the concert will benefit future fine art performances planned for the Center.
Among the performers will be vocalists Ken Peterson, Lena Judee, Mark Petersen, Jackie Jackson, and Sandie Stevenson, trumpeter Gary Caldwell, pianists Nancy Allred and Lynn Dean, guitarist Lisle Crowley, and violinist Scott Tanner.
“As was showcased during our dedication celebration of the Eccles building, our faculty and staff have diverse musical talents, and that will be one of the strong points of this concert,” said Chris Taylor, DSC spokesman.
Attendees will be able to enjoy the Gregory Abbott and Matt Clark Art Exhibit in the Sears Gallery at the same tim e.
Tickets for the Faculty Christmas Concert are on sale now at the Avenna Center Ticket Office, open Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Prices are $8 for adults and $5 for faculty, students and children. Call 652-7800 to reach the box office or purchase tickets online at www.dixie.edu.

Embedded War Filmmaker to Speak
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Dec. 7, 2004) Filmmaker Dodge Billingsley, who was recently embedded with a Marines unit in Iraq, will present a special forum Thursday, Dec. 9 at noon in the Dunford Auditorium at Dixie State College. The forum, entitled "Covering War: A Current Look at the Evolving Nature of Warfare and Media Coverage," is sponsored by the Utah Humanities Council.
For over 10 years, Billingsley has been covering war and conflict in such far-flung places as the Republic of Georgia, Afghanistan, and Iraq. His presentation will focus on the two ongoing U.S. conflicts abroad and discuss how the nature of war, and covering war, have evolved. Issues of objectivity, censorship, friction between the military and media, embedded journalism, and the nature and impact of war coverage will all be examined in this discussion.
Billingsley will also show excerpts from his most recent film, “Virgin Soldiers,” in which he followed a squad of Marines from their base in southern California to the end of combat operations in Baghdad. The film aired on Channel 4 UK and other markets worldwide and was recently named a finalist for the prestigious Rory Peck award for Best Feature.
“There is no political agenda associated with this forum,” said Dr. Tim Bywater, DSC English professor and UHC board member. “We anticipate an objective, but also a very powerful account of some of the recent events in Iraq and other areas of the world.”
Billingsley is the director of Combat Films & Research (CF&R), a small, conflict oriented, think-tank that uses film and video footage as its primary source for research. It sends small camera crews throughout the world to document military and political conflicts and use the footage and information about the area brought back by the crews to assess what is happening in that particular country. These analyses take the form of documentary films, academic papers, articles, and lectures.
Billingsley won the Royal Television Society award and Rory Peck award, both for Best Feature, in 2002, for his documentation of the battle for Qala Jangi fortress in Afghanistan. Months later he was also among the first to document the U.S. led Operation Anaconda in Afghanistan’s Shah i Kot Valley.
He also co-wrote, produced, and directed Immortal Fortress: A Look Inside Chechnya’s Warrior Culture, a film that took him deep into the dangerous war-torn breakaway region of Chechnya. Prior to that, he produced a three-part series entitled Firepower 2000 for the Discovery Channel that explored weapons and the changing nature of warfare. He also co-produced a three part series on the Gulf War 1991 for the History Channel.
Most recently, Billingsley has been in Kiev Ukraine to take a first hand look at the unfolding revolution in the wake of a controversial presidential election in which the former president Leonid Kuchma's hand picked successor, and pro Russian candidate, Viktor Yanukovich, beat out pro western rival Viktor Yushchenko by the slimmest of margins.
In October, Combat Films and Research completed the first of five programs for the series, “Beyond the Border.” The series, a cooperative effort with the David M. Kennedy Center for International Studies at Brigham Young University, was over a year in the making and covers topics ranging to military theory to art and politics, to political geography. The programs are currently airing on PBS affiliate KBYU.
Billingsley obtained a BA in history from Columbia University and a MA in War Studies from King’s College Department of War Studies in London.

 

DSC to Host Annual Christmas Ceramic Sale
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Dec. 6, 2004) The lobby of the North Plaza Building on the campus of Dixie State College will transform into its own “pottery barn” of sorts this week. The Dixie State College art department will hold its annual ceramic sale Dec. 8-10 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the North Plaza located at 55 South 900 East.
An annual tradition at the college, the sale is now in its twenty-eighth year. Many DSC art students use the sale to help pay for their college education. Hundreds of hand-made ceramic pieces will be on sale at reasonable prices.
“Many of our students have made tremendous progress this semester,” said DSC art professor Glen Blakley. &ldqu o;We have some students doing work that you would normally see at the graduate level or beyond. Their work reflects their love and dedication to a very demanding medium.”
The department holds a similar sale toward the end of spring semester as well. For more information about the ceramic sale, call DSC art professor Glen Blakley at 652-7795.

Paleontologist to Speak
(ST. GEORGE – Dec. 6, 2004) Dr. Jerry Harris, the new director of paleontology at Dixie State College, will be the next speaker at Dixie Forum Tuesday (Dec. 7) at noon in the Dunford Auditorim, marking the final forum of the semester. His presentation is entitled “Dinosaurs in Dixie.”
A native of Chicago, Harris became interested in dinosaurs after making frequent trips to the Field Museum of Natural History. That childhood love was rekindled after a visit to a small museum in Boulder, Colo., and was parlayed into a bachelor’s degree in geological sciences at Colorado University, then a job at the Denver Museum of Natural History working on that museum’s “Prehistoric Journey” exhibit.
Harris later earned a mater’s degree from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, and a doctorate degree from the University of Pennsylvania. He has also worked at the Museum of Natural History and Science in Albuquerque, N.M.
As director of paleontology, Harris will work hand in hand with the City of St. George and the Dinosaur Discovery Center at the Johnson Farm Dinosaur Tracks site. He will also be charged with helping secure grants and other financial means to enhance funding of area dinosaur programs, conduct research, and promote and conduct Community Education classes and programs relating to area field sites.
A two-time speaker at Dixie Forum, Reverend France Davis will make a return visit to Dixie Forum on Jan. 18

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Five Institutions Shake Hands
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Nov. 23, 2004) Santa Claus is coming to town…a month early. He’ll make appearances at the next three Street Fair events at Dixie State College, the first of which falls on the day after Thanksgiving.
Dixie State College opened up its campus to the large-scale, open-air market style Street Fair in October to help raise money for student scholarships. Typically, the Street Fair is open the first Saturday of every month. But to accommodate Christmas shoppers, the Street Fair will be open both Nov. 26 and 27 following the Thanksgiving holiday, in addition to the regularly scheduled first Saturday in December. Street Fair hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., with Saint Nick making appearances at all three dates between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. for area children.
“The day after Thanksgiving is the biggest shopping day of the entire year. So we’re going to operate back-to-back days and back-to-back weeks to accommodate those who want to get a jumpstart on their Christmas shopping,” said Street Fair manager Chad Staheli.
Unlike a swap meet or flea market, only brand new items are available for purchase at the DSC Street Fair. Approximately 60 vendor booths will fill the area surrounding the college fountain in the heart of campus. The DSC Street Fair also includes a Farmer’s Market, food court, and live entertainment, including a climbing wall and activities for children.
The DSC Street Fair concept is designed such that all vendor space rental fees, which amounts to right around $35, go directly to DSC scholarships. All merchandise revenue brought in by vendors goes directly into their pockets.
Opportunities for vendors remain available, Staheli said. The rental fee for a vendor booth is $35 per week. There is also a $10 application fee for first-time vendors and a $5 per week special event license.
The concept is a spin off of a street fair hosted by the College of the Desert in Palm Desert, Calif., which has been in operation for about 20 years. Currently, COD nets approximately $750,000 toward its scholarship fund each year through its street fair, charging an average of $80 for booth space per day and operating both Saturday and Sunday throughout the year.
Beginning in January, DSC’s Street Fair will be open the first Saturday of every month through May in its inaugural year.
Those interested in becoming a Street Fair vendor, including the Farmer’s Market and food court, can contact George Whitehead at 435-652-7536 or Chad Staheli at 435-652-7633 or via email at streetfair@dixie.edu.

 

Santa Claus to Make Appearance at Street Fair
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Nov. 23, 2004) Santa Claus is coming to town…a month early. He’ll make appearances at the next three Street Fair events at Dixie State College, the first of which falls on the day after Thanksgiving.
Dixie State College opened up its campus to the large-scale, open-air market style Street Fair in October to help raise money for student scholarships. Typically, the Street Fair is open the first Saturday of every month. But to accommodate Christmas shoppers, the Street Fair will be open both Nov. 26 and 27 following the Thanksgiving holiday, in addition to the regularly scheduled first Saturday in December. Street Fair hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., with Saint Nick making appearances at all three dates between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. for area children.
“The day after Thanksgiving is the biggest shopping day of the entire year. So we’re going to operate back-to-back days and back-to-back weeks to accommodate those who want to get a jumpstart on their Christmas shopping,” said Street Fair manager Chad Staheli.
Unlike a swap meet or flea market, only brand new items are available for purchase at the DSC Street Fair. Approximately 60 vendor booths will fill the area surrounding the college fountain in the heart of campus. The DSC Street Fair also includes a Farmer’s Market, food court, and live entertainment, including a climbing wall and activities for children.
The DSC Street Fair concept is designed such that all vendor space rental fees, which amounts to right around $35, go directly to DSC scholarships. All merchandise revenue brought in by vendors goes directly into their pockets.
Opportunities for vendors remain available, Staheli said. The rental fee for a vendor booth is $35 per week. There is also a $10 application fee for first-time vendors and a $5 per week special event license.
The concept is a spin off of a street fair hosted by the College of the Desert in Palm Desert, Calif., which has been in operation for about 20 years. Currently, COD nets approximately $750,000 toward its scholarship fund each year through its street fair, charging an average of $80 for booth space per day and operating both Saturday and Sunday throughout the year.
Beginning in January, DSC’s Street Fair will be open the first Saturday of every month through May in its inaugural year.
Those interested in becoming a Street Fair vendor, including the Farmer’s Market and food court, can contact George Whitehead at 435-652-7536 or Chad Staheli at 435-652-7633 or via email at streetfair@dixie.edu.

Students to Get Jumpstart on Careers
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Nov. 11, 2004) Although classes on Tuesday, Nov. 16 have been cancelled at Dixie State College, nearly 2,000 students will keep the campus buzzing during Dixie's annual Career Day.
Students from 24 Utah, Nevada, and Arizona high schools, as well as DSC students, will attend over 60 career workshops scheduled from 9:30 a.m. to 12;30 p.m. on campus. The event – a DSC staple for 27 years now – helps provide students with valuable information related to their career choices.
“Career Day is all about students making an informed decision,” said Kathy Kinney, Career and Employment Services Director. “We present a wide variety of career options for high school and college students to choose from.”
Local professionals from throughout the St. George area will present information regarding job descriptions, education and training needed for a given career, salary information, and things the presenters like or dislike about the job. With 20 different presenters each hour, students will be able to choose three workshops to attend throughout the day. “Students can learn a lot from Career Day,” Kinney said, “but also important are the connections students make with professionals.”
Studies have indicated that students that set career goals, even if they change their goals at a later date, are more likely to stay in school, and their grades tend to be better.
In addition to the workshops, a general assembly has also been scheduled for 9 a.m. in DSC’s Cox Auditorium to welcome the students to campus and orient them.
Workshop schedules will be available on campus and in the college’s Career Cent er located across from the library. Morning and afternoon classes at the college have been cancelled, not only to make way for the high school students, but to allow DSC students to attend Career Day as well. Evening classes (after 5 p.m.) will continue as scheduled.
Community members are invited to attend workshops as well. For more information, call the DSC Career Center at (435) 652-7736.

Dixie Forum to Present "Mattie"
(ST. GEORGE – Nov. 5, 2004) Dixie Forum will transform into a theater Tuesday, Nov. 9, at Dixie State College with a production of “Mattie,” which takes center stage at noon in the Dunford Auditorium. Created and directed by Nonie Sorensen, the musical depicts the life of Martha Hughes Cannon, who was both a doctor in Utah’s early days and the first female state senator in America.Cannon was married to Angus M. Cannon, one of the 300 heads of families called by Brigham Young to settle St. George in 1861. He was elected the first mayor of St. George.
Local performer Sandee Stevenson will play the role Cannon, and Mark Petersen, director of cultural arts at Dixie, will play the roles of all of the men in her life. Stevenson teaches voice at the college and performs in the Southwest Chorale and Lietto Choir as a soloist. Well-known performers in the area, the duo performs “Mattie” several times each year. Sorensen, the musical’s creator, will accompany the two actors. She has had a long interest in interpreting history though the medium of music and drama. In addition to many other musical works, she has created musicals about 15 historical figures at the request of their respective descendents. She has reproduced four of these with local St. George performers who regularly perform them in the area. Sorensen is also the founder of Nauvoo Musical Theater in Nauvoo, Ill. The performance will be approximately 60 minutes in duration. Community members are invited to attend free of charge, as is the case with all Dixie Forums, which take place each Tuesday at noon throughout fall and spring semester. For more information about Dixie Forum, call Terre Burton at 652-7812.

 

DSC Campus to Community Set to Strike Again

(ST. GEORGE – Nov. 2, 2004) The Campus to Community service program at Dixie State College will again spring into action Friday, Nov. 5, this time at the Canyons Softball Complex along Snow Canyon Parkway in St. George. DSC students and the rest of the campus community will chip in by planting and replacing 1,000 plants and shrubs at the complex. The project gets underway at 2 p.m. Any volunteers from the community are welcome to come and give a hand. The softball complex is located at 1890 West 2000 North. Campus to Community at Dixie State is part of the nationwide trend known as service learning, designed to get college students involved service and give them opportunities for practical application of textbook learning. “The City of St. George is doing a lot to beautify this area,” said Donna Stafford, director of student activities. “We can do our part by helping with this softball complex, especially since it brings in a lot of revenue to our community.  “We have a lot of paybacks to the City, particularly in light of them helping us relight the ‘D’ on the hill recently.”  The Campus to Community program got started at the college in 2001 with a large-scale yard sale to benefit a near drowning victim in the community. Last spring semester the group removed excess weeds and shrubbery at the Santa Clara Arboretum.  Other activities have included planting trees for the Southern Utah Water Conservation Garden, a book drive for literacy, renovating the confluence area on the Virgin River near Hurricane and LaVerkin, and hosting a benefit concert for the leveled libraries for Washington County School District. The program consists of one service project each semester.  “This program has become important to us. It’s become a tradition of sorts in the short time it’s been around,” said DSC student body president Jake Hunt. “The entire county is so giving to the college, and it’s important for us students to give something back.”  College shuttles will leave the Old Gymnasium parking lot at 1:30 p.m. on Friday to take volunteers to the softball complex. Once there, workers will divide into teams and work there from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. under the direction of the City of St. George. Refreshments will also be served. Volunteers are encouraged to bring a pair of gloves and shovels where possible.    “This is an imp ortant week for our students to become civically engaged,” said English professor Candace Mesa, whose students regularly participate in the service projects. “Many of our students voted for the first time on Tuesday. Our hope is that our students will learn to become responsible citizens who contribute to their community and nation, and this project is a good follow-up to Tuesday’s election.”
 

Working with Valeen Tippets Avery, Newell wrote Mormon Enigma: Emma Hale Smith, a study described by one reviewer as a “sweeping and dramatic portrait of this remarkable woman.”  In addition to this biography, which is still in demand 20 years after its original publication, Newell has authored or coauthored three histories of Utah counties: Piute, Millard, and Garfield.

Though demanding, the local research was exciting and fascinating, Newell said.  Newell, who still paints with oils, found herself painting with a different sort of brush as she examined these three counties where either she lived or her ancestors lived.  She grew up in Millard County and worked three summers at Bryce Canyon.  One of her grandparents raised his first family in Escalante, and four of her great grandparents settled in Piute County, the second smallest county in the state.

Newell will present “Writing Community History:  Piute County as a Microcosm” to forum goers in light of the county’s fascinating, rich history from the very beginning of white intrusions into the area. The area has Spanish Trail roots, as well as ties to the Black Hawk War. The little county also experienced the effects of both a gold rush and a uranium boom, and there was even a murder over water rights, which launched the career of one of Utah’s former governors.

The forum will take place in the Dunford Auditorium at Dixie State College at noon.

Classical Guitarist Jankovic to Perform in DSC Eccles Concert Hall (St. George, Oct. 26, 2004) — International award-winning classical guitarist Petar Jankovic will perform in the DSC Eccles Concert Hall, Nov. 5, at 7:30 pm. Tickets are $6 for adults and $2 for DSC and high school students, and they are on sale at the Avenna Center Ticket Office, or by calling 652-7800.

Despite poverty, political turmoil, and the constant threat of military police seeking young recruits to fight in an ongoing, bloody war, he practiced.

He was finally able to come to America and earn bachelor and master degrees. He is currently a member of Indiana University School of Music’s esteemed faculty.

“We’re excited to have a musician of this quality perform on our new concert hall stage,” said Petersen. “It’s a concert that many, many people will enjoy.”

DSC Health Science Facility Tops State Building Board's Priority List
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Oct. 25, 2004) Fresh off the heels of dedicating its new fine arts center, Dixie State College received word late last week that its health science facility is ranked No. 1 on the State Building Board’s list of state capital development priorities.
The remaining $15.7 million in funding for the new building is contingent on approval by the Utah State Legislature, but DSC administrators are pleased to be atop the project list heading into the 2005 legislative session. “This is the first time in the history of Dixie State College that one of our proposed facilities has been ranked No. 1 liked this,” said DSC President Dr. Robert Huddleston. “This is like we’re rated preseason No. 1 – the real event is the legislative se ssion. But I really believe there’s a decent chance we’ll get this building this year.” The proposed 80,000 square foot facility would sit on the new River Road campus of IHC subsidiary Dixie Regional Medical Center (DRMC) in St. George, located approximately two miles from the Dixie State campus. The four-acre site at the base of Medical Drive has been donated to the college by IHC and the Foremaster family of St. George. Donations for the new facility total in excess of $2.5 million thus far. DSC’s administration believes this partnership with DRMC was key to receiving the No. 1 ranking. Being centrally located right on the hospital campus will benefit DSC students in terms of the technology that will be readily available to them, but it will also benefit the college’s pocketbook since those technological advances and costs would outpace the college’s ability to require and replace essential equipment. On the other side of the coin, DSC’s proposed facility would be available to DRMC for workshops and conferences. “The thing that made the difference was our cooperative partnership with IHC. That was very pivotal,” said DSC Vice President of College Services Stan Plewe. “This is a landmark day for Dixie I think.” The criteria used to rank the FY06 capital development requests included: existing deficiencies, growth, cost effectiveness, effectiveness and capacity, program criticality, and alternative funding. Ranked second is the University of Utah’s $48.5 million Marriott Library.
Dixie received a Building Board total score of 46.1, which was followed by the U’s score of 41.1. In terms of other higher education projects, Utah Valley State College’s Digital Learning Center rounded off the top five with a score of 39.8. SUU (39.8) and Snow College (36.5) are the other two institutions with projects ranked in the top ten. The Building Board will now turn over its recommendation to the Legislature’s capital facilities committee. State Representative David Clark sits on that committee.
The college’s health science programs, including its new four-year nursing program, are currently located in the remodeled Jennings Technology Building on campus. In 2004, 680 students graduated with health sciences related degrees or certificates. In 2005, that number is projected to jump to 836. The following programs would be housed in the new facility: nursing, respiratory therapy, surgical technology, medical radiology, dental hygiene, and emergency medical services. The plans also call for 6,000 square feet of shared lab space and nearly 13,000 square feet of shared academic spaces.

Dixie Forum Welcomes Tibetan Monk
(ST. GEORGE – Oct. 25, 2004) A year ago the Dixie Forum featured a Tibetan monk who captivated the audience by speaking about his experiences in a Chinese prison. This year, students, faculty, and staff will have another chance to listen to a Tibetan monk speak at noon on Tuesday, Oct. 26 in the Dunford Auditorium. Geshe Jinpa Wangpo will present “The Psychology of Enlightenment,” identifying the Buddhist maps of the mind while addressing ways to consciously develop health and stability. Wangpo was born in Tibet and joined Drepung Loseling, the largest Tibetan monastery, at age 13. In 1959 the monastery was destroyed during the Communist Chinese invasion and the majority of monks were either killed or sent to prison camps. Out of the 10,000 monks at Drepung Loseling, 216 escaped the holocaust and were allowed to re-establish their monastery 10 years later in southern India. Traveling with The Mystical Arts of Tibet tour, Wangpo and other monks will construct a beautiful sand mandala painting at the Juniper Sky Fine Art Gallery in the Kayenta area of Ivins. Construction will take place each day beginning Oct. 26 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The closi ng ceremony and destruction of the mandala will be Oct. 30 at 1 p.m. Following the destruction, Wangpo and the monks will take the sand to the Virgin River where it will be deposited with prayers that the blessings and healing energies may be carried to all sentient beings on the earth. There is no charge and everyone is invited to attend and also to view the construction of the mandala as it takes place. The following Dixie Forum will feature historian Linda Newell in “Writing Community History: Paiute County as a Microcosm.”

DSC to Induct Three Into Rebel Hall of Fame
(ST. GEORGE, Utah – Oct. 21, 2004) Dixie State College will honor three individuals as inductees into the college’s Hall of Fame as part of homecoming activities this weekend. Each inductee will be presented a medallion at the seventh annual Hall of Fame ceremony held in conjunction with the Homecoming Founder’s Day Assembly on Saturday, Oct. 23, at 10:30 a.m. in the St. George Tabernacle. “Our Hall of Fame has provided a unique forum to honor individuals who have contributed so m uch to the great stature that Dixie has attained over the years,” said DSC President Dr. Robert Huddleston. “We are grateful to the many people who have dedicated their careers and given so much time toward the success of this institution.”
Honored in the area of Public and College Service is the late Marion H. Bowler, a man who served and promoted Dixie State College, as well as Washington County and the state of Utah, throughout his entire life. He served on the college’s first advisory council and was a charter member of the Dixie College Colonels Club. He performed for more than 25 years as a member of the Dixie College Program Bureau. He was the first recipient of the Dixie College Honorary Associate of Arts Degree in 1985. And he received the Distinguished Alumnus Award in 1996 and 1992. Bowler was possibly best known in St. George and throughout the state, for his beautiful tenor voice. Labeled the “Singing Mayor” by a state newspaper, he sang at literally thousands of funerals, weddings, church, civic and college events throughout Utah. His appliance store would often be closed because he would be singing at a funeral, performing with the Dixie Program Bureau, responding to a fire alarm, chairing the Lion’s Club Roundup Committee or the committee raising money for an iron lung, or fulfilling a responsibility as the city’s Red Cross representative or as St. George mayor.
Honored in the area of Public and College Service is Montrue Larkin, whose lifetime of service has made her one of southern Utah’s greatest treasures. While she was the Dixie State College Bookstore manager, she became a career counselor and inter-chapter advisor for Lambda Delta Sigma, where she had a positive influence upon the lives of hundreds of students. She was involved in many student activities and began the Christmas lighting ceremony on campus. Larkin returned to Dixie as a non-traditional student and graduated with an associate of science degree and, at the age of 69, earned her bachelor’s degree. She has volunteered her time for many great causes and h as received numerous honors, including the “Dixie College Humanities Award,” Chamber of Commerce and Elks Club “Citizen of the Year” awards, and the “You Make Dixie Great” award. Honored in the area of Science and Technology is Dr. Edward H. Snow, ‘56, a graduate of Dixie State College, who also served as the student body president. Snow was named after his great grandfather who was a co-founder of Dixie College. Dr. Snow has made breakthrough contributions to the understanding of oxidized semiconductor surfaces, which revolutionized electronics and made possible today’s digital revolution. For this work, he was made a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers and was awarded the Certificate of Merit by the Franklin Institute. Snow later became co-founder of Reticon Corporation. Their technology was used in virtually all of the early OCR and FAX machines, price tag readers, mail sorting machines, as well as specialized devices for scientific instruments, astronomy, and military applications. Snow was then made Vice President of EG&G, responsible for world-wide optoelectronic operations, with products as diverse as flashlamps for disposable cameras and atomic clocks for GPS systems. Additional details on the accomplishments and contributions of the three Hall of Fame honorees will be given at the Founder’s Day Assembly. Admission to the Founder’s Day Assembly is free and open to the entire community. The Hall of Fame was introduced at Dixie State College in 1998 at which time 18 individuals were inducted as charter members. The photos and plaques of this year’s inductees will join the past 62 inductees on the Wall of Fame located in the Avenna Center, Cox Auditorium. In addition to paying tribute to the Hall of Fame Inductees, the college will also be honoring two Dixie State College Rebel Award winners: Brent Snow, Outstanding Teacher Award recipient, and Clark Hutchings, Outstanding Staff Award recipient.

Black & Decker CEO to Speak at DSC Home Banquet; Drs. Ence & Prince to be Honored
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Oct. 21, 2004) This year’s Homecoming Alumni Banquet speaker at Dixie State College will be Dixie alum Nolan D. Archibald, ‘66, who will address alumni and guests at the annual event on Saturday, Oct. 23 at 7 p.m. in the College Gymnasium.
Archibald is chairman of the board, president, and chief executive officer of The Black & Decker Corporation, a $5 billion global corporation, marketing its products in over 100 countries. He joined Black & Decker as president and chief operating officer in 1985. When appointed president and CEO in March 1986 at the age of 42, Archibald was the youngest CEO of a Fortune 500 Company. He has served in that capacity for 18 years.
Archibald graduated from Dixie State College, where he was an All-American basketball player. He led the Rebels to the national junior college finals in Hutchinson, Kan., and was recruited by over 100 major universities in the United States. He graduated from Weber State University cum laude, where he was Scholar Athlete of the Year in 1968. He was an All-Conference basketball player under Dick Motta and played on Weber State’s first team to participate in the 32-team NCAA basketball tournament. He was one of 15 Division I basketball players out of 4,000 named an Academic All-American. He went on to earn a master’s degree in Business Administration from the Harvard Business School in 1970.
Following graduation from Harvard, Archibald was invited to try out for the Chicago Bulls in the National Basketball Association. He was offered a contract to play for the Pittsburgh Pipers in the American Basketball Association. In 1993, the National Association of Basketball Coaches honored him, along with four other former All-American basketball players, (including Elvin Hayes), as its “Silver Anniversary NCAA All-America Basketball Team.” He is the only athlete in Weber State’s history to receive this honor.
Archibald and his wife, the former Margaret Hafen, are the parents of seven sons and one daughter. He is currently serving as stake president of the Washington, D.C. Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Receiving this year’s Distinguished Alumnus Award at the banquet will be Dr. Robert Prince, ’76. Prince currently serves on the alumni board membership committee and has been continually involved in the lives of Dixie State College students through his work, church, and community service.
Dixie 's dental hygiene students used Dr. Prince's office every evening and all day Friday and Saturday for four years to get the professional training necessary to help the dental hygiene program evolve into one of the top programs in the nation.
Born in Fairfield, California, and raised in St. George, Prince attended Dixie High School, where he served as student body president in 1972. While attending Dixie College, he served on the student senate before graduating with his associate degree in 1976.
Prince received his bachelor’s degree from SUU in 1977. Being admitted to the University of Southern California School of Dentistry fulfilled a lifetime goal. He received his DDS degree there in 1981 and completed his orthodontic residency at USC also. He practiced in Beverly Hills prior to returning t o St. George in 1983, where he maintains his practice today.
Prince is married to the former Diane Larson and they are the parents of three children: Kristen Prince Hill, Dental Hygienist, '96; Ashton Prince, '01, in his first year of dental school at UNLV; and Benjamin, serving a mission.
James N. Ence will be honored at Homecoming 2004 with the “Distinguished Service Award.” Dr. Ence has been involved with the Dixie State College dental hygiene program since its inception. He also donated his dental office for use by the dental hygiene program every weekend for four years.
Ence grew up in Santa Clara, the son of Kenneth and Anneliese Ence. He attended Washington County schools and graduated from Dixie High School in 1969. He received his bachelor’s degree in chemistry from SUU in 1974. In 1977 he received his DDS degree from the University of the Pacific, graduating with high honors, and was inducted into the OKU honor fraternity.
Dr. Ence served as a delegate to the Nevada Dental Association from the Southern Nevada component society from 1984-1986. Because of a strong desire to be near his family and his love for farming, he moved back to southern Utah to practice.
From 1995-2001, Ence served on the Utah Dental Association Board of Trustees in such positions as treasurer, secretary, vice president, president elect, president and past president. He serves as president of the new Santa Clara Canal Co., and as a board member of SunFirst Bank, Pacific Dental Education Foundation, and the Utah State Dental/Dental Hygienist Licensing Board. He holds dental licenses in Utah, Nevada, Oregon and California. He maintains a general dentistry practice in St. George.
Ence is married to the former Deborah Jennings. They are the parents of five children and have two grandchildren.

DSC Homecoming Next Week
ST. GEORGE, UT – October 15, 2004) This year’s Homecoming at Dixie State College will feature the traditional queen pageant, parade, and football game among other things, but it also marks the debut of a new building on campus. The new Dolores Dore’ Eccles Fine Arts Center will be dedicated Friday, Oct. 22, coinciding with the college’s annual Homecoming week and making for a busy week on campus for students, alumni of the college, and the community. This year’s homecoming theme is “It’s a Pride Thing.” “This is always an exciting time of year,” said DSC alumni relations director Kalynn Larson. “The dedication of the new building will bring even more people and electricity than usual. This facility means a great deal to many of our alumni, and it’s fitting that we celebrate it during Homecoming.” Homecoming activities get underway in earnest Tuesday, with the Homecoming Queen Pageant at 7 p.m. in the Eccles Mainstage Theatre. The eventual homecoming queen automatically qualifies for the Miss Utah Pageant. Cost is $3 a person. Activities on Friday, Oct. 22, include the Alumni Assembly at 10:00 a.m. in Eccles Mainstage Theatre (no charge) and Golden Generation Luncheon at 11:30 a.m. in the Gardner Center Ballroom ($10). The Eccles Fine Arts Center will be formally dedicated at 1 p.m. on Friday in the Mainstage (no charge, but seating will be limited), following which will be a ribbon cutting. Tours of the buildingwill be conducted between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. At 3 p.m. in the Eccles Plaza will be a special Program Bureau rededication of the Roene DiFiore Bench. Friday evening at 7:30 p.m. will be a dedication gala in the Mainstage, which will include a concert and dessert reception. Cost is $20. Tickets can be purchased… Saturday’s homecoming parade begins at 9:30 a.m. and will travel down Tabernacle Street in St. George beginning at 400 East and ending at 100 West. Immediately following the parade on Saturday will be the annual Founder’s Day Assembly and Hall of Fame at 10:30 a.m. in the St. George Tabernacle. Admission to both is free. The Alumni Association tailgate party will then precede the football game at noon, with a 1:30 p.m. kickoff. The game matches Eastern Arizona against the Rebels. Tickets to the game are$6. The week wraps up Saturday night with the Alumni Homecoming Banquet at 7 p.m. in the Old Gym. Speaking at this year’s banquet will be alumnus Nolan Archibald, currently serving as CEO of Black & Decker Corporation. Cost is $11 to attend. The Homecoming Dance will follow at 9 p.m. in the Gardner Ballroom. Tickets for the luncheon and banquet can be purchased from Kalynn Larson in the North Administration Building. She can also be contacted at 652-7535 or via email at larson@dixie.edu. Other student events include a Special Olympics Carnival – a service project for Special Olympics Kids – Wednesday in the Gardner Center Ballroom from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., the Powder Puff Football game Thursday at 7 p.m. at Hansen Stadium (free admission), Rock the Mall at noon on Friday on the Gardner Center Plaza, and a bonfire Friday at 9 p.m. near the Hazy Building. “It’s an exciting time of year for both the students and community,” said director of student activities Donna Stafford. “We urge everyone to come out and have some fun with us.We like to see everyone get involved, whether they’re a Dixie State alum or not.” 

 Clark is Back for Dixie Forum
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Oct. 15, 2004) When the Dixie Forum began three years ago, sculptor Matt Clark was first speaker at the podium.  On Tuesday, Oct. 19, Clark is returning to the Dunford Auditorium at Dixie State College for his presentation “Found, Forged, and Welded: Sculpture and Character.” The forum begins at noon. Clark, a self-taught welder, creates sculptures from various materials that he finds and welds together.  He has also created his own specialized tools to help accommodate his wheelchair and the loss of mobility in his hands. Following an ac cident to his vertebrae in his teenage years, Clark was declared a quadriplegic and was limited to a wheelchair, shattering his plans to become a professional rodeo contestant.  Given a short life expectancy, Clark defied the doctors' predictions and has been creating art ever since. In Clark's last visit to the Dixie Forum, he told students that attitude is more important than facts, because you can't control what happens to you, but you can control your reaction. “Clark left a powerful influence on all who heard him because of his attitudes as well as his creativity,” said Terre Burton, Dixie forum coordinator.  “Students will be impressed with Matt's attitude, his art, and the way he talks about pursuing creativity.” Some of Clark’s recent awards include “Best of Sculpture” presented at Art in the Park in St. George in 2002, a first place in sculpture at the 2000-01 St. George Art Museum Show, and Best of Show at Art in the Park in 1997. St. George Clark is a lifelong resident of southern Utah. A week later, Dixie Forum will feature Geshe Jinpa Wanpod, a Buddhist monk from Tibet on Oct. 26.

DSC to Dedicate New Eccles Fine Arts Center
(St. George, Oct. 18, 2004) — The month of October has been planned to celebrate the grand opening of the new Dolores Doré Eccles Fine Arts Center at Dixie State College.  Numerous concerts , plays, an art exhibit and other cultural offerings are being presented throughout the month. 
Official dedication events for the new fine arts center will be held throughout the day on Friday, Oct. 22.  The formal dedication will take place at 1 pm in the Main Stage Theatre.  A ribbon cutting will follow at  2 pm in the Grand Lobby with a reception and official tours of the building through 5 pm.  The community is invited to attend.
A Dedication Gala Concert and Dessert Reception will be held at 7:30 pm in the Main Stage Theatre.  Tickets to the Gala Concert will be available Oct. 18-22 only at the Avenna Center Ticket Office for $20, 652-7800
The Gala Concert will feature talented guest artists, faculty and students who will be accompanied by the Southwest Orchestra.  Vocal solos, instrumental groups, musical theater and dance will highlight the evening performances.
“We’re so excited to host these grand opening events,” said Mark Petersen, executive director of cultural arts.  “A dedication is a time of celebration.  In this case, the college has a beautiful, new fine arts center that will provide wonderful educational and performing experiences for students and faculty.  It will also be a facility that will provide cultural entertainment to the community for decades to come.”
The 78,000 square foot facility boasts a 500-seat main stage theater, a 300-seat concert hall, a 100-seat black box theater, two beautiful dance studios and the Robert and Peggy Sears Art Gallery.  The new center also includes rehearsal rooms, practice rooms, costume and scene shops, art storage spaces and a few classrooms.
“It has everything included in one facility,” said Petersen.  “Arts patrons will be able to attend a concert or a play and visit the beautiful art gallery at the same time.”
Funding for the new building has come through a $3 million gift from the Eccles Foundation, $500,000 through proceeds fr om the Sears Dixie Invitational Art Show over the past 17 years and contributions from the Sears family, and $14 million was appropriated for the facility by the state legislature. 
In addition, the Emil Graff family established an endowment for the arts many years ago, and the old fine arts center was named after that family.  “A segment of the old building, which included the historical mosaic mural, was left standing and completely gutted on the inside,” said Petersen.  “It was remodeled to include two large dance studios, offices, restrooms, and a lobby that matches beautifully with the new Eccles Center.”
The new dance building has maintained the name of Graff Performing Arts.
 “We’re grateful to our many benefactors who have helped make this wonderful arts center a reality,” said Petersen.  “The fine arts are such an important part of our lives.  Where would our society be without culture, without an opportunity to develop and express our God-given talents. 
“The cultural arts—music, theater, dance, and visual art to name a few — bring creativity, understanding, and personal expression into all that we do and helps us communicate heart to heart,” added Petersen.  “Our new facility will be the place where faculty members encourage that creativity and expression in our students.”

DSC’s New VP Next up at Dixie Forum
(ST. GEORGE – Oct. 11, 2004) Dixie State's Academic Vice President, Dr. Lee Caldwell, will be the next speaker at the Dixie forum Tuesday, Oct. 12, at noon.  The title of his presentation is "What it Means to be a Professional: Skills, Integrity, Contributions to Society-the Foundation of a Sustainable Economy and Community." 
Caldwell has worked at four different universities as a professor and administrator and has held executive level positions at three Fortune 500 high tech companies, including Unisys, IBM, and Hewlett Packard over an eight-year span. He also spent six years with Novell, Inc.
“A challenge to a growing community like St. George and a growing institution like Dixie State College is being able to maintain a high quality of service,” Caldwell said.  “We can do more than what's in our job description, we simply need to understand how.”
Recognized internationally as an expert in networking technology, Caldwell has 21 years of experience working with the Internet, has been a major driver behind Internet2 and next generation networks, and has authored a book on the subject with Prentice Hall that was released in 2002.
“Many people just see the lighter side of the Internet,” Caldwell said.  “Most are not aware that 20 years of hard work went into the creating the Internet.  I'll be using [the Internet] as a model of how we can plan for remarkable growth in the St. George community and on the Dixie campus.”
In addition to his 13 years in the high tech industry, he's had regular senior management interactions with global corporations such as Daimler Chrysler, British Telecom, Merrill Lynch, Royal Bank in Canada, General Motors, AOL Time Warner, and many others. He also has extensive government relations experience, including five years working with the Ministries of Education in France, Israel, Korea, The United Arab Emirates (UAR) and the Netherlands.
Most recently, Caldwell served as the associate dean for undergraduate business programs at Georgia Tech University in Atlanta, Ga. He holds a doctorate degree in business dministration (strategic management) with a minor in economics from Texas A&M University. He also holds a law degree from Brigham Young University. In addition, he has done master’s work at USC, earned a bachelor’s degree at Utah State University and attended then Weber State College.

Eric Young Selected as Alder Faculty Honor Lecturer
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Oct. 7, 2004) St. Georgians will get another sneak peek at the state’s newest fine arts center when the Alder F aculty Honor Lecture takes center stage Tuesday, Oct. 12.  Telly-winning Dixie State College professor Eric Young will be the speaker at the 10th annual Alder Faculty Honor Lecture, which will be held in the Concert Hall in the brand new Eccles Fine Arts Center at Dixie State College at 7:30 p.m.
Young’s lecture is titled “Shooting Ancients, Ancest ors and Actors: The Evolution of the Preditor.” (Preditor is an industry buzzword meaning producer/editor.) The lecture will be a first-hand account of what technology has done to the inundation and acquisition of motion pictures.
“The impact of this technology is both underrated and overlooked, especially in consideration of how visual media is used on the set, on the satellite and on the net,” said Young. “Dixie State College is in a unique position to propose a baccalaureate degree to develop the competent “preditor,” a graduate adept at producing and editing content in a variety of applications and distribution.”
The college is currently exploring the possibility of offering a bachelor’s degree in communications, which would be technology centered.
A Dixie College graduate, Young teaches communications courses at the college and is currently serving as the chair of the college’s fine arts and communications department.
Young has been a part of two Telly Award winning productions. The first came in 2001 for his and his motion picture students’ work on the docum entary “Mountain Meadows Massacre,” which garnered two Telly Awards. In 2003, Young produced the documentary “Absolutes to Change a Boy’s Life,” distributed by Eclipse Media & Design. It won a Silver Telly Award. 
Young is the former director of photography in film production for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and has over 15 years experience producing and directing in the commercial film and video production industry. Other projects that Young has had a direct hand in include “Ancestors,” a nationally aired documentary series on PBS and “Splitting Atoms: Splitting Cells,” a documentary detailing the history of above-ground nuclear testing in southern Nevada and its impacts on southern Utahns. 
The Alder Faculty Honor Lecture was instituted by former DSC president Doug Alder and his wife Elaine. Its purpose is to promote faculty scholarship about teaching and research, faculty communication and camaraderie, and improvement in teaching and learning.
“The college is primarily a teaching college and, as a result, the faculty doesn’t often have the opportunity to spend a lot of time on research,” said Demaree Johnson, chair of the Honor Lecture committee. “The lecture not only gives our professors an opportunity to study, research and write on a topic of their own interest, but to share it with the community at the same time.”
Nominees for the Honors Lecture are presented by the college staff and faculty and voted on by the college’s Faculty Senate board. Any full-time faculty member is available for nomination and the presenter is chosen to recognize excellence in teaching and scholarship. The papers associated with the Honors Lecture are published each year in a booklet that is available at the lecture or by contacting Demaree Johnson at (435) 652-7867.
Community members are invited to attend the lecture. Admission is free. The Eccles Fine Arts Center will be formally dedicated Frid ay, Oct. 22.

DSC Student Crowned Miss Navajo
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Oct. 6, 2004) Jannalee Atcitty, a sophomore student at Dixie State College, is taking a break from school this year to represent over 200,000 Navajos as Miss Navajo 2004-2005. 
Atcitty will travel the world, visiting places like Holland, Switzerland, and Australia to teach the Navajo culture. The competition was held during the Navajo Nation Fair in Window Rock, Ariz., the Navajo capital, in September.
Ten women ranging from 18 to 25 years of age competed for the Miss Navajo crown. Judges based their decisions on personal interviews, cultural demonstrations, and questions concerning current events relating to the Navajo Nation.
Atcitty is the second Dixie State student to earn this title.  The other was Diane Taylor who held the title in the late 80s. Atcitty was also previously crowned Miss Indian Dixie. 
Atcitty hails from Cedar Ridge, Ariz., and is studying elementary education and plans to graduate from Dixie when she returns. 

Local Businesses Urged to Participate in DSC Homecoming
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Oct. 4, 2004) Dixie State College is extending an invitation to all local businesses and organizations to participate in the 2004 DSC Homecoming Parade, which will snake its way through the streets of St. George Saturday, Oct. 23. The theme for this year’s parade is “Life is Better in Red.”
There is no charge for parade entries, and, free advertising aside, it’s a good way for businesses to get involved in the community, said DSC director of student activities Donna Stafford.  
“This parade is every bit as much a community event as it is a Dixie State College event,” Stafford said.
In addition to those in the business community, local high schools are invited to participate, particularly by entering their bands in the parade. Those interested in participating in the parade must contact Donna Stafford as soon as possible to fill out a parade entry form. On the average, the parade features between 60 and 65 entries.
“Many of the people in the community are either alumni of the college or people who have grown up in St. George and lived here all of their life,” Stafford said. “These are the people homecoming is intended for, and it’s nice to see them get involved, not only as a spectator, but as part of the parade itself.”
The DSC homecoming parade will begin at 9:30 a.m. All entries must begin to line up at the parade’s starting point – 300 East Tabernacle – at 8:30 a.m. The parade route will follow Tabernacle to 200 West. Entry forms are available by contacting Donna Stafford via fax: 656-4011, phone: 652-7513, or email: stafford@dixie.edu.   

Author to Speak on Polygamy at Dixie Forum
(ST. GEORGE – Oct. 4, 2004) Utah author Dorothy Allred Solomon will be the next speaker at Dixie Forum Tuesday, Oct. 5, at noon in the Dunford Auditorium at Dixie State College.
The daughter of her father’s fourth plural wife and the twenty-eighth of 48 children, Solomon has written several books on the subject of polygamy and will share her experiences as part of her forum presentation.
“Born to parents with no marriage license, and never having been issued a birth certificate, I started writing to discover my identity and to establish citizenship," writes Solomon in one of her books. 
Solomon has been the recipient of several awards, including the Utah Arts Council and a Governor’s Media Award for Excellence.
“Last fall I heard Dorothy speak at the Great Salt Lake Book Festival,” said Dixie Forum coordinator Terre Burton. “I was enthralled from her very first words and determined to have her speak at Dixie Forum. She is an attractive, quiet woman with a pleasing, well-modulated voice, yet her words were compelling and astonishing.”
Dixie Forum is a noontime lecture series that takes place each Tuesday in the Dunford Auditorium during fall and spring semesters. All community members are invited to attend Dixie Forum free of charge. The forum series can also be taken for college credit. For more information about Dixie Forum, contact Terre Burton at 652-7812.

Utah's Poet Laureate Next Up at Dixie Forum
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Sept. 24, 2004) Dixie Forum’s next speaker is Kenneth Brewer, Utah's poet laureate. He’ll be speaking on “Writing Poetry from Research” Tuesday at noon in the Dunford Auditorium at Dixie State College.
Brewer has published several books of poetry, has given numerous readings and conducted many writing workshops throughout the western states. He has also published over 300 individual poems.
Recently retired from Utah State University after 32 years in the English Department as a teacher of writing, he currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Utah Arts Council and continues to live in Logan with his wife Roberta and their two schnauzers, Gus and Jasmine.
He received his doctorate degree in English (creative writing) from the University of Utahin 1973. He also has a master’s degree from New Mexico State University, and a bachelor’s degree from Western New Mexico University.
Brewer has had a distinguished teaching career. He has taught a variety of courses, including poetry writing, essay writing, and teaching creative writing. He focuses mainly on creative writing courses, although he began his teaching career teaching remedial English and freshman composition. Before teaching at a University level, he taught English at Las Cruces High School in Las Cruces, New Mexico.

DSC Costa Rica Study Abroad Course Accepting Applications
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Sept. 23, 2004) Students planning to register for Geography 2990 in the spring will not need to purchase a textbook for the class, but perhaps a backpack and bug repellent will prove more beneficial. 
Up to 20 students will follow professor Kelly Bringhurst into the tropical rain forests of Costa Rica for a 10 day, two-credit college course this March. The course – Natural History of Costa Rica – is open to students, faculty, staff, and community members, with a sign up deadline scheduled for Oct. 4.
“The trip visits a number of different areas within Costa Rica, each with unique plants, animals, geology and culture,” Bringhurst said. “This is an educational trip, and is open not only to faculty, staff and students of Dixie State College, but community members as well.”
Students can expect to visit beaches, national parks, and various other spots throughout Costa Rica that most tourists are unaware of, said Bringhurst.
The course will include exploring the cloud forest in Mirador de Quetzales, visiting the Wilson Botanical Gardens, hiking and swimming in Campanario, an all day visit to Corcovado National Park, a visit to Isla del Cano for a tour of the Island and snorkeling, and guided tours of Tortuguero on the Caribbean coast. There will also be a service project in conjunction with the course.
“We see monkeys, parrots, toucans, and a lot of unique plants along the way,” he said.
Last spring, Bringhurst and his students lugged 40 pounds of fiction and non-fiction books to a Costa Rican elementary school for a service project involving the DSC Browning Library.  This year, Bringhurst plans to do something similar.
“We're going to spend some time with one of the elementary schools again,” he said.
The trip is scheduled to depart on March 10, 2005, returning to the U.S. on March 21. Since its introduction in 2003, the class has filled the available 20 slots both years, and Bringhurst hopes the third time is a charm.
“We never know until it gets closer to the deadline date,” Bringhurst said.  “But I expect the 20 spots to be filled before the deadline.”
A $200 deposit is due at the time of sign up, and the trip will cost $1,195, which includes travel, lodging, meals, and guides. An orientation meeting will be scheduled for sometime in February. 
For additional information and to fill out an application for the course visit www.dixie.edu/travelstudy/index.html. Contact Kelly Bringhurst at 652-7768 or bringhur@dixie.edu with questions. Application forms can be turned into Bringhurst in the college’s Science Building.

Cultural Preservation Topic of Next Dixie Forum
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Sept. 20, 2004) Tim Eicher, professor of family and consumer science at Dixie State College, and his wife, Penelope, a licensed marriage and family therapist, will be the next presenters at Dixie Forum Tuesday at noon in the Dunford Auditorium on the DSC campus. 
The title of their presentation is “Cultural Preservation and Dignity.” They’ll speak about their experiences with the Hapu Q’eros of the Andes, a group of people that fled the Spanish conquest 500 years ago and hid on the Amazonian side of the Andes near the sacred Ausangate Mountain, an isolated spot where they have been able to protect their Inca traditions. 
The Eichers found themselves fascinated by these people and will talk about the methods they, and others, have developed to help them enter the modern age without losing their traditions.
Among the 85 families in this remote region, there are a number of elders and shamans, or paq’os, still practicing authentic Incan and pre-Incan ceremonies. Because of their isolation, some of their ritual and cultural practices have been preserved. The shamanic tradition in the community is very strong, and the older men are quite protective and concerned about the maintenance of their culture and shamanic ways.
The Eichers have been fascinated by the healing work done by these elders in their local community, where there are no other medical services.
In their video and slide presentation, the Eichers will bring to life these extraordinary people who have fashioned lives of hard work and creativity at 15,000 feet above sea level. 
To find out more about the Eichers’ humanitarian foundation, visit heartwalkjourneys.com. For more information about Dixie Forum, call Terre Burton at (435) 652-7812.

DSC Hurricane Center to Dedicate New Computer Lab Thursday
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Sept. 14, 2004) The dedication of a new, state-of-the-art computer lab located at the Dixie State College Hurricane Education Center will take place Thursday, Sept. 16, at noon in the Walter C. Lichfield Building.
A donation from Bob and Patti Lichfield of Hurricane Valley enabled the Center to replace its outdated hardware and software with cutting edge technology, said Frank Lojko, Hurricane Education Center director.
“The [Hurricane Education Center] wouldn’t be what it is today without people like the Lichfields and other families in this community,” Lojko said.  “Not only have we received cutting edge computer technology from [Bob and Patti], but this building was built and named after Bob’s father, Walter Lichfield.”
With the donation, the Hurricane Education Center added 31 new PC’s each with LCD flat screen monitors, an Epson projector used mainly for instruction, an HP LaserJet printer, and a sleek G5 Macintosh computer for graphics students.
The new lab has been open since the computers were installed in August, and Lojko is looking forward to giving Bob and Patti the thanks they deserve at the dedication.
Lojko and Bill Lynch, instructor of visual technologies, have coordinated to include some digital art in the lab.
“We have some digital art done by [Dixie College] students ready for the dedication,” said Lynch.
Dixie State College has offered classes in Hurricane since 1995. Until construction for the Hurricane Center was completed in 2000, classes were held at Hurricane High School.
During fall semester 1995, 34 students total were enrolled in two courses. Enrollment for the following two fall semesters averaged 25 students. Fall enrollment grew to 85 and 90 in 1998 and 1999 respectively, jumping to 242 in 2000. Over 450 students are currently enrolled in nearly 30 courses this fall semester at the center.
The Center originally consisted of a single building, the Walter C. Lichfield Building. In 2002, the Jonna P. and Boyd C. Stout Building was completed. The Center sits on eight acres of partially developed land, which was all privately donated.
The Hurricane Center is located at 112 South 700 West in Hurricane, UT. For information about classes offered at the Hurricane Center, call (435) 652-7912.

DSC Gets Piece of $2.25 Million Pie to Fight Substance Abuse
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Sept. 13, 2004) Dixie State College’s Wellness Center is a little richer thanks to a $2.25 million grant awarded to the state’s colleges and universities. Geared to minimize drug and alcohol use among 18-25 year old college students, the grant money will be divided amongst the state’s institutions of higher education.
Dixie State College will receive $153,000 as a result of the grant, which will be used on campus over the next three years. According to the college’s Wellness Center director, Barbara Johnson, that money will go a long way in promoting alcohol and drug prevention and early intervention on campus.
According to Johnson, the college will invest in programs that have been scientifically proven to help students.
“It’s a huge deal,” said Johnson. “These programs were available to us before, but we weren’t able to afford them. Now we have the money.”
Each of the state’s 10 college and university presidents, including DSC president Dr. Robert Huddleston, came together recently to sign a “Presidents’ Statement of Commitment” in support of the grant and campus-based substance abuse prevention efforts.  
The grant is a State Incentive Enhancement Grant (SIG-E) to be administered by the Utah Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health (DSAMH). It was awarded by the federal Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP).
As reported in a 2003 health behavior survey conducted by DSAMH at nine of Utah’s public higher education institutions, 8.7% of Utah college students are in need of alcohol or drug treatment. Just over 10 percent of those surveyed indicated a history of binge drinking. It also found that 18-25 yea r olds binge drink more than students over 25 years of age. The survey also indicated that 61.3 percent of college students in Utah have never had more than a sip of alcohol, and 68.9 percent have never tried any illegal drug.  

Rocky Mountains Topic of Next Dixie Forum
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Sept. 10, 2004) Author Gary Ferguson will be the next speaker at Dixie Forum: A Window on the World Tuesday, Sept. 14, at noon in the Dunford Auditorium at Dixie State College.
A well-known author of books about the West on topics such as the Rocky Mountains and Yellowstone National Park, the title of the forum is “The Rocky Mountains in the American Mind.” 
The forum will, in part, feature highlights from Ferguson’s latest book “The Great Divide,” which reveals some of the most fascinating pieces missing from the history of the West, each gleaned from the real life experiences of non-political travelers. Throughout the presentation, Ferguson will also share stunning images of the Western landscape. Ferguson is also known for his work with troubled youth in wilderness programs. 
“I think what he has to say will be of interest to those who love the wilderness as well as those who believe that wilderness experiences can help troubled teenagers,” said Dixie Forum organizer Terre Burton.
Donald Mazzola of the Montana Wilderness Association has said of Ferguson that audiences leave his presentations with a “new, stronger sense of place—a richer understanding of how nature can heal broken spirits and bruised lives.” 
Ferguson's nature articles have appeared in dozens of national magazines. He's also the author of fourteen books on nature and science. His 1997 title, Through the Woods: A Journey Through America's Forests, was a starred selection in Kirkus Review, as well as a winner of the prestigious Lowell Thomas Awards. Spirits of the Wild: The World's Great Nature Myths, was selected by the New York City Public Library as one of the best books of 1996.
Ferguson has appeared on more than a 100 radio and television programs in Los Angeles, New York, Seattle, Portland, Denver, and Chicago. His nature-oriented essays can be heard on National Public Radio affiliates throughout the country.
Before beginning his writing career he worked as an interpretive naturalist for the U.S. Forest Service in Idaho's Sawtooth National Recreation Area.
College credit can be earned by attending Dixie Forum by signing up for Hon 161R. Each Dixie Forum speaker will be featured on the college radio station, The Disc 105.1 FM, every Monday at noon. For questions about Dixie Forum, call Terre Burton at 652-7812.

DSC to Host Street Fair As Scholarship Fundraiser
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Sept. 10, 2004) In Dixie State College’s never ending quest to raise funds for student scholarships, the college campus will transform to a full-scale open air Street Fair several Saturdays throughout the year beginning Oct. 2. The Street Fair is expected to be a fixture at the college for years to come.
As many as 100 vendor booths are expected to fill the Old Gymnasium parking lot. The DSC Street Fair will also include a Farmer’s Market, food court, and live entertainment, including a climbing wall.
One hundred percent of the vendor booth fees, which amount to around $35 a week in the Street Fair’s inaugural season, will be applied directly to DSC scholarships. All merchandise revenue brought in by vendors will go directly into individual vendors’ pockets.
“This is one of those ‘can’t lose’ opportunities,” said Director of Institutional Advancement George Whitehead, who will oversee the Street Fair. “This is something that anyone from established businesses to budding student entrepreneurs can try their hand at with very little risk.”
The Street Fair will debut on marathon weekend in St. George (Oct. 2) and be open from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. The same hours will remain in effect the first Saturday of each month through May 7. It will also be open two additional days in November, the Friday and Saturday following Thanksgiving, to accommodate Christmas shopping.
Shoppers can expect to find items such as artwork, crafts, clothing, accessories, sports accessories and memorabilia, and of course food, Whitehead said. The Street Fair is open to virtually any merchant, according to Whitehead. 
The $35 rate will be o ffered to vendors who commit to all 10 weeks the Street Fair will be in operation this first year. Vendor space will also be sold on a week-by-week basis at a rate of $50, which is subject to booth availability. An additional $5 per week will be required for a temporary business license.
The concept is a spin off a Street Fair held by the College of the Desert in Palm Desert, Calif., which has been in operation for about 20 years. Dixie State College president, Dr. Robert Huddleston, once visited the COD Street Fair and became convinced that the same concept could work in St. George, Utah, which, similar to the Palm Springs area, is somewhat of a state tourist hot spot with its mild climate.
Currently, COD nets approximately $750,000 toward its scholarship fund each year through its Street Fair, charging an average of $80 for booth space per day. While Dixie State doesn’t have any illusions of making that kind of money right off the bat, college officials believe enough in the concept to give it a go. 
“We’re really excited about this, not just for the atmosphere it will add to the campus and the economic benefits it will bring to the area, but especially for the scholarships that will come as a result of this,” Whitehead said. “That’s the most important thing in all of this.”
Those interested in becoming a Street Fair vendor, including the Farmer’s Market and food court, can contact George Whitehead at 435-652-7536 or Chad Staheli at 435-652-7537.

DSC Students Bring Home National PBL Honors
  (ST. GEORGE, UT – Sept. 8, 2004) Representing Dixie State College’s Phi Beta Lambda chapter, several students made impressive showings recently at the Phi Beta Lambda National Leadership Conference in Denver, Colo. Phi Beta Lambda is the collegiate arm of Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA).
Chad Staheli and Greg Whitehead won second place overall in the Emerging Business Issues category. The duo also took first place at the state leadership conference in 2004. Both are enrolled in DSC four-year business administration program.
Jeff Morley took third place in the Marketing category at nationals. Gus Lundberg placed seventh in Computer Applications. And Tyson Hugie placed eighth in the Job Interview category after placing first at the state level.
Collectively, the Dixie State College PBL chapter placed sixth in the “Partnership With Business Project” after placing first in the state in that category. The presenters for the project were Brad Neve, Preston Norton, and Marcie Coates. The college’s PBL chapter is advised by Nate Staheli. 
Seven DSC students overall placed at the state level, earning the right to compete in the national competition. Individuals, state teams, and local chapters competed in 40 different events representing a wide range of activities and the business and leadership development focus of FBLA-PBL. Over 250,000 students and advisors make up the national organization.
The largest business group in the nation, FBLA-PBL is the national business education association that prepares students for careers in business and business education. Its members, belonging to more than 6,000 chartered chapters, include students from the United States, Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and Europe.

DSC to Host Health Fair
(ST. GEORGE – Sept. 8, 2004) Dixie State College’s Wellness Center will host its 15th annual Health Fair Wednesday, Sept. 15, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the Encampment Mall on campus.
Nearly 30 businesses will be in attendance to give fitness and health demonstrations, ranging from self-defense and hypnosis to massage therapy, gardening, and even scrap booking.
The Dixie State College dental hygiene program will be giving free scanning and th e nursing program will be on hand to do blood pressure checks. Free sugar level, body fat analyzing and antioxidant scanning will also be available to students and other patrons.
“Our goal is to give people ideas on how to lead a healthier lifestyle and, in some cases, show them how to do right on the spot,” said Wellness Center Director Barbara Johnson.
As always, food and prizes will also be given away. A rock climbing wall will also be on the premises. The entire community is invited to participate in the Health Fair.
If there are any business interested in setting up a booth, there are 15 total booths still available. Please contact Barbara Johnson 652-7755 or Kari Wright 652-7756.

Marilyn Arnold Honored byIvins Mayor, Utah Humanities Council
(ST. GEORGE – Sept. 3, 2004) St. George novelist Marilyn Arnold was the recipient of the 2004 Ivins City Mayor’s Award in the Humanities Thursday night, awarded by the Utah Humanities Council.
Mayor R. Daren Barney nominated Arnold for the award in recognition of her long career in academic achievement and service, her success as a novelist writing about her own experiences in her homeland, and her highly respected nonfiction work.
A world-renowned Willa Cather scholar, Arnold is a former English professor and dean at Brigham Young University. Since her retirement from BYU in 1992, Arnold has lived in St. George, served on the Dixie State College Board of Trustees for eight years, and written several novels including Desert Song, Song of Hope, Sky Full of Ribbons, and Fields of Clover. 
She is also a noted authority on other American writers and is actively involved in numerous charitable organizations in southern Utah. 
The award was created to celebrate the Utah Humanities Council’s 25th anniversary by recognizing people all over the state who give their, time, energy, and expertise to humanities projects that enrich lives and enhance communities.
The award was presented to her by Dr. Tim Bywater, professor of English at Dixie State College and UHC board member. The Utah Humanities Council promotes understanding of human traditions, values, and issues through informed public discussion and supports programs in history and heritage, literature and literacy, and examination of important community issues.

Jonathan Morrell To Kick Off Dixie Forum
(ST. GEORGE – Sept. 3, 2004) Jonathan Morrell, longtime Dixie State College staff member and instructor, will be the first speaker this fall semester at Dixie Forum: A Window on the World, the college’s weekly noontime forum series. The forum begins Tuesday, Sept. 7, at noon in the Dunford Auditorium (Browning Building).  
The forum, entitled “Reorienting: Finding Myself Alone in a City of 20 Million,” is expected to be an entertaining look into life as an American overseas and Morrell’s extended stay in Tokyo, Japan. He will touch on ways to make a potentially intimidating trip to a big city in a foreign country a rewarding experience.   
As a 23-year old college grad uate and unmotivated graduate student, Morrell decided to try his luck abroad after being offered four jobs in Tokyo.
“I knew no one, had no place to live, but wanted an adventure to challenge my skills of survival and adaptation,” Morrell said. “I exited the Tokyo Airport baggage claim with only two suitcases, and a phone number, and began my saga of finding myself alone in a city of 20 million strangers and my re-Orientation.”
Morrell, a native of B icknell, Utah, works full-time at the college as the director of Student Support Services and as the college’s transfer advisor. He also teaches communications courses on an adjunct basis and is a favorite instructor among Dixie State students. He is among the few part-time instructors to ever be nominated for the college’s “Faculty of the Year” Rebel Award, an honor he has been a finalist for several different years. He holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in communications and continues to be an avid traveler.   
“I’ve watched Jonathan Morrell work with students and he’s fantastic,” said Dixie Forum coordinator Terre Burton. “Within minutes he has them listening, thinking, and responding.  I’m hoping the energy from his presentation will carry over throughout the semester.”
The following Tuesday, Sept. 14, Gary Ferguson will be the speaker. Ferguson is a regular on National Public Radio and has written many books about the West on topics such as the Rockies and Yellowstone. 
College credit can be earned by attending Dixie Forum by signing up for Hon 161R. Each Dixie Forum speaker will be featured on the college radio station, The Disc 105.1 FM, every Monday at noon. For questions about Dixie Forum, call Terre Burton at 652-7812.  ###

New Traffic Signal Functional at DSC
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Sept. 3, 2004)  St. George’s newest traffic signal and crosswalk is up and functioning, just in time for the fall semester rush. The signal is the new gateway between Dixie State College’s north and main campuses and sits squarely in front of the college’s North Instructional Building (formerly the old LDS Institute building) between 800 and 900 East.  
Students are breathing easier because they no longer have to rely on drivers to yield them the right of way while crossing. But the new signal is also aimed to cut back on driver frustration.
“The light sequence will not allow for continuous crosswalk access for more than the prescribed signal rotation,” said Executive Director of Campus Services Ned Carnahan. “After the countdown is complete the signal will turn green and vehicles will be allowed to pass. Another button-actuated sequence will be required to allow for another crossing sequence, even at 10 to the hour during peak pedestrian hours.”
The crosswalk light has also been sequenced with the lights at 700 East and 1000 East, according to Carnahan. 
“This is to allow for a more regulated traffic and pedestrian flow and hopefully stop the gridlock we have experienced in the past,” Carnahan said. 
The students’ safety along that stretch of road has been a longstanding concern for DSC, said Stan Plewe, vice president of college services. To prevent jaywalking, a four-foot wrought iro n fence is being installed on the south side of the street to funnel students to the designated crosswalk and out of harm’s way. The fence is expected to deter most jaywalking, Plewe said, now that the sidewalk will be located on the inside of the fence and away from traffic.
"We hope that students will take their own safety into account a nd use the crosswalk,” Plewe said. “Our latest concern is students crossing the road with their heads down, talking on their cell phones. Students need to push a button and wait for the signal to cross.”
DSC administration would have liked this project completed sooner, Plewe said, but it has taken approximately five years to receive funding for the project.  Various solutions and methods were discussed prior to deciding upon the fence and traffic light, including building a bridge.
The old crosswalks at 800 East and 900 East have been removed. Another change that drivers need to be aware of is the new Right Turn Only requirements for the college parking lot exits along 100 South and the intersections at 800 East and 900 East.  A raised center median will eventually direct parking lot exiting traffic to the right. The measure is expected to provide for more orderly crossing of 100 South and more expedient exiting of the parking lots and better overall traffic flow on 100 South as the campus community continues to grow, Carnahan said.
Also planned for the construction project is extensive xeriscaping along the street to further direct pedestrians to the crosswalk. Streetlights fitted with college banners will also eventually line the street within the college boundaries.
City has been very helpful in getting the crosswalk coordinated. We paid for it all -- $627,000. signal, sidewalk, fence, lights, # # #

DSC Nursing Program Notches Top Passing Rate in the State
(ST. GEORGE – Aug. 25, 2004) The Dixie State College nursing program earned the highest pass rate among all nursing programs in the state on the Registered Nurse licensure examination, with a collective pass rate of 96 percent for the year 2003, as recently reported by the Utah State Board of Nursing.
         Twenty-four of 25 RN graduates from DSC’s recently accredited associate degree of nursing program (ADN) passed the RN-NCLEX certification exam in 2003, which every RN must pass in order to practice.
         That news nearly coincided with the start date of the college’s new bachelor’s of science in nursing (BSN) program. Instruction for program officially got underway this week, which marks the beginning of fall semester at the college. 
         Dixie State now offers both bachelor’s and associate nursing degrees, a practical nurse program, and a certified nurse assistant program. Enrollment in the college’s LPN and RN programs alone has grown from 48 students two years ago to 114 students this year. An additional 30 students currently make up the bachelor’s program for a total of 144 new nursing students this year at Dixie State College, excluding CNA students.  
         “We’re experiencing a phenomenal growth rate,” said Dean of Business, Technology, and Health Sciences Dr. David Borris. “We have three times as many nursing students today than we did two years ago. The most important part of that though is the success that’s accompanying the growth. It’s a growing program, but it’s also a quality program, as evidenced by our recent pass rate.”
        Because of this growth, the college is fast running out of space to put its nursing students, particularly now that new students are being admitted twice a year to the various programs. Currently, the college turns away three applicants for every one that’s admitted.
        As a remedy, Dixie continues to lobby for a facility dedicated entirely to the health sciences. The proposed facili ty, which was ranked atop the list of higher ed building priorities at the end of the 2004 legislative session, is planned to be built on the campus of the new Dixie Regional Medical Center in St. George, a subsidiary of IHC. Four acres of land have been donated toward this end. 
        “If we had the new facility, we could more effectively address the statewide and countywide need for nurses,” Borris added. “We’re in the fastest growing county in one of the fastest growing states in the country. Our need for nurses is even greater on the county level.”
2003 RN-NCLEX Pass Rates:
Dixie State College                 96.00%
Brigham Young University           94.79%
Salt Lake Community College     90.20% 
University of Utah                       89.92%
Weber State University               87.69%
Utah Valley State College           76.19%
Westminster College                  74.42%
College of Eastern Utah              64.00%

< b> DSC Rolls Out New History Courses
(ST. GEORGE – Aug. 11, 2004) Dixie State College this week announced the addition of two new American history courses to its schedule of classes. Founding Fathers and Revolutionary America and Civil War and Reconstruction will both be introduced at the college this fall semester, which begins Tuesday, Aug. 24. 
“These classes will provide students a glimpse into two of the most defining periods in our nation’s history. It’s exciting material and material that every American should become familiar with,” said Dr. Chip McLeod, who will teach the Civil War course.
Founding Fathers and Revolutionary America (History 2990) will examine the ideas, challenges, and dilemmas the Founding Fathers grappled with in the process of forming the new nation. It will also tackle issues including whether the framers of the Constitution intended to establish a Christian nation and what Jefferson meant by the phrase “all men are created equal.” The class will meet each Tuesday and Thursday from 6 p.m. to 7:15 p.m. and will be taught by Dr. Matt Harris.
Civil War Reconstruction (History 2991) will explore the social, economic, political, and military aspects of America’s only war against itself. The course will answer questions such as why southern leaders believed tearing the nation apart was the only way to safeguard their rights under the Constitution and why some regard the difficult years following the war as an “unfinished revolution.” The class will meet each Monday and Wednesday through the semester from 6 p.m. to 7:15 p.m.
Both classes are three-credit courses and satisfy a social science elective at Dixie State College. Both are upper level seminars requiring good reading skills and a working kno wled ge of U.S. history. For more information about either course call the Division of Humanities and Social Sciences at 652-7815 or email harris@dixie.edu or mcleod@dixie.edu.
Students can register for fall courses at DSC now through the first few weeks of the semester. To register call 652-7701 or visit www.dixie.edu/reg. A complete list of course offerings is also available on the web site.

DSC Students Receive National DEX Honors  
(ST. GEORGE – July 27, 2004) Four Dixie State College students recently earned national recognition at the Delta Epsilon Chi [DEX] Career Development Competition held in Nashville, Tenn. 
With over 2,000 students from across the nation competing in 19 different marketing and management events, Dixie’s Kim McKamey and Amanda Morbey competed on the first and second place teams in the Management Institute team competition.  In addition, DSC’s Erika Sarria and Melissa Gold were finalists in Retail and Hospitality Management respectively; both placed second in their categories at the state competition.
Dixie State’s DEX advisor, Dr. Phillip Lee, was also recognized nationally for his 25 years of service to the organization.
"Dixie always does well in national competition," Lee said.  "In my 25 years of advisement, Dixie has made it to nationals at least 21 of those 25 years."
Delta Epsilon Chi is an international college level marketing club centered around turning business students into business professionals. In order to achieve this transformation, state and national competitions are designed to simulate real-life business scenarios, Lee said. 
This year, the Management Institute team competition featured the Nashville Sharks hockey team.  The Sharks’ official management team provided various managerial problems, leaving it up to the competing DEX teams to find the best possible solutions.  Since this particular competition is made up of randomly selected teams, students were forced to work with members of different schools.
"If you went to work for a big organization, like the Nashville Sharks hockey team, then you would have to work with people you didn’t already know," said Lee. "This gives students a sense of real management."
McKamey and Morbey are sophomores at Dixie State College and both plan to attend the college this fall.

  DSC Student Elected National President of SkillsUSA-VICA   (ST. GEORGE – July 7, 2004) Dixie State College’s Bryan Doxford was elected national president of SkillsUSA-VICA June 25 in Kansas City, Mo., at the organization’s annual National Championships.          Though a DSC student has served on the national board in the past – Aaron Bodell served on the board in 2002-03 – Doxford is the first DSC student to ever be elected to the presidency. He is a senior in DSC’s four-year Business Administration program.

“Having two national officers in the last two years is really pretty good,” said DSC chapter advisor Jay Slade. “Bryan is a terrific kid. He’s just a good all around kid – the kind of kid you would like your own kids to be like. Doxford will serve as president for one year. During that time he’ll help train the state officers and other students, attend state training laboratories, and travel around the nation to speak to various groups. He will also manage 14 other national officers. Doxford served as Utah’s SkillsUSA state president in 2003-04. SkillsUSA averages a membership of 264,000 high school and college students annually. Its National Championship constitutes the largest student competition in the world.  “Everything you see in America that is built, whether it’s building your car, building your house, building your computer, or building your future, SkillsUSA has had a hand in its production, I guarantee it,” Doxford said. “Our organ ization has been around for 40 years.” Dixie State College has participated in SkillsUSA-VICA, formerly known as Vocational Industrial Clubs of America (VICA), for over 20 years. SkillsUSA is a national organization for high school and college students enrolled in technical, skilled, service, and health occupations. DSC’s SkillsUSA chapter is advised by professors Jay Slade, Robert McMicken, and Mel Jensen. 

DSC dental hygiene scores No. 1 among all two and four-year programs
ST. GEORGE, UT & #150; July 1, 2004) There is no such thing as a national championship in the dental profession, but the Dixie State College dental hygiene program earned the equivalent of that this year.
The program’s 2004 graduating class this week received word that it collectively received the top score in the nation on the National Board Dental Hygiene Exam, a written exam that every graduate of every program in the nation must pass in order to practice. The exam was taken Mar. 30, with the results being reported just this week.
Though it’s been among the top programs in the nation since coming on line at Dixie State in 1998, bringing home the nation’s top score is a first for the two-year program.
"Both our soccer and baseball teams won the national championship this year," said DSC President Dr. Robert Huddleston, "but people don’t always realize that we have academic programs performing at the exact same level, and our dental hygiene program is one of the m. This is particularly significant because all two-year and four-year programs in the nation take this exam. We couldn’t be prouder of these students and faculty."
Approximately 246 college and university dental hygiene programs took the National Board Exam this year. Since graduating its first class in 2000, DSC’s program has now scored in the top 10 percent four of the five years and in the top five percent three of the five years.
"It’s nice to be there and it’s nicer to be there than somewhere else down the line," said Dr. Gordon Jennings, director of the DSC dental hygiene program. "But at the same time, I think it’s more important that we just try and stay in that top 10 percent. What’s most critical to me is that we know that we’re doing our job. And if we can stay in that top 10 percent, then I’m totally happy. And that’s what most programs will probably tell you that that’s what their goal is."
The college rolled out a new on campus dental hygiene lab and clinic in 2002, the Dr. Mervyn and Sue Cox Dental Hygiene Clinic, something that likely played a role in this latest achievement. Previously, the program had conducted its lab work in dental offices around town after hours.
"The clinic has been a tremendous help," said Jennings. "Students learn the concepts in the classroom and then can walk across the hallway to put those concepts into practice. Everything is under one roof, and it’s been a tremendous boost."
Jennings also credited his faculty for preparing the students, as well as the college’s administration for pushing the program and giving it the support it’s needed. And then there are the students themselves who had a bit of a hand in the accomplishment, of course.
"Only 14 students graduate from the program each year," Jennings said, "so every student had to do well to accomplish something like this. There were no geniuses in this class. They’re just a bunch of bright, bright students who worked hard and really pushed for it."

DSC resumes four-day workweek during summer
(ST. GEORGE, Utah – May 13, 2004) Dixie State College again transitioned to a four-day work schedule this week, operating on a 10-hour a day workweek, which will remain in effect during the summer months only. The schedule will be effective through Friday, Aug. 13.
Most college employees will work Monday through Thursday from 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. with a 30-minute break for lunch. The college first experimented with the new schedule last year.
"We found that this measure resulted in significant utility savings last year, and that was the main motivation behind it originally," said DSC President Dr. Robert Huddleston. "During tighter economic circumstances, we need to be innovative and jump on every opportunity we have to save. We’re also doing it to express appreciation to our employees who have shouldered extra burdens to help out w ith a difficult budget situation."
The change in schedule will allow the college to close down certain whole buildings, cutting down on air conditioning and electricity costs. The college’s executive director of business services, Scott Talbot, estimates that the four-day workweek saved the college $40,000 in utility expenses in 2003.
Certain buildings and departments, particularly in the student services area, will remain open five days a week. Departments and divisions that will remain open on Fridays include the Information Center (switchboard operator), cashier’s office, Avenna Center Ticket Office, security, admissions, advisement & counseling, financial aid, the library, Smith Computer Center, custodial, maintenance, dining services, housing, and the Community Education Channel (KCEC).
These departments will all run staggered shifts to accommodate student needs and still allow employees to participate in the four-day workweek.
All Friday classes will continue as scheduled, and summer term will not be affected by the four-day workweek schedule. The college will resume its regular five-day schedule on Monday, Aug. 16.

Local students place at computer programming competition
(ST. GEORGE, UT – May 12, 2004) The Dixie State College Association of Computing Machinery (ACM) chapter recently sponsored a Computer Programming Competition, which featured the programming skills of local high school and college students. ACM is the professional organization for the computer science industry.
The college team that won first place consisted of Ryan Durham, Alan Gonzales, and David Hilton. The team got nine out of 10 problems programmed correctly. The winning high school team came from Dixie High School, and consisted of the sole competitor Anders Lyman, who scored five out of 10 problems.
The second and third place high school teams came from Hurricane High School and Enterprise High School respectively. First place winners each received $50 thanks to generous contributions from the community.
"These competitions are an important part of the CIT experience because they’re another venue for students to put what they learn into practice, and that’s key in our program," said chapter advisor Bart Stander.
The contest was sponsored by the Dixie State College Computer Information Technology Department, which now offers a bachelor’s degree in CIT with e mphases in computer science, system administration, and visual technologies. The ACM Chapter at Dixie State was established last fall at the college.

DSC to add accounting emphasis to its Business degree
(ST. GEORGE – April 30, 2004) Dixie State College today announced that it will add an accounting emphasis to its four-year Business Administration degree, which will be available to students this fall semester.
The new degree track will provide 29 total credits of accounting credits within the traditional Business Administration curriculum and require the same number of credits to graduate as the general Business Administration degree.
"This approach to the degree is unique in terms of the employment flexibility grads will encounter," said Business Department Chair Dr. Philip Lee. "Students graduating from this program will have the full complement of business administration skills and significant accounting skills."
The Utah Department of Workforce Services projects 330 job openings annually in accounting and auditing occupations at the bachelor’s degree level statewide for the next 10 years.
"Accounting is the language of business," said accounting professor Dr. Kevin Barrett. "It provides an excellent foundation to other careers as well such as law, medicine, and computer technology. This degree is a lot richer than just accounting – it is going to be a great springboard to a multitude of successful careers."
In addition, the degree track has been designed to help facilitate student entrance into advanced degree programs and to give them more options, said Dr. David Borris, dean of business, technology, and health sciences. Students can easily pursue their master's degree in business administration or, with two additional courses, pursue their master's in accounting, Borris said.
The new degree track was created in response to high student and local industry demand, Borris said. The college surveyed DSC students, and 95 percent of the 226 accounting students polled thought the accounting emphasis should be offered. Almost half said they would enroll in the program. In addition, the college received letters of support from several accounting firms in the community. The degree emphasis received the stamp of approval f rom the Utah State Board of Regents earlier this month.
There is no limit to the number of students who can be enrolled in the emphasis. Entrance to the program is contingent upon the completion of the requirements of an associate of arts or science degree and DSC’s pre-business core courses with a 2.5 GPA in those courses. Completion of CIS 1200 and Math 1090 is also required. Students wishing to enter the accounting emphasis must also have a B or better in both principles of accounting courses.
The college has hired two new accounting faculty members the past two years to pave the way for the new program, and currently has six full and part-time accounting specific faculty members all of whom are academically or professionally qualified. The Business Administration program also offers an emphasis track in v isual te chnology. The Business Administration program was first introduced at the college in 2000 and is currently the college’s most popular four-year degree program.
For more information about entrance into the Business Administration – Accounting emphasis program, call 435-652-7745.

DSC to confer 1,542 degrees and certificates Friday
(ST. GEORGE, UT – April 29, 2004) Dixie State College will again graduate its largest class ever, including its first elementary education class, at its 93rd Annual Commencement Exercises Friday, April 30, at 6 p.m. in the Avenna Center Burns Arena.
The college will confer a total of 1,019 degrees, an increase of three percent over last year. In addition, 523 vocational and technical certificates will be awarded.
This year’s ceremony is unique in that it will honor the college’s first ever class of elementary education graduates. Over 100 will graduate with bachelor’s degrees in all from the college’s three four-year programs, which were introduced at the college in 2000. That’s a 64 percent increase in four-year grads over last year.
Nine foreign countries and 24 states are represented in the Class of 2004. Eighty-six percent of grads call Utah home, with 54 percent hailing from Washington County.
Twelve Hispanic students, 19 Asian American/Pacific Islander students, nine international students, 12 Native American/Alaskan Native students, three African-American students, and 950 Caucasian students make up the class. Female graduates constitute 55 percent of the class. Graduates range in age from 17 to 62 and the average age of all grads is 24.
Ronelle Rosen and Jason Roberts will represent the class as this year’s Baccalaureate and Associate Valedictorians.
Honorary degrees will be awarded to David H. Jeppson, former executive vice president of Intermountain Health Care, and L. Steven Wilson, administrator of Dixie Regional Medical Center.
This year’s Commencement speaker is Humanitarian and Technology Entrepreneur Glenn Bingham, who founded what is today the group travel division of Sabre Corporation, the world’s largest travel services company, and Federal Software, which received the Hammer Award from Vice President Al Gore in 1995 for developing the first document system that created electronic signatures on electronic documents.
Currently, he serves executive director of the Ashby Foundation, which provides humanitarian aid to West Africa. He is also the director of the Alliance for Youth Service, which sends high school and college students on humanitarian projects around the world.
Being recognized as Distinguished Citizens for their exemplary service to the college and community are Mona Given, Eric Ludlow, R. Sterling Spafford, Russell C. Taylor, and Kathie Thayne.
Louise Excell will be honored as a retiring faculty member and faculty emeritus. Linda Lou Bills will be honored as a retiring staff member.
Graduates will march from DSC’s Old Gym down the palm-lined walkway to the Burns Arena beginning at 5:40 p.m. on Friday. The community is invited to participate in all commencement activities.

Five to be honored as Distinguished Citizens at DSC grad uation
(ST. GEORGE – April 27, 2004) Five individuals will be honored as Distinguished Citizens at the 93rd annual Commencement Exercises at Dixie State College Friday, April 30, at 6 p.m. in the college’s Burns Arena.
Mona Given, Eric A. Ludlow, R. Sterling Spafford, Russell C. Taylor, and Kathi e Thayne will be the recipients of this honor, awarded for exemplary service to the college and community.
Mona Given currently serves as chief financial officer and public relations representative for the Huntsman World Senior Games. Born in the oilfields of Coalinga, Calif., Given is known throughout St. George and Washington County for her many years of service and volunteerism.
Her professional accomplishments in the area also include being elected for two four-year terms on the St. George City Council and serving for two years as executive director of the American Cancer Society in Washington County. She has also worked in mortgage banking, spent 14 years in real estate office management, and operated the Pine Valley Country Store and Kitchen for four years. Given also served on the board of directors, the legislative committee and as a lobbyist for the Utah League of Cities and Towns.
Given has received the State Business and Professional Women (BPW) Accolades to Women Award for public service and has been honored by the St. George Area Chamber of Commerce as Woman of the Year. She serves as a trustee for the Huntsman World Senior Games and is a director with the St. George Area Chamber of Commerce and a Dixie Sunshiner. Given also has volunteered with the St. George Housing Authority, the Governor’s Commission on Women and Families, and has served on the Opera House Restoration and Historic Committee. Given and her husband, Bill, are the parents of four children and have nine grandchildren.
Eric A. Ludlow became the youngest county attorney in the state of Utah at 29 years of age in June 1991. He served 12 years as Washington County Attorney, and in May of 2003, was confirmed as a 5th District Court Judge, making him t he youngest District Court Judge in Utah. A native of Idaho Falls, Idaho, Ludlow attended Dixie State College on a basketball scholarship from 1980 to 1982. Ludlow holds degrees in business administration and law from SUU and BYU respectively.
Over the course of his career Ludlow has also served as a special Kanab City Prosecutor, the St. George City Prosecutor, special Deputy Garfield County Attorney, Brian Head Town Prosecutor,
as a Special Deputy Iron County Attorney, and as Santa Clara City and Enterprise City Prosecutor. He’s also held positions of national importance, serving as a Special Assistant United States Attorney. During the 2002 Winter Olympics, he worked with the United States Attorney’s Office at the Olympic Command Center. In 2003, United States Senator Orrin G. Hatch made the motion before the United States Supreme Court to admit Ludlow to that bar.
He was a founding board member of the Children’s Justice Center and has served as chairman of the Washington County Law Enforcement A dministrator’s Association, as a member of the Board of Trustees for Leadership Dixie, on the governing board of the Dixie Regional Medical Center, and on the Dixie State College Board of Trustees. He and his wife, Pheobe, are the parents of four daughters.
R. Sterling Spafford, a retired marketing professional, was born in Pocatello, Idaho, but spent most of his career in Salt Lake City. He has resided in Washington, Utah, for the past eight years.
A graduate of South High School in 1948, his education at the University of Utah was temporarily interrupted by a stint in the Army Counter Intelligence Corp where he served from 1953-1955, achieving the rank of SP-3 Sergeant. Following his service in the military he returned to the University, graduating in 1956 with a degree in marketing.
Spafford’s marketing career has included time with Uarco Business Forms where he began his career and Galbraith & Green, Inc., where he served in capacities including senior vice president of marketing, executive vice president and regional director. He then worked with James Benefits, later acquired by Transamerica, where he served as executive vice president of marketing and was instrumental in assisting the growth of the company from to $35 million in revenue.
He served as a mission president for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1985-1988 in the Canada Calgary Mission. Spafford resumed his career at Alta Health Strategies as a Senior Account Executive. In 1991 he was hired as vice president over marketing and business development for R. J. Salisbury & Associates, Inc. where he also served as special assistant to the President. Spafford and his wife, Marilyn Fowles are the parents of five children (two deceased), with 14 grandchildren.
Russell C. Taylor, former member of the Quorum of the Seventy of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, was born in Red Mesa, Colo., and raised in Provo, Utah. He graduated early from Provo High, and joined the U.S. Navy in 1943 during World War II. Within a few days of departing for Japan, the conflict ended and Taylor was discharged in 1945. He graduated from BYU in 1951 with a bachelor’s degree in economics. Following a long career in the life insurance industry, he was called to be a member of the Quorum of the Seventy in 1984.
In 1990, Taylor became associated with banking executives Noel Bennett and Ed Jamison, and became a director of their first bank in Las Vegas, Nevada Community Bank, which was later bought out by First Security Bank of Utah. Taylor then worked to help recapitalize the Sun Capital Bank in St. George in 1992 and sat on the Sun Capital Bank Board until it was bought out by U.S. Bank in 1997. In 1995, Russell and his colleagues opened their second bank operation in Las Vegas—the Community Bank of Nevada. He was a founding director of this bank, which now has six branches in the Las Vegas area.
While serving with the Sun Capital Bank in St. George, Taylor and others were able to involve the bank in supporting the restoration of the Pioneer Center for the Arts in St. George, restoring the old opera house, the social hall, and building the new art museum in St. George’s historic district. Taylor has served on the Dixie State College National Advisory Council since 1991. He also serves on the Dixie State College Celebrity Concert Series Board. He and his wife, Joyce Mortensen , are the parents of six children, and they have 20 grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
Kathie Thayne has been the executive director of the Huntsman World Senior Games since 1995 and is responsible for the management of all aspects of the Games. She is also a member of the Huntsman World Senior Games Board of Trustees. Under h er leadership the Games have grown to host over 7,000 participants, bringing over $34 million annually to the St. George area.
Born in Provo, Utah, and raised in northern California, she graduated from C. K. McClatchy High School in Sacramento, Calif., and then attended the University of Utah and the New York School of Interior Design. In addition to a career in interior designer, she has instructed a pre-school for gifted children, sold real estate, was the founder and co-director of the Dickens’ Christmas Festival in Salt Lake City, and owned and operated a clothing store for 25 years.
Thayne has completed two St. George Marathons, has been a member of the St. George Rotary Club, has worked on the Woodward School Restoration Committee, is a member of the Utah Sports Authority, and is a member of the Charter Class of Leadership Dixie where she served four years on the board of trustees. She sits on the board of the Pioneer Center for the Arts Foundation and in 2002, helped re-establish the Dickens’ Christmas Festival in St. George. She is a member of the St. George Chamber of Commerce and was honored by the chamber as Executive of the Year in 1999. She is currently serving as chair of the chamber board of directors for 2004. She and her husband, Gary, have three children and three grandchildren.

Glenn Bingham to speak at DSC commencement
(ST. GEORGE – April 20, 2004) Glenn Bingham, one of the nation’s leading technology executives, will be the speaker at the 93rd annual commencement exercises at Dixie State College. Graduation ceremonies get underway Friday, April 30, at 6 p.m. in the college’s Burns Arena.
Having run integrated circuit, computer software, and Internet businesses for the past 20 years, Bingham has distinguished himself as an innovator and visionary and has personally invented products and services that today account for hundreds of millions of dollars in sales.
Until 2001, he was the president and founder of what is today the group travel division of Sabre Corporation, the world’s largest travel services company. As result of his impact on this industry, Bingham was named one of the 25 most influential people in the world by a leading trade publication in 2000 and 2001.
Bingham’s company created the world’s first real-time group booking system for the hotel industry. His efforts led to Bingham being granted one of the first patents issued for Internet based software technology.
Previously, Bingham was the president and founder of Federal Software, a Washington D.C. based software development firm. In 1993, the company deve loped the first document system that created electronic signatures on electronic documents. This software, developed principally for the U. S. government, received the Hammer Award, for reinventing government, from Vice President Al Gore in 1995. Today, more than 500,000 Federal government employees rely on Bingham’s software.
During his business career Bingham has also been employed as a research associate of the Harvard Business School, a lecturer for Harvard College, and a consultant for the Harvard Institute for International Development.
As part of his research at Harvard in 1984, he invented the business management concepts that are known today as Activity Based Costing, utilized by thousands of major corporations worldwide and considered a standard part of the business curriculum at virtually every major university worldwide.
He holds an MBA from the Harvard Business School and is a Certified Public Accountant and a Certified Government Financial Manager.
Bingham is currently working as the executive director of the Ashby Foundation, which provides humanitarian aid to West Africa. He is also a director of the Alliance for Youth Service, which sends high school and college age youth on humanitarian aid projects around the world. Bingham is married to Elisabeth Rhodes Bingham; they are the parents of four children.

Fowler to return as acting associate VP of advancement
(ST. GEORGE – April 19, 2004) Less than one year after relinquishing his post as vice president of student services, Dixie State College today announced that Bill Fowler will return to the college to assume the role of acting associate vice president of advancement. He will fill the position on an interim basis for one to two years beginning May 1, 2004.
Formerly an executive director level position, the new associate vice president position will report directly to the college president and lead all college advancement activities, including fundraising. The college’s institutional advancement, alumni relations, institutional research and government relations, and public relations offices will fall under Fowler’s jurisdiction, as will the newly created cultural affairs office.
“After conducting an exhaustive search for this position for over a year, we’ve determined Bill is the best fit at this time,” said DSC President Dr. Robert Huddleston. “Frankly, we’re thrilled to have him back. He’s been an invaluable asset to this institution for a long, long time and will continue to be in this important new function.”
Prior to leaving the college in August 2003, Fowler had served at Dixie State College for 26 years. Altogether he has 34 years of experience in the Utah System of Higher Education. He began his career at the University of Utah as assistant director of admissions and recruiting. He later went to Salt Lake Community College as assistant dean of students and testing center director.
Fowler was wooed to Dixie by long-time friend Karl Brooks in 1977 and first worked as director of student services. At that time, 1,400 students were enrolled at the college.
Fowler has been instrumental in the booming growth of the college over the past three decades. Enrollment has since grown to nearly 8,000. He was also key in the establishment of the college’s first four-year programs, which took place in 2000.
“I have a lot of experience with institutional needs and I look forward to utilizing all the resources available and necessary to maximize fundraising potential for this great college and for the wonderful cause of higher education,” said Fowler.
“I’m really excited to come back. I’ve had a year off, but my mind has never left the college,” continued Fowler. “I miss the administrative team and look forward to getting back to work with many of my great friends.
A native of Lehi, Utah, Fowler holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Utah, where he played football. He and his wife, Candy, have four children and nine grandchildren.

DSC Theatre to present Quilters
(ST. GEORGE – April 13, 2004) The Dixie State College theater department will close out its season at the St. George Opera House with the heartwarming musical, "Quilters." The show runs Monday, April 19 through Saturday, April 24, with a 7:30 p.m. curtain each night and a Saturday 2 p.m. matinee.
Based on the book, "The Quilters: Women and Domestic Art," by Patricia Cooper and Norma Bradley, this popular musical production is comprised of 16 episodes depicting the vital role of women in the pioneering of America. The musical celebrates the life-affirming spirit of these women through music, dance, song, words, and quilting.
"Quilters is a story about the importance of quilting in women's lives, a story about the strength of pioneer women in settling this country, and a story about faith and the human spirit in facing adversity and life's challenges," said DSC theater director Varlo Davenport. "In a nation of immigrants, Quilters touches all of us."
Directed by Brent Hanson, the all female cast features Jill Bartlett, Dustin Beal, Amory L. Gardner, Katelyn Johnson, Jernae Kowallis, Rita Rene Morton, Holly Pease, Kenisha (Kiki) Shakespeare. The creative team also includes vocal director Ken Peterson, costume designer and music director Andrea Davenport, with lighting and sound direction by Josh Scott. Sla te Holmgren serves a s production stage manager.
The stories depicted in the musical derive from oral histories of women living in the Midwest who practiced the art of quilting. The show’s narrative describes the way of life on the American Prairie, including raising a family, difficult child births, the dangers from a prairie fire, finding hope in the hardship and the binding of family.
"Quilters" first premiered at the Denver Center Theatre Center in 1982. It opened on Broadway in September 1984. It was nominated for six Tony Awards in 1985, including Best Musical, Best Director of a Musical (Barbara Damashek) and Best Book of a Musical, and for the 1984 Helen Hayes Award for Best Musical in Washington D.C. The play also received the 1983 Fringe First Award at the Edinburgh World Theatre Festival in Scotland, and the 1983 Dra maLogue Award for Outstanding Achievement in Theatre in Los Angeles.
The St. George Opera House located at 212 North Main Street. Ticket prices ranges from $12 for adults to $5 for youth. Dixie State College students can receive one free ticket with a current valid student identification card. Seating is limited. Advance tickets can be purchased at the Cox Auditorium box office, or by calling 435-652-7800.
The theater department will open its 2004-05 season this fall in the new Delores Dore’ Eccles Fine Arts Center now in its final stages of construction.

Annual Spring Garden Tour set to bloom
(ST. GEORGE – April 13, 2004) Now that spring has sprung, the annual Spring Garden Tour will be held Saturday, April 24, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. All proceeds from the Garden Tour go directly toward Dixie State College scholarships.
Nine privately owned gardens throughout the St. George area, each with different landscapes varying from flower, vegetable, lush and desert landscaping, will be on display for public viewing as part of the tour. Patterned after a similar format of that of the Parade of Homes, the gardens can be visited in any order through 3 p.m. Different locations are chosen each year for the Spring Garden Tour.
"This is a great springtime outdoor event that everyone can enjoy, whether they have a green thumb or not," said Director of Community Education Janet O’Riley "It’s a nearly two decades-old tradition in this community, the really neat part being that it helps further someone’s college education."
Specific garden locations and directions to those locations are printed on the tickets. Tickets are $10 and can be purchased at the Community Education office at Dixie State College located at 100 South 900 East in St. George. They are also available at R & K Bookstore, Evelyn’s Inc., The City of St. George Recreation Center, Star Nusery, and Plant World.
The Garden Tour first began in 1986 in Santa Clara and Leeds to help support students who were returning to Dixie College. The event is sponsored by the American Association of University Women, the Lady Lions of St. George, St. George Business and Professional Women, the Dixie Garden Club, and Community Education.
For more information about the Spring Garden Tour, contact Janet O’Riley at 435-652-7671.

DSC to graduate first el ed class
(ST. GEORGE – April 9, 2004) Approximately 104 students will graduate from Dixie State College with four-year degrees at the end of this month. Twenty-five of them will be elementary e ducation graduates, as the program prepares to send its first-ever class of graduates into the classroom to teach. A banquet was held in honor of the 25 future educators Thursday night in the college’s Gardner Center.
"This is a proud occasion in two ways. It’s a proud moment for these students, and it’s a proud moment for the institution, and the two go hand in hand," said acting Vice President of Academics Joe Peterson.
The evening included well wishes from faculty, remarks from students, musical and video tributes, and an awards presentation recognizing the strengths each individual has brought to the program. In its inaugural year of producing graduates, the program boasts this year’s Valedictorian at the four-year level.
"Two years ago some of you were asking for the secret," Director of Elementary Education Dr. Mike Kille en told students. "The secret, if there is one, is know your students. Know who they are. You can’t teach anyone anything if you don’t have a rapport with them. We’re very, very proud of you. Welcome as colleagues."
"Remember, teaching is a fun job," faculty member Dr. Shirley Davis told st udents. "It’s going to be frustrating at times, but remember those bright eyes when (your students) get it. That’s the thing that’s going to keep you going as teachers."
The four-year elementary education program received the nod from the Utah State Board of Regents in October 2001, with instruction beginning fall semester 2002. The degree program has a built-in English as a Second Language (ESL) endorsement, making the program unique in the state.
The program, in conjunction with the two other four-year programs at the college, received its initial accreditation in January 2003 from the Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges and Universities, at which time the program received high marks for Washington County School District’s significant involvement in the program.
Dixie State first began offering four-year degrees in 2000 in business administration and computer and information technology. A fourth program will be added this fall in nursing.
Graduation ceremonies will be Friday, April 30, at 6 p.m. in the college’s Burns Arena.

DSC announces 2004 Valedictorians
(ST. GEORGE – April 6, 2004) Dixie State College recently announced who will represent the graduating class of 2004 as Valedictorians in the college’s 93rd commencement exercises Friday, April 30.
Ronelle S. Rosen will be the Baccalaureate Degree Valedictorian, and Jason C. Roberts will represent the class as Associate Degree Valedictorian. Both will graduate with summa cum laude honors.
"These two represent the best of the best at Dixie State College," said college president Dr. Robert Huddleston. "This is the hi ghest honor bestowed upon a DSC student, and they’ve certainly earned it. We salute them both for their exemplary work, dedication, and academic excellence."
Rosen will graduate with the college’s first-ever graduating class of elementary educators; the college’s elementary education program began instruction in fall 2002. She was the recipient of a National Collegiate Education Award in 2003.
Born in Provo, Utah, Rosen has lived in several states, as well as Berlin, Germany, as her father has worked for the U.S. Air Force. She graduated from high school in Albuquerque, New Mexico. She and her husband, Larry Rosen, are the parents of a son, Tyler, age 13. They have also been foster parents to a daughter, Amber Stutz.
Jason Roberts, of St. George, has received nu merous honors and participated in many campus organizations during his time at Dixie. He served as president of Phi Beta Lambda (business club), won third place in the finance event at the PBL state competition, competed at the PBL national competition, and served as a member of DSC’s Interclub Council, Service Club, and played first trombone in the Concert and Jazz Band. Roberts will receive his associate of science in business.
While attending Pine View High School, Roberts was a member of the school baseball and tennis teams, and was voted to the Academic All-State tennis squad. He was a member of the school service club and served as the school’s National Honor Society Vice President. He was also named PVHS Valedictorian.
The Valedictorian Award is judged not only upon grades, but difficulty of courses completed. The recipient must have a cumulative GPA of 3.80 to 4.00. The college’s 2004 commencement exercises will begin at 6 p.m. on April 30 in the college’s Burns Arena.

DSC Wind Ensemble slates final concert
(ST. GEORGE – April 6, 2004) The Dixie State College Wind Ensemble will present its final concert of the year on Tuesday, April 13, at 7:30 p.m. in the Cox Performing Arts Center. The group, conducted by Gary Caldwell, has recently returned from a successful performance and recording tour in southern California.
The concert will include such numbers as "White Rose" by Philip Sparke, a gorgeous piece in the British band style, a suite from "Lord Of The Rings," featuring memorable themes from the movie trilogy, "Nostradamus," a symphonic tone poem that tells the story of the medieval prophet, Nostradamus, and Clifton Williams’ powerful "Symphonic Dance No. 3."
To finish out the program, the ensemble will present "Vesuvius" by Frank Ticheli, a furious and passionate dance meant to portray the final hours of Pompeii before it was destroyed by the famed eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in A.D. 79.
As an additional bonus, the DSC Guitar Ensemble, directed by Lisle Crowley, will also perform as part of the concert.
Tickets are available at the door: $2 per person or $5 per family. All proceeds go to the Dixie State College band program.

DSC’s Puusalu named 2004 New Century Scholar
(ST. GEORGE, UTAH – April 6, 2004) For the second straight year, a Dixie State College student has been named a New Century Scholar. Kathleen A. Puusalu, a sophomore student at the college, was recently named a 2004 New Century Scholar by Phi Theta Kappa, the international honor society for two-year colleges.
Puusalu’s selection was based on scores earned in the All-USA Academic Team competition, which took into consideration approximately 1,600 student applications from two-year institutions across the nation. The highest scoring All-USA applicant from each of the 50 states was named a New Century Scholar.
As the highest scoring student from Utah, Puusalu, a native of Ogden, Utah, will be honored at the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) convention in Minneapolis, Minn., April 24-26, and receive a $2,000 stipend funded by the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation.
"This is an extremely rare honor that is recognized nationwide and even internationally," said DSC President Dr. Robert Huddleston, who nominated Puusalu. "To be Utah’s sole representative is an extraordinary accomplishment. Katie has relentlessly served the college and the St. George community during her two years here, and she is ver y deserving of this honor."
Puusalu currently serves as the president of the Dixie Serving Utah Network (D-SUN) Service Club, an organization that organizes five service projects a week to benefit the community and local schools. She is also the college’s SUN state representative.
Puusalu also serves as vice president of service on DSC’s student executive council for the 2003-04 year, oversees an after-school tutoring and mentoring program, is co-director of Buff Kids, a program that promotes exercise among children, and is a Campus to Community board member. For her Honors project she spearheaded a service learning scholar program at the college. As a result of her efforts, the first class of service learning scholars will graduate from DSC in 2006.
In addition to service, Puusalu is also heavily involved in the arts. She is a Dixie State Theatre Association member, has worked as theater department secretary while at Dixie, and has worked as assistant producer or director for every play at the college in a two-year span.
Puusalu will graduate cum laude at the end of this month with an associate degree. She will continue her education next fall at Texas A University and plans to pursue degrees in human resources and law.

D-Queen crowned at Dixie State College
(ST. GEORGE – April 1, 2004) D-Week at Dixie State College is in full swing now that a D-Queen has been selected. Jill A. Bartlett received that honor earlier this week at the annual D-Queen Pageant.
The D-Queen Pageant celebrates, first and foremost, academic prowess, service endeavors, talent, and extra-curricular activity. The pageant has long been a staple of D-Week, which first began at the college in 1915 as a way to increase school spirit among students, alumni, and the community.
Bartlett, a Springville, Utah, native, received scholarships i n both theater and music at the college. She is a member of the Chamber Choir and Jazz Choir at the college and has been involved in several theater productions while a t Dixie. She has also been on the DSC honor roll and works at the DSC preschool. She will graduate this year with an associate degree and plans to continue her education in theater.
In the area of service, Bartlett has been a big advocate of literacy, having served as a tutor in a literacy center, organized a benefit concert for literacy and started a reading program at elementary schools. She’s also done work to help people with eating disorders.
For the talent portion of the competition, Bartlett performed her own rendition of the original "Cry me a River."
The day-long pageant consists of five categories. Service and activities, an i nterview, and GPA make up 60 percent of the contest. The talent and eveningwear categories make up the balance of the pageant.
Remaining D-Week activities include the Great Race Friday at 6 p.m. on the Encampment Mall and whitewashing the ‘D’ Saturday at 7 a.m., which will be followed by a breakfast.
Saturday night at approximately 8:45 p.m. the new look ‘D’ on the hill will make its debut. With the backing of St. George City, the ‘D’ will shed its old flood lights and don a brand new and improved lighting system. Lights were first installed on the ‘D’ in 1941.
D-Week will come to an end with the D-Dance at 9 p.m. in the Gardner Ballroom. All members of the community are welcome at all D-Week activities.

DSC Jazz Band to wrap up season with finale concert
(ST. GEORGE – March 31, 2004) The Dixie State College Jazz Ensemble will present its final concert of the year on Tuesday, April 6, at 7:30 p.m. in the Cox Performing Arts Center. The group, directed by Gary Caldwell, will share the stage with Mick Jones’ Big Band.
The concert opener will be "Nerkmobile" by Neal Finn, a medium tempo swing chart with tasty lines and ensemble sections, featuring Trevor Crowley on guitar, Josh Marshall on tenor, Ryan Wiest on alto and Phil Wintch on drums.
Legendary jazz composer Sammy Nestico has written many of the great charts for some of the well-known bands. His "Basie Straight Ahead," as recorded by the Count Basie Orchestra will feature Brandi Wilkins on piano and Josh Marshall on tenor.
Ryan Wiest will be featured on a ballad for alto sax. It is penned by Oliver Nelson and entitled "A Penthouse Dawn."
"Horn Of Puente," by Gordon Goodwin, a tribute to legendary percussionist Tito Puente, will also be featured. It is a very difficult and demanding chart that starts out in a cha-cha and then shifts to a "songo" feel. Jeff Caldwell, trumpet, will be the featured soloist.
"The Very Thought Of You" by Ray Noble will be arranged as a beautiful trombone ballad featuring Lisa Raines. "Swingin’ For The Fences," also by Gordon Goodwin, is a fast swinger based on the chord changes to "Sweet Georgia Brown," which will also include solos by Marshall and Caldwell.
Marvin Fisher’s standard "When Sunny Gets Blue," has been arranged as a shuffle and Latin chart by Frank Mantooth. It too will feature tenor sax and trumpet soloists by Josh Marshall and Jeff Caldwell. Another Sammy Mestico ballad "All My Life" will also feature Marshall.
The closing number, & quot;Ya Gotta Try . . . Harder," by Quincy Jones and Sammy Nestico, is based on the chart "Ya Gotta Try" recorded by Buddy Rich in the 1970’s. It starts out with a strong half-time shout section and quickly changes to double time.
Last year at this time, the Jazz Ensemble received at Superior I rating at the Northern Arizona University Jazz Festival and has received similar honors from other prestigious festivals, including placing fifth at the competitive Fullerton Jazz Festival on two occasions.
Tickets are available at the door: $2 per person or $5 per family. All proceeds go to the Dixie State College band program.

Year end Rebel Awards honor DSC students, faculty
(ST. GEORGE – Mar. 31, 2004) The winners of the 2004 Rebel Awards at Dixie State College were announced Monday at the annual Rebel Awards Banquet, the kick-off event to the college’s D-Week. The annual year-end awards program recognizes students, faculty, and staff who have excelled in 12 areas of achievement. T he Rebel Awards have been a tradition at the college since the 1960s.
This year’s "Outstanding Freshman Student Award" went to Kate Jensen. Jensen has helped organize over a dozen projects involving hundreds of volunteers as vice president of the service club, while maintaining a high GPA.
Winning the "Outsta nding Sophomore Student Award" was Seth Christensen. Christensen is a member of both the Phi Theta Kappa international honors society and Health Occupations Club, is vice president of the Broadcasting Club, and works with students at the tutoring center in the areas of math, chemistry, and biology.
Connor Shakespeare received this year’s "Distinguished Service Award," awarded for significant contributions to the college without receiving recognition or remuneration. Shakespeare currently serves as the president of the X-Club, a service and traditions-based fraternity, which he re vived at the college last year. As student body president during the 2001-02 year, he founded the Campus to Community service program at the college and revived the Great Race. He is a past "Mr. Dixie" winner and was the recipient of the 2001 Dixie Spirit Rebel Award.
The "Achievement of the Year Award," given to a student who has made unusual sacrifices to gain a higher education, went to Dave Eves. While in high school, Eves’ life was changed by an accident that left him paralyzed from the chest down. While at Dixie he has been an orientation leader and member of Student Support Services where he has focused on helping other students achieve. He has already graduated summa cum laude with an associate degree and is now completing his bachelor’s degree in business.
Jake Denning received this year’s "Personality of the Year Award," which awards, among others, school spirit, activity support, and school involvement. Denning, a two-time winner of the award, has served as student body president for 2003-04 and as a member of the college’s Board of Trustees. He was a leading voice to increase faculty and staff salaries statewide this year after two years of no raises and led the charge to relight the block ‘D’ on the hill. He has been involved in student government for the past three years.
The "Dixie Spirit Award" was awarded to Jodie Savage for her capturing the heart and soul of Dixie State College as demonstrated by attitude, involvement, and enthusiasm. Savage has served as student body vice president over academics during 2003-04. The year previous she served as student body vice president over service.
Nicole Anderson received the &q uot;Scholar Athlete Award." Anderson was team captain for the 2003 women’s soccer team, which went on to capture the NJCAA championship. She has been a two-year first team All-American and won both NJCAA and Adidas "Player of the Year" honors this year. She will graduate this spring with summa cum laude honors.
Three Rebel Awards were also given for exemplary performance in each of the college’s three four-year programs. Winning the "Outstanding Business Student" award was Budd Black. For the second straight year, Jennifer LeBaron was recognized as "Outstanding Elementary Education Student" and will receive her degree this year with the program’s first ever graduating class. And Daniel Bay, a computer and information technology major, was the recipient of the "Outstanding CIT Student" award.
The "Outstanding Teacher Award," went to Brent Snow, a professor of business and marketing at the college since 1984. And Clark Hutchings received this year’s "Distinguished Service Staff Award." Hutchings currently serves as the director of facilities operations and has worked at the college since 1968.
*Also revealed at the banquet were this year’s valedictorians. Jason C. Roberts is this year’s associate degree valedictorian and will graduate with an associate of science in business. Ronelle S. Rosen is the bachelor’s degree valedictorian and will graduate with a degree in elementary education. Also recognized were 192 students who will graduate with honors. The final recognition of the evening went to Kathleen Puusalu who was recently named a New Century Scholar by Phi Theta Kappa, with the highest overall score in the State of Utah.

DSC’s D-Week returns next week
(ST. GEORGE – Mar. 26, 2004) The mother of all Dixie State College traditions returns to campus next week, Mar. 29 through April 3. Somewhat akin to a second homecoming, D-Week is a chance for college alumni, students, and faculty and staff, as well as the community, to come together in a reunion setting for a week of activities. Its roots trace back to 1914, three years after the college’s founding.
"Once a year at Homecoming is enough for most colleges and universities," said alumni director Kalynn Larson, "but not for Dixie State. Our alumni love coming back on campus to reconnect with Dixie, and D-Week gives us another chance to do that."
D-Week unofficially got underway Friday with a Campus to Community service project whose aim was to clean the Santa Clara Arboretum. On Monday, there will be a D-Week kick-off activity on the Gardner Center Plaza at noon. The Rebel Awards banquet will follow that evening at 6:30 p.m. in the Gardner Ballroom. Finalists in each of 12 categories in the areas of academics, service, and athletics have been selected and will be honored at the banquet, with the winner of each category being announced.
The D Queen Pageant will be Tuesday at 7 p.m. in the Cox Auditorium. Not your traditional beauty pageant, the D Queen Pageant celebrates academic achievement, service, talent, and extracurricular activity.
To many, D-Week’s signature event is the Great Race, which takes place Friday at 6 p.m. on the Encampment Mall. Fifteen teams of 10 comprised of DSC alumni, students, and faculty and staff will relay their way across campus by foot, mountain bike, roller blades, water, mud and more. The inaugural Great Race occurred in 1971 and included such events as motocross, horseback riding, and tubing down the Virgin River. Growth and safety concern eventually forced the race to the friendly confines of campus.
D-Week wraps up on Saturday, April 3, with the annual whitewash of the ‘D’ on Black Hill. Whitewashi ng gets underway at 7 a.m. Later that evening at 9 p.m., a new lighting system on the ‘D’ will make its debut. The D-Day Dance will also be Saturday at 9 p.m. in the Gardner Ballroom.
"D-Week is one of those things that makes Dixie Dixie. It’s what makes us unique," said Stafford. "To me, there’s no gr eater time of year."

DSC to tidy up Santa Clara Arboretum
(ST. GEORGE – Mar. 23, 2004) The Campus to Community service program at Dixie State College will again spring into action Friday, Mar. 26, this time at the Santa Clara Arboretum. The project gets underway at 2 p.m. and will involve pulling weeds, removing dead brush, clearing and cleaning the trail system, and otherwise helping renovate the arboretum. Any volunteers from the community are welcome to come and give a hand.
The Santa Clara Arboretum consists of a series of trails that wind through the lava rock beds near the Santa Clara and St. George border. Lining the trails system is a variety of trees and other foliage native to the area. The Arboretum was founded in the 1970s by artist Robert Shepherd with the goal to preserve the area in the face of growth. Over the past five years, however, it has fallen somewhat into disrepair.
"The arboretum is a wonderful resource in this community," said Donna Stafford, director of student activities. "It’s gotten to the point now where the renovation needed is too overwhelming for any one entity. With a little work from all of us, it will be back on its way to being one of the jewels of this community."
A committee – Friends of the Arboretum – has also recently been formed to help get the arboretum back on its feet again and will oversee the service project. The Arboretum is located on Little League Drive near Snow Canyon High School off of Lava Flow Drive.
The Campus to Community program got started at the college in 2001 with a large-scale yard sale to benefit a near drowning victim in the community . Other activities have included planting trees for the Southern Utah Water Conservation Garden, a book drive for literacy, renovating the confluence area on the Virgin River near Hurricane and LaVerkin, and hosting a benefit concert for the leveled libraries for Washington County School District. The program consists of one service project each semester.
"This program has become important to us. It’s something we hope to carry on for years," said student body president Jake Denning. " The entire county is so giving to th e college, so this is our way of giving a little back."
"I offer extra credit for my students who will attend and write a report afterwards," said Candace Mesa, who teaches developmental English at the college. "The resulting papers are some of the best writings of the semester because students who participate are enthusiastic about the experience of getting off campus as a group, serving the community, doing physical work instead of strictly mental work, learning about our area, and meeting new people. I’m a big supporter of the program."
Three shuttles will leave the Old Gymnasium parking lot at 1:30 p.m. on Friday to take volunteers to the arboretum. Once there, workers will divide into teams and work there from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. under the direction of the renovation committee. A barbecue and volleyball will immediately follow the service project across the street at Santa Clara City Park. The shuttles will return at approximately 6:30 p.m.
The City of Santa Clara will provide most of the tools, but shovels, hoes, pruners, wheelbarrows, and chainsaws are needed. For those interested in participating, it is recommended that they bring work gloves and sturdy shoes.

Broadway coming to Dixie Forum
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Mar. 19, 2004) In an encore Dixie Forum performance, New York soprano Marta Burton will present "To Broadway with Love," Tuesday, Mar. 23, at noon in the Dunford Auditorium at Dixie State College.
Burton will perform several well-loved Broadway tunes, including many that she has sung on stage during a career that has taken her from coast to coast with symphony concerts, and sea to sea as she starred in musical productions aboard various Norwegian cruise ships.
The performance will also include some less well-known songs and, in her warm mezzo interpretation, some that are traditionally sung by men. She will be accompanied in St. George by Terry Lamoreaux, founder of the American West Symphony and Chorus.
The young soprano earned a bachelor’s degree in theatre and English at the University of Wyoming after attending the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in Pasadena, Calif. After working for a number of years in regional theatre in the Midwest, Burton moved to New York City to more seriously study music, including opera as well as musical theatre.
Burton began her stage career as a four-year old, the youngest daughter of the King of Siam in a production of The King and I and has been performing ever since. One of her favorite leading roles was as Mrs. Anna, the British governess, in the same play.
Following her Dixie Forum appearance, Burton will perform as the featured soprano in a "Celtic Celebration" Pops Concert with the Utah Symphony on Mar. 26 and 27 in Salt Lake City.
Burton, who also happens to be the daughter of DSC professors Lou and Terre Burton, first performed at Dixie Forum in 2002.
For more information about Dixie Forum, contact Terre Burton at (435) 652-7812.

Violence, religion, and the law to be discussed at public lecture at DSC
(ST. GEORGE – Mar. 16, 2004) The interrelation between violence, religion, and the law will come under examination during a public lecture Friday, Mar. 19, at 7 p.m. in the Dunford Auditorium at Dixie State College.
Dr. Edwin Brown Firmage, professor of constitutional and international law at the University of Utah College of Law, will present the lecture, which will be the culminating event of a weeklong faculty seminar led by Firmage at the college. The community at large is invited to attend the lecture.
The lecture will explore problems of international violence in places such as Iraq, particularly with regard to acts of terrorism. Furthermore, it will discuss the response and function of religion and law in relation to such violence.
"The lecture will examine civil wars as well and the particular problems of internal strife and the role of third parties involved in terrorism," said seminar director and DSC English professor Dr. Tim Bywater. "Dr. Firmage is a man of extraordinary credentials and experience on this topic, and we think this is something the entire community will benefit from."
Firmage served as a White House Fellow on the staff of Vice-President Hubert H. Humphrey, with responsibility for civil rights. In that capacity, he worked with Roy Wilkins of the NAACP and with the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. He also served as United Nations Visiting Scholar, and attended sessions of the General Assembly of the United Nations in New York and the arms control negotiations in Geneva, Switzerland, in 1970-71.
Firmage was the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Gold Medaille d’Excellenc e Laureates in Geneva, Switzerland in August 2001, in recognition of a life of public service and citizen diplomacy on behalf of the betterment of humanity and the advancement of peace and justice.
His speech as a delegate at the meetings of the Sub-Commission on Human Rights of the United Nations in 1999 in Geneva inspired debate on the topic of creating a culture of peace and non-violence toward children. In a similar capacity and forum in 2001, he gave a speech about Native American and Tibetan human rights. For the past six years, Firmage has worked steadily with His Holiness, the Fourteenth Dalai Lama of Tibet, and has had extensive meetings with the Tibetan Government-in-Exile on matters of constitutional revision and international relations, and human rights.
He was a participant in a Fulbright Seminar in the Soviet Union in 1990, worked with Vietnamese refugees in Vietnam, Thailand, and Hong Kong in 1990-91, was the 1991 recipient of the Rosenblatt Prize for Excellence, the highest academic award given by the University of Utah, and also in 1991 was awarded the Turner-Fairbourn Award for significant contributions to peace and just ice.
Closer to home, Firmage was the leading figure in the fight opposing the MX missile being placed in central and southern Utah and Nevada. In 1988, Professor Firmage was awarded the Charles Redd Prize by the Utah Academy of Science, Arts and Letters, for outstanding contributions in the humanities and social sciences and was the recipient of the 1989 Governor's Award in the Humanities, given by the Utah Endowment for the Humanities.
A Hinckley Fellow at Brigham Young University, Firmage graduated with high honors in political science and history and also received a master's degree in history. He was National Honors Scholar at the University of Chicago Law School, where he earned several law degrees, and served on the editorial board of the Chicago Law Review. He has also served as Fellow in Law and Humanities at the Harvard Law School.
For more information about the lecture, contact Dr. Tim Bywater at (435) 652-7808.

International Shakespeare the topic of Dixie Forum
(ST. GEORGE – Mar. 5, 2004) Ace Pilkington, DSC professor of literature, humanities, and history, and his wife, Olga Pilkington, will be speaking on "International Shakespeare" at the next Dixie Forum on Tuesday, Mar. 9, at noon in the Dunford Auditorium at Dixie State College.
The two will examine Shakespeare's international impact with special emphasis on Shakespeare in Russia. They will also talk about Russia's impact on Shakespeare.
Pilkington is well known on campus for his courses on Shakespeare, mythology, science fiction, and Western civilization. He is also Literary Seminary Director at the Utah Shakespearean Festival in Cedar City.
His wife, Olga, comes from Krasnoyarsk in Siberia. She has published articles on Shakespeare in both Russian and English. The two have recently written on "Shakespeare and Nabokov" after receiving special permission from Nabokov's family to examine his personal work in the Library of Congress.
The Forum is open to all students, faculty, staff, and townspeople. Forums take place each Tuesday at noon in the Dunford Auditorium (Browning Learning Resource Center) and last for 50 minutes. For more information contact Terre Burton at 652-7812.

Spring enrollment up at Dixie State College
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Mar. 4, 2004) Dixie State College recently announced third week enrollment totals for spring semester 2004, and numbers are up in both categories. The college experienced significant increases in both total headcount and full-time equivalent enrollment (FTE).
A total of 5,496 students are enrolled in courses this semester at the college, a three percent increase over spring 2003 total enrollment.
In terms of FTE, Dixie State experienced a four percent increase over last year’s totals; the equivalent of 3,878 students make up DSC’s spring 2004 full-time enrollment.*
"Some of the current growth is attributable to our new four-year programs, but much of it also has to do with this institution in general," said Vice President of Student Services Phil Alletto. "What it boils down to is more people throughout the region are taking note that Dixie State College is as great place to get a quality education. More freshman students than ever before are enrolling, and from farther and farther away."
The early indication is that the college’s springtime growth will again carry over into fall semester. The college has seen fall semester increases in both enrollment categories since 1992-93. Currently, Alletto said, student applications are up more than 20 percent over last year at this time.
"It looks like next fall we will welcome our largest new student group ever," Alletto said.
*FTE, or full-time equivalent, is the enrollment figure funded by the state. One FTE is defined as any combination of 15 units of credit enrolled in by one or more students. For example, if a student is taking 15 credit hours, that equals one FTE. If 15 students take one credit, that equals one FTE as well.

Academic Decathlon again coming to DSC
(ST. GEORGE – Mar. 5, 2004) Rather than running,pole vaulting, and long jumping – events that make up a traditional decathlon – high school students from across the state will c onverge on the campus of Dixie State College Mar. 11-13 to strut their stuff in the areas of math, language, art, and more in the Utah Academic Decathlon. A fixture in the state for 22 years, the Utah Academic Decathlon has been hosted on the Dixie State College since the inaugural event in 1982.
Twenty-five high school teams from around the st ate will compete against one another in 10 academic areas, which include essay, speech, language and literature, interviewing, art, music, math, social science, economics and Super Quiz.
Each high school has fielded a team of nine students comprised of three "A" or Honor students, three "B" or Scholastic students, and three "C" or Varsity students. The teams that will participate in the state competition have already advanced through local and regional levels of competition.
"Based on the model of the athletic decathlon, the Academic Decathlon requires participants to prepare for all academic events," said Keith Kelsch, Utah Academic Decathlon Competition manager. "Like the athletic contest, the Academic Decathlon does not permit participants to specialize but, rather, encourages academic versatility. The overall goal is to communicate to students the importance of academic achievement."
The overall winner of the Utah Academic Decathlon will advance to the national Academic Decathlon, slated to be held this year in Boise, Idaho. Last year’s winner, Park City High School, represented Utah in the national competition held in Erie, Pe nn.
The three-day competition gets underway Thursday at 4:30 p.m. at Dixie High School with the speech and interview heats, which are scheduled through 9 p.m. The remainder of the competition will be held in the DSC Burns Arena on Friday beginning with a general meeting at 7:45 a.m. The competition will conclude Friday with the oral portion of the Super Quiz beginning at 4:30 p.m.
An awards ceremony will follow on Saturday, Mar. 13, in the Gardner Center Ballroom at the college at 9 a.m. Gold, silver and bronze medals will be awar ded for individual events and total scores earned.
Over 300 volunteers every year from the community assist to make the event a success. For a complete schedule of events, visit online at http://www.utad.org/schedule/index.htm. For more information about the Utah Academic Decathlon, (435) 652-7590.
The U.S. Academic Decathlon was first creat ed by Dr. Robert Peterson, former Superintendent of Schools in Orange County, Calif. Firmly believing that everyone's learning potential can be maximized through competitive challenge, Dr. Peterson set in motion the contest that has since come to be recognized as the most prestigious high school academic team competition in the United States. The program spread rapidly throughout the states due to the success and excitement it engendered. The USAD was founded in 1981, and the state of Utah (UAD) came on board shortly after, and even hosted the United States National Competition at Dixie State College in 1997.

DSC Theater to present "The Boys Next Door"
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Mar. 1, 2004) Dixie State College Theater Department’s third production of the year will be "The Boys Next Door." Staged by Director of Theater Varlo Davenport, the production will be performed Mar. 9-13. Curtain is at 7:30 p.m. each night. All performances will be in the Ball Room of the Gardner Student Center.
The setting is a communal residence in a New England city, where four mentally handicapped men live under the supervision of an earnest but increasingly "burned out" young social worker named Jack.
Norman takes great pride in the huge bundle of keys which dangles from his waist; Lucien P. Smith has the mind of a five-year-old, but imagines that he is able to read the weighty books he lugs about; Arnold is a hyperactive, compulsive chatterer who suffers from a persecution complex; while Barry, a brilliant schizophrenic, fantasizes that he is a golf pro.
Mingled with scenes from the daily lives of these four, where "little things" sometimes become momentous (and often very funny), are moments of great poignancy. A New York Times reviewer said of the play, "’The Boys Next Door’ moves the audience to an awareness of how many things in every day life we take for granted."
The production set was designed by Josh Scott with lights by Dustin Beal. Costumes and original music are provided by Andrea Davenport. Shawn Mattson is the production stage manager. The cast features: Mike Gardner, David Bruner, Doug Radunich, Josh Scott, Slate Holmgren, Xander Gamble, Tanya Roundy, Quinn Drake, Travis Cox, Rita Rene' Morton, Laura Jacobson and Isaac Spafford.
Tickets for the play are $10 for adults, $9 for seniors and $5 for non-DSC students. Tickets are available from the Cox Auditorium Box Office, which is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, or by calling 652-7800.

Service scholarship available to DSC students
(ST. GEORGE – Mar. 2, 2004) A lot of scholarships come with some sort of academic string attached to it. That is, to earn one you have to have a certain GPA or ACT score. Not so with the AmeriCorps Education Award, a service-based scholarship currently available to all Dixie State College students.
Dixie State College is participating in the AmeriCorps UCAN Serve program by providing over 100 education awards to students who serve as learning partners or social service providers for children, teens, and families. Learning partners may be student teachers, tutors, mentors, volunteer coordinators and more.
"This is easy money for students," said Sherri Anderson, who oversees the AmeriCorp scholarship program at Dixie. "A lot of students put in these service hours anyway, so they may as well take advantage of this opportunity."
Three different scholarship categories are available to students. For 300 hours of service, students can earn $1,000 in scholarship money. For 450 hours, a scholarship of $1,250 is available. And for 900 hours of service, students can potentially earn nearly $2,400 in scholarship money. Hours served for any paid position do not count as hours served toward the scholarship.
"I just want to make people aware," Anderson said. "I don’t want to see the money go to waste."
AmeriCorps scholarship s are now available for the 2004 academic year. For more details about the AmeriCorps Education Award or to apply, contact Sherri Anderson in person in Room 208 on the second floor of the Gardner Student Center or call her at 652-7512.

Utah folklorist to speak at Dixie Forum
(ST. GEORGE – Mar. 1, 2004) Noted Utah folklorist, Hal Cannon, will speak and show excerpts from his documentary, "Why the Cowboy Sings," Tuesday, Mar. 2, at Dixie State College as part of this week’s Dixie Forum: A Window on the World. The forum gets underway at noon in the Dunford Auditorium.
In his program, he will take forum attendees on a journey across the West to discover why these modern workers on the land sing when the life is so lonely and tough.
"The topic is one that I expect would be enjoyable to our students and those in the local community, many of whom have ranching in their family backgrounds," said Dixie Forum coordinator Terre Burton.
Cannon is known for his frequent work on National Public Radio and on public television. His documentary aired on PBS last fall.
The founding director of the Western Folklife Center, he's also noted for his work with western folk life and cowboy poetry. Cannon recently received the Utah Governor's Award for both Arts and Humanities. Many of Cannon’s writings are viewable online at: www.westernfolklife.org.

DSC Theater to present "The Boys Next Door"
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Feb. 23, 2004) Dixie State College Theater Department’s third production of the year will be "The Boys Next Door." Staged by Director of Theater Varlo Davenport, the production will be performed Mar. 9-13. Curtain is at 7:30 p.m. each night. All performances will be in the Ballroom of the Gardner Student Center.
The setting is a communal residence in a New England city, where four mentally handicapped men live under the supervision of an earnest but increasingly "burned out" young social worker name d Jack.
Norman takes great pride in the huge bundle of keys which dangles from his waist; Lucien P. Smith has the mind of a five-year-old, but imagines that he is able to read the weighty books he lugs about; Arnold is a hyperact ive, compulsive chatterer who suffers from a persecution complex; while Barry, a brilliant schizophrenic, fantasizes that he is a golf pro.
Mingled with scenes from the daily lives of these four, where "little things" sometimes become momentous (and often very funny), are moments of great poignancy. A New York Times reviewer said of the play, "’The Boys Next Door’ moves the audience to an awareness of how many things in every day life we take for granted."
The production set was designed by Josh Scott with lights by Dustin Beal. Costumes and original music are provided by Andrea Davenport. Shawn Mattson is the production stage manager. The cast features: Mike Gardner, David Bruner, Doug Radunich, Josh Scott, Slate Holmgren, Xander Gamble, Tanya Roundy, Quinn Drake, Travis Cox, Rita Rene' Morton, Laura Jacobson and Isaac Spafford.
Tickets for the play are $10 for adults, $9 for seniors and $5 for non-DSC students. Tickets are available from the Cox Auditorium Box Office, which is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, or by calling 652-7800.

Dance expert to speak at Dixie Forum
(ST. GEORGE – Feb. 23, 2004) Suzanne Carbonneau, a well-known dance critic and historian, who has written for, among others, the Washington Post and the New York Times, will be the next speaker at Dixie Forum: A Window on the World Tuesday, Feb. 24, at noon in the Dunford Auditorium at Dixie State College.
Carbonneau will be in doing a residency at The Mesa in Springdale, Utah, working on a book focused on contemporary American dance.
Dixie Forum has frequently benefited from its association with The Mesa to have artists and writers from all over the U.S. share their expertise and love of the arts with DSC students and the St. George community.
"She has a terrific background in the arts and in writing about dance," said Dixie Forum coordinator Terre Burton. "I'm delighted that she can be with us. St. George has always exhibited a strong interest in dance. I think our audiences will be interested in Carbonneau's ideas about where dance is today and where it is headed in the future."
Carbonneau is a consultant to the National Endowment for the Arts. She holds a doctorate degree in performance studies from New York University and is an associate professor of performance and interdisciplinary studies in the arts at George Mason University.
In addition to working with arts presenters around the country on audience enrichment, she lectures and moderates programs at the John F. Kennedy Center for the performing Arts in Washington, D.C.

DSC to host Employment Fair
(ST. GEORGE – Feb. 23, 2004) Dixie State College will host its annual Employment Fair Thursday, Feb. 26, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the college’s Gardner Center Ballroom, and the college’s four-year students are, reportedly, in high demand.
"We are very pleased by the response, especially by employers who are interested in our four-year graduates," said Career Center and Employment Services Director Kathy Kinney. "Both local and national employers recognize that Dixie State College is serious about producing four-year graduates who are competitive and prepared to enter the workforce. They are responding by coming to campus to recruit."
At past career fairs, Kinney said, about one-third of the employers who attended were focused on hiring four-year grads. This year, she said, 49 out of 58 employers, or 84 percent, have indicated an interest in four-year graduates.
This, however, in no way diminishes interest in two-year graduates and those who have earned certification in various areas, Kinney said. Last year, the college tracked 238 students with certificates and 40 with associate degrees. Of those 278 students, 157 were employed in fields related to their education. Only six percent reported they were unemployed at the time information was gathered.
"Over the years, the fair has proven to be a valuable resource to all of our students, regardless of academic level," Kinney said. "We try to cater to all-comers."
Employers seeking student or seasonal employees, including internships, will also be on hand. In all, employers have indicated over 1,000 positions to fill, Kinney said.
In terms of the current job outlook statewide, employment needs projections indicate that RNs and computer support specialists top the list at 400 or more openings in the state per year. Between 100-300 jobs are listed for EMT and paramedics and LPNs per year, certification for each of which is available at the college.
In areas pertinent to DSC four-year degree programs, graduates can expect 400 or more jobs per year in computer software engineering and applications, elementary education, and general and operational management. The job outlook in the fields of accounting, auditing, and finance have a healthy projection (between 200-400 openings). And other computer-related jobs, including computer and information systems, prog ramming, software engineering, network and computer systems administration, and systems engineering, are projected to be plentiful (between 100-300 openings).
For more information about this year's Career Fair, contact Kathy Kinney at (435) 652-7736.

DSC announces new cultural affairs position, change in PR director position
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Feb. 18, 2004) To help prepare the way for the new Delores Dore’ Eccles Fine Arts Center currently under construction at Dixie State College, the college this week announced the creation of a new executive director of cultural affairs position. Effective July 1, 2004, Mark L. Petersen, currently serving as director of public relations at the college, will assume the new position.
Petersen will have responsibility over scheduling and overseeing all of the operations in the building, marketing and coordinating the arts on campus and in the community, bringing in a variety of new art programming for the building, and assisting in the raising of appreciation and awareness of campus fine arts programs locally, including the public schoo l system.
"This new building has been a long time in coming," said DSC President Dr. Robert Huddleston. "It will bring with it myriad cu ltural opportunities to the area, and we want to use it to its full capacity. And it’s important that the community benefit from this facility every bit as much as the college does. This new position will help facilitate this, and we believe Mark is the perfect fit."
The new Dolores Dore' Eccles Fine Arts Center is scheduled for completion in April. In order to streamline all campus arts organizations under one umbrella, positions relating to the Celebrity Concert Series, the Southwest Symphony, the new Art Gallery and the O.C. Tanner Amphitheatre will report to the executive director of cultural affairs.
Petersen has worked as the college’s director of public relations and publications for the past 17 years. He brings to his new position not only a strong knowledge of the campus and community and marketing and administrative abilities, but a strong background in arts administration as well. He served for six years as marketing director for the arts at Weber State University and ticket office manager and built the largest theatre subscriber audience in WSU's history.
In 2002-03, Petersen served as president of the National Council for Marketing and Public Relations (NCMPR) and has received eight national awards and 26 regional awards in his 15 years as a member of that organization. He has also served on the St. George Area Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, Southern Utah Advertising Federation, and the St. George Arts Commission. He holds a bachelor’s degree in public relations and theater arts from Weber State. He has played leading roles in college and community theater productions for over 20 years and is a vocal soloist for numerous community programs.
The new executive director position will be funded primarily through an internal administrative reorganization, necessitated by current state and college budget circumstances. Replacing Petersen as director of public relations will be Chris Taylor, who has served as assistant director of public relations at the college since 2001. The assistant director position, for the time being, has been eliminated.
Taylor will also take on the role as college spokesperson. He holds a bachelor’s degree in communications from Brigham Young University with emphases in public relations and broadcast journalism. He is currently working toward a master’s of public administration degree through Utah State University, which he will complete in 2005.
During his time at Dixie, Taylor has also taught two communications courses – including serving as co-adviser to the Dixie Sun student newspaper, which he has done the past two years alongside Petersen. He has served on the Dixie Rotary Bowl committ ee as sports information director each of the past three years. He was a Rebel Awards finalist in his first year at the college, was awarded Employee of the Semester honors in 2002 and, in 2003, was awarded three regional awards by the National Council for Marketing and Public Relations. Prior to coming to St. George in 2001, he worked at ProModel Corporation in Orem, Utah, and has work experience as an intern at KSL-TV in Salt Lake City. Taylor’s new appointment will also take effect July 1.

Southern half of statewide relay to start at Dixie State College
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Feb. 14, 2004) University and college students throughout the state of Utah will put on their running shoes and hit the pavement next week in the name of higher education faculty and staff compensation.
"Going the extra mile for higher education," a statewide relay expected to pass through nearly every college campus in the state, will begin Tuesday, Feb. 17, at the state’s two border schools – Dixie State College in the south and Utah State University in the north – and meet at the State Capitol Building where the Utah State Legislature is currently in session.
The Dixie State College leg will begin Tuesday on the Arizona strip at 7 a.m. and work its way north up River Road to 700 South. It will then turn west and make its way to the campus of Dixie State College where a rally will be held at approximately 9 a.m.
"It’s been a couple of years now that neither faculty nor staff have had much of a raise, if any whatso ever, and schools statewide are starting to feel the effects," said DSC student body president Jake Denning. "People start leaving for greener pastures, and that ultimately effects the students as well, so we want to do everything in our power to keep Utah’s talented professors in Utah."
Following the rally, the relay will resume on 100 South again to River Road, and then will follow Red Cliffs Drive, Telegraph Street, and Highway 91 to Leeds. Inasmuch as time and back roads allow, the relay will proceed on foot to Cedar City to the campus of Southern Utah University.
From SUU, the relay will snake its way to Salt Lake City via Snow College in Ephraim, College of Eastern Utah in Price, and Utah Valley State College in Orem. The northern section of the relay will proceed south. Eventually, student groups from all institutions will meet up and run the final leg together through the streets of Salt Lake to the Capitol on Friday, Feb. 20.
Two written letters, one in the north and one in the south, making an argument in behalf of faculty and staff compensation will be signed at each institution along the way. It’s the students’ intent for the letters to be read on the House floor, Denning said.

Winners of 2004 Sears Dixie Invitational Art Show announced
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Feb. 14, 2004) The winners of the 2004 Robert N. & Peggy Sears Dixie Invitational Art Show at Dixie State College were announced Friday night at the show’s annual gala banquet at the college. This year’s Best of Show Purchase Prize Winner is Julie Rogers. Rogers’ "In the Potter’s Hands," a pastel painting, earned her the honor, which carries a grand prize purse of $3,000.
Rogers, born in Goshen, Utah, has always had a love for art. As a small child she drew constantly, using her love and passion for horses. She received a degree from Brigham Young University and currently paints professionally as well as teaches part-time for Dixie State College.
Rogers&# 146; works have been selected for numerous private collections and she has rece ived many art awards, including first place at the 2003 Dixie Invitational Art Show in the Pastels category. Her work has been included in many regional and international exhibits: 2003 Invitational Church Show, Purchasers Award National Birds of Prey, First and Second Place ASCA International Art show. As a professional artist Rogers loves to paint the simple things of every day life.
Robert Marshall took first place in this year’s Landscape Oils Category with his painting "Snow Canyon III." Second place was awarded to Alexander Selytin for "The Feather." Steve McGinty won third place for "Milking Time."
In the Watercolor category, Ian Ramsay’s "Farm Near Hyrum, Utah" took first place, up a notch from his second place finish last year in the same category. Second place was awarded to Carl Purcell for "Spirit of Anasazi." And third place went to "The Desert Shall Blossom as a Rose," by George Kehew.
Taking first place in the Pastels category was Dixie State art professor and 2000 Purchase Prize Winner Del Parson for "Country Kitchen." For the second consecutive year, second place went to Robert Barrett, this year for "Camille III," with third place going to Arlene Braithwaite for "Morning Light in Spring Creek Canyon."
In the Other Media category, the first place ribbon went to Ed H’Lavka for "Tuscan Landscape." L’Deane Trueblood, the show’s inaugural Purchase Prize Winner in 1988, was awarded second place for "Beauty and the Beach." And John Jarvis took third place for "Riding Under the Monuments."
All artwork will remain on display through Sunday, Mar. 14, in the Avenna Center, Cox Performing Arts Center at Dixie State College from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday, 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. This year’s show features work from over 90 artists.
Each work exhibited is for sale to the public. A record 39 paintings were sold on opening night. Since 1988 a portion of each purchase has gone toward the new Delores Dore’ Eccles Fine Arts Center now under construction on campus. The art show was first established in by the Sears family with the goal to build an art gallery on campus. Over $500,000 has been raised toward the Eccles building, which will house an art gallery, since the inaugural show. The public is invited to view the exhibit free of charge.

Federal Government discuss international religious freedom via videoconference
(ST. GEORGE - Feb. 13, 2004) Dixie State College will be the forum for a live, digital videoconference conducted by the U nited States Department of State on Tuesday Feb. 17, at noon in the Dunford Auditorium. The one-hour conference will feature Todd Deatherage, senior advisor to the Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom. Both the campus and St. George communities are to attend the conference. The videoconference will also play the role of this week’s Dixie Forum.
"It is an honor they have selected us to participate, and we hope to fill up the Dunford Auditorium," said college spokesman Mark Petersen. "Although this video conference is being presented to DSC students, the public is invited as well."
The Office of International Religious Freedom has the mission of promoting religious freedom as a core objective of U.S. foreign policy. Headed by an Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom, its office director and staff monitor religious persecution and discrimination worldwide, recommend and implement policies in respective regions or countries, and develop programs to promote religious freedom.
Deatherage has served in his current capacity at the United States Department of State since March 2003. He has worked on strategies for advancing religious freedom in trouble spots around the world, with particular emphasis on Saudi Arabia and Iraq, and has advised on the process for congressionally mandated designation of severe violators as Countries of Particular Concern.
Prior to that, Deatherage spent a decade working in the United States House of Representatives and the United States Senate, including six years as chief of staff to Senator Tim Hutchinson (Ark.), who served on the Senate Armed Services Committee.
A native of Arkansas, Deatherage earned a B.S.E. from the University of Arkansas in 1987. He and his wife Judi have four children.
For more information about the Office of International Religious Freedom, please visit: http://www.state.gov/g/drl/irf/

McLeans to entertain at Sears Dixie Invitational Art Show gala d inner
(ST. GEORGE – Feb. 10, 2004) What’s better than one McLean? Two of them. For the second consecutive year, singer and songwriter Jeff McLean, son of Michael McLean, will be the honorary chairman at the Sears Dixie Invitational Art Show gala dinner Friday, Feb. 13, at 6 p.m. in the Gardner Center Ballroom at Dixie State College. This year, dad will tag along to accompany his son.
"I can guarantee people will leave this event entertained," said George Whitehead, director of the Sears Dixie Invitational Art Show. "Both of them have been the show’s hono rary chairman on separate occasions. It’s going to be a real treat having father and son perform together."
This won’t be the first time the two have performed together. While Jeff was still in high school, the two collaborated on an album called "Father & Son." At the age of 16, Jeff was invited to move to southern California to study with legendary voice coach Seth Riggs, who has worked with the likes of Stevie Wonder, Natalie Cole, Michael Jackson, and Bette Midler. After graduating from Malibu High School, Jeff promoted the album by touring the U.S., Europe, and Israel.
After a church mission to North Carolina, Jeff enrolled at BYU and performed with BYU’s Young Ambassadors as part of the Winter Olympic festivities in Salt Lake City and on tour in Canada. While continuing his study of music and theatre at BYU, Jeff performed with the Joe Muscolino Band, played Joseph in the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical production and played Jack in the musical "Almost Perfect."
"Something’s Changed," Jeff’s first solo album, was released in 2002.
Micha el McLean is known for his work as a performer, composer, songwriter, producer and director. He has written music and lyrics for 21 albums, most of which have been released by Deseret Book. For the past decade, Michael has performed his album "The Forgotten Carols" to sold-out audiences throughout the western United States during the Christmas holiday season.
Michael was writer, producer and director of "Nora's Christmas Gift," starring Celeste Holm and "Mr. Krueger's Christmas" with Jimmy Stewart. Other well-known works include "Our Heavenly Father's Plan," "Together Forever," "A Labor of Love," "What Is Real?" and "The Prodigal Son."
Gala dinner guests will be the first to view and have the opportunity to buy this year’s artwork. Nearly 100 works representative of over 90 artists are expected to be part of this year’s show.
The show will be on display through Sunday, Mar. 14 at Dixie State’s Cox Performing Arts Center. Each work exhibited will be for sale, a portion of each purchase going toward the construction of the new Eccles Fine Arts Center currently under construction. The public is invited to view the exhibit free of charge, which opens to the pubic Saturday, Feb. 14. Art show hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday.
For more information or to purchase tickets to the gala dinner call (435) 652-7535.

Dr. Vern Swanson to kick off Sears Dixie Invitational with art symposium
(ST. GEORGE – Feb. 10, 2004) Sixteen years after judging the first ever Sears Dixie Invitational Art Show at Dixie State College, Dr. Vern Swanson, director of the Springville Museum of Art, will again return to St. George to adjudicate the 2004 show. As adjudicator, he will also be the speaker at the annual symposium, slated for Friday, Feb. 13, at 3 p.m. in the Dunford Auditorium at the college. Admission to the symposium is free. The seventeenth annual show gets underway later that evening.
The symposium is the traditional prelude to the Robert N. and Peggy Sears Dixie Invitational Art Show. Traditionally, the previous year’s winning artist judges the show and is the symposium speaker. Roland Lee, who won the 2003 show with his watercolor "In From the Fields," is away on a church mission and unable to attend. The show’s organizers ceased the opportunity to again invite Dr. Swanson to judge the show.
"(Dr. Swanson) is noted everywhere and will be a wonderful addition to the show," said George Whitehead, director of the Sears Dixie Invitational Art Show. "The symposium will be directed toward artists, collectors, and Utah art lovers in general. He’ll be discussing how to determine value in a painting, where the first time art collector can begin, and what the savvy veteran needs to look for."
Swanson, an Oregon native, is best known for his publications on academic-realists artists of the late nineteenth century, especially Victorian Classical subject painters. He has published extensively, including two major books on Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema. With a special interest in Soviet Socialist Realist painting, he has also written three catalogues and two books on Russian art and has visited the Soviet Union and Russia 17 times.
In addition to working as director of the Springville Museum of Art since 1980, Swanson has worked at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. He taught for three years as an assistant professor of art and art history at Auburn University. Swanson graduated with a bachelor’s degree in art history from Brigham Young University, a mater’s degree from the University of Utah, and earned his doctorate at the Courtauld Institute of Art, University of London.
Swanson has consulted with Sotheby’s and Christie’s auction houses in London and New York. He has work experience in several sales art galleries, is also a consultant for several collectors in "Art and Antiques" magazine’s top 200 art collectors of the world, and has extensive experience appraising paintings, watercolors, and drawings.
Following the symposium will be a gala banquet beginning at 6 p.m. in DSC’s Gardner Center Ballroom. Dinner guests will have the first opportunity to purchase paintings exhibited in the show later that evening and c an begin previewing the artwork beginning at 4 p.m. in the Cox Performing Arts Center. Jeff McLean, son of songwriter Michael McLean, will be the banquet’s honorary chairman. His father, Michael McLean, will also be in attendance.
The show will open to the public in the Avenna Center, Cox Auditorium on Saturday, Feb. 14, running through Sunday, Mar. 14. A rtwork from approximately 90 artists will be on display, including several bronze works. Show hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays. All artwork is for sale to the public. Proceeds benefit the new Eccles Fine Arts Center now under construction at Dixie State College.
For additional information on the symposium, show or to purchase dinner tickets, call (435) 652-7535.

DSC soccer team receives national honors
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Feb. 9, 2004) With a national championship under their belts, Dixie State College's women’s soccer coach Linda Huddleston and defensive player Nicole Anderson can now add National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)/Adidas Coach of the Year and Player of the Year honors to their resumes respectively. Both received those honors in January at a banquet in Charlotte, N.C.
The NJCAA and Scenic West Athletic Conference (SWAC) also named Huddleston Coach of the Year. She received the latter honor last year as well en route to a third place finish in the nation.
"I owe (any individual honors) to the players," said Huddleston. "That’s how I really feel – it’s because I have great players. They are super nice kids, and they played really well together.
"Nicole Anderson is Player of the Year, deservedly, and she’s an outstanding player, but basically, we didn’t have any super stars on the team. Different players would step up each game. We were solid everywhere – we didn’t have any weaknesses."
Anderson, a sophomore from Salt Lake City, has been key to the Rebels’ success the past two seaso ns. A two-year starter for the Rebels, Anderson, a defender, played her high school career at Brighton High School.
The Rebels compiled a 17-4-1 record during 2003 season. The team went into the national tournament ranked No. 3, with regular season victories over No. 1 ranked Rhode Island and Division I teams Weber State University and UVSC.
The road to the championship included a 4-0 shutout over Young Harris (Ga.) in the first round and a 3-1 victory over No. 2 rated Schoolcraft (Mich.) in the semifinals. DSC went on to win the national championship game 1-0 over Rhode Island in dramatic fashion, scoring a goal in the final minute of regulation. The Rebels won both the conference championship and district championship leading up to the national championship.
In addition to Top 3 finishes the past two seasons, the team was the national runner-up in 2001. And in 2000, the Rebels captured the program’s first national championship.
"We’ve been enormously fortunate the past two years," said Huddleston. "The previous coaches laid a tremendous foundation for the program and we’ve been fortunate to continue to build on it."
Coach Huddleston coaches on a volunteer basis at DSC. In 2002, the resignation of DSC’s previous coach nearly coincided with a statewide budget crunch. When faced with either cutting the soccer program versus laying off a DSC employee elsewhere on campus, DSC president Dr. Robert Huddleston, together with his wife, as well as the athletic director, decided she would coach the team as a volunteer.
"So far, it’s worked out tremendously for everyone," said President Huddleston. "Linda and the players have done a wonderful job keeping the program among the top in the nation despite any financial hardships."

Latino culture and literature subject of Dixie Forum
(ST. GEORGE, Utah – Feb. 6, 2004) This week’s Dixie Forum speaker at Dixie State College will be Yvonne Ahumada, a native of Puerto Rico and long-time resident of Utah. Her topic is "Latinos: A Legacy of Culture and Literature." She will be speaking in the Dunford Auditorium in the Browning Learning Resource Center on Tuesday, Feb. 10, at noon. All community members are invited to attend.
Ahumada will talk about the writing, beliefs, and customs of the fastest growing minority in the United States and Utah. Last year, Ahumada received a 2003 Merit Award from the Utah Humanities Council for her contribution to the project "H istory of Latinos in Utah."
"One way to enjoy those of another culture more is to understand them and their culture," said Dixie Forum coordinator and DSC professor Terre Burton. "I think hearing from Yvonne Ahumada will help us to better understand Latinos, their writing, beliefs, and customs. Even though Latinos are Utah's largest minority, many of us know little about them."
Ahumada currently works with Human Pursuits, a non-profit educational organization that creates and distributes reading discussion programs throughout the U.S. She worked for three years in a Hispanic social services organization in Salt Lake.
She earned her M.A. and A.B.D. in Latin American literature from the University of Utah where she also taught Spanish. She has also taught Spanish at Westminster College and Salt Lake Community College. For the last 20 years, she has also worked as a translator for groups such as the Smithsonian Institute, the Utah Arts Council, and various school districts.
A recent letter to the editor in St. George's The Spectrum complaining about non-native speakers helped motivate this particular forum topic.
"The writer was unhappy that people shopped at her store who didn't speak English; she wished that those coming to the U.S. would master English before crossing the border," Burton said. "I thought of all the countries I've visited where I was made welcome--countries in South America, Southeast Asia, Europe, and Central America--even though I couldn't speak the local language. This made me wish that we could all make those visiting, working, or spending money in our area equally welcome."
One of the primary purposes of Dixie Forum, organized at the college in 2001, is to educate students and the community about diversity issues and expose them to a variety of world views. Dixie Forum takes place each Tuesday at noon in the Dunford Auditorium on the campus of Dixie State College throughout the fall and spring semesters. Dixie Forum can also be taken for college credit. For more information about Dixie Forum, contact Terre Burton at (435) 652-7812.

Sears Dixie Invitational Art Show returns to southern Utah Valentine’s weekend
(St. George, UT – Feb. 3, 2004) The Robert N. and Peggy Sears Dixie Invitational Art Show and Sale, recognized as one of the biggest art events in the state of Utah, will again return to St. George on Friday, Feb. 13.
The Sears Dixie Invitational will feature nearly 200 works from 90 renowned artists from Utah and the southwestern United States. The show has taken place annually for the past 17 years on the campus of Dixie State College of Utah.
"Some of the best artists in Utah participate in this sho w every single year, but we also get top artists from all over the southwest, including Texas, Arizona, Nevada, and Idaho," said Sears Dixie Invitational Art Show Director George Whitehead. "And because it is an invitational, the bar is raised each year. It’s really become a top quality show."
Award categories for the show include landscape oils, other oils, watercolor, pastels, and other. The show regularly includes several bronze works.
An opening gala dinner will kick-off this year’s festivities Feb. 13 at 6 p.m. in the college’s Gardner Center Ballroom. Dinner will be provided by DSC’s award-winning Campus Dining Services. Dinner guests will be the first to preview this year’s artwork and make purchases. For the second consecutive year, singer and songwriter Jeff McLean will be the banquet’s honorary chairman. An art preview for dinner guests will begin at 4 p.m.
Also in prelude to the show will be an art symposium hosted by Dr. Vern Swanson, directo r of the Springville Museum of Art, at 3 p.m. on Friday in the college’s Dunford Auditorium. Traditionally hosted by the prev ious year’s Best of Show Purchase Prize winner, 2003 winner Roland Lee is away serving a church mission. Lee’s "In From the Fields," a watercolor, earned him that honor last year. Dr. Swanson will also judge this year’s show.
The exhibit opens to the public Saturday, Feb. 14, and will be on display through Mar. 14, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays in Dixie State’s Cox Performing Arts Center located at 445 South 700 East on the campus of Dixie State College.
Since the inaugural show in 1988, a portion of each purchase has gone toward funding the Delores Dore’ Eccles Fine Arts Center, currently under construction. An art museum within the fine arts building will bear the Sears name, and be home to the Sears Dixie Invitational Art Show beginning in 2005. Purchase proceeds also go to the college’s general scholarship fund.
"This new gallery will, in part, be known as the museum that the Sears Dixie Invitational Art Show built," Whitehead said. "The show began with a museum in mind, and what a credit it is to Bob and Peggy Sears, the show’s founders, to see it finally being built as we speak."
The Sears Dixie Invitational Art Show is sponsored in part by the Utah Arts Council. For more information about the show or to purchase tickets to the gala dinner call (435) 652-7535.
# # #
Past Purchase Prize Winners
1988: L’Dean Trueblood
1989: Gael Lindstrom (Oil)
1990: Al Rounds (Watercolor)
1991: Kimball Warren (Oil)
1992: Spike Ress (Watercolor)
1993: Glen Hopkinson (Oil)
1994: Kimball Warren (Oil)
1995: Robert Bullough (Oil)
1996: Farrell Collett (Oil)
1997: Carol Harding (Pastel)
1998: A.D. Shaw (Oil)
1999: Steven F. Songer (Oil)
2000: Del Parson (Oil)
2001: Bonnie Posselli (Oil)
2002: Wallace Lee (Watercolor)
2003: Roland Lee (Watercolor)
Photo: 2003 Best of Show Purchase Prize winner, "In From the Fields," by Roland Lee.

Going once, going twice…DSC rolls out online auction site
(ST. GEORGE – Jan. 29, 2003) Rather than "do it eBay" Dixie State College will hold its own online auctions beginning Monday, Feb. 2, to sell college surplus items. The new online surplus auction site, available on the Internet at http://auction.dixie.edu, will be a permanent fixture at DSC in order to prolong the life of items the college no longer uses, but that may be of value to the community.
Surplus items for sale at the inaugural auction will include computers, laptops, printers, copiers, and other computer component and technical items. At a later date, there may be other, non-technology items auctioned as well.
The auction will be open to any individual who wants to participate. Those wishing to participate in the Feb. 2 auction can now log onto the site and register. There is no cost to register.
"The site is awesome and continues to be fine-tuned," said DSC Director of Purchasing Jackie Freeman. "Items will be sold more quickly using this process, getting technology surplus out of our way and into the hands of individuals who can use it."
New surplus items will be posted each Monday, beginning Feb. 2, and the auctions will terminate on Friday night of the same week at 9 p.m. For each item up for auction, users will be able to view a description and photo of the given item, the bid increment, current bid, minimum bid amount, time remaining on the auction, when the bidding started, and when the auction for a particular item ends. Users will also have the option to add themselves to a mailing list to be continuously informed about new items.
"If users check the site every Tuesday morning, they’ll never miss anything," Freeman continued.
Once a bid is made, users can monitor if they have the highest bid or not and update their bid if desired. Each item at week’s end will go to the highest bidder. Once the bidding period has terminated, bidders can view whether they won or not. Winning bidders will also receive an email confirmation stating such, will be able to print a cashier’s receipt, and redeem their merchandise in the Whitehead Student Services Center basement on campus. A ll items will need to be paid for at the cashier’s window located on the second floor of the Student Services Center.
"It’s a similar concept, but it’s not quite as high tech as eBay," said David Mortensen, who constructed the site. "For what we’re selling though, I think (the site) is pretty adequate."
The items available on the site will be items that DSC’s IT Support personnel has determined are no longer needed by the college. The majority are used items that the college can no longer use, Freeman said, usually because they’re somewhat obsolete and cannot be supported by IT Services any longer. Most items that remain reasonably relevant to the college will, in most cases, continue to be reallocated on-campus.
Though DSC does not warranty any item sold on the site, all items for sale on the site will be in working condition at the time of sale. All items will be sold as-is and may not be returned or traded. In addition, DSC will not ship auctioned items. All purchased items must be picked up in person at the college.
Previous to the online auction site, all college surplus items were sold bi-annually at a surplus sale on campus. It is now the college’s goal to sell all surplus items via the online auction.
"We’re trying to spread it out over a longer period of time," said Mortensen. "Instead of selling surplus over a couple of days like we have in the past, this will allow more people to participate and take advantage of these items."
Items that are not sold will continue to be donated to local schools and organizations.
For more information about DSC’s new online surplus auction site or to register, visit http://auction.dixie.edu.

DSC to b egin installation of synthetic playing field
(ST. GEORGE, UT – Jan. 16, 2004) In what seems like a no brainer of a move given the desert climate of St. George, Dixie State College will Monday begin construction on a new synthetic turf field in Hansen St adium, home to the college’s football and soccer teams and to the annual Dixie Rotary Bowl.
When all operation and maintenance costs are taken into consideration for the current grass field at Hansen Stadium, notable among them being water, the college currently forks out approximately $100,000 each year to maintain the field.
"It’s very difficult to grow and maintain grass here," said DSC athletic director Dexter Irvin. "And the very time of year we need it to play football and soccer is the very time the grass is the most stressed. It’s gone through the hot summer, at which point it’s difficult, if not impossible, to keep it up.
"It’s more fiscally and ethically responsible to have this type of a field than anything else we’ve done athletically for a long time. It’s the right thing to do. It’s just that initial hit of what it costs you to put it in that you have to swallow."
The price tag for the new field will be $651,000. Funding will come from two sources: private donations and revenue from a rental property the college owns. The field will be under warrantee for eight years, but the college expects to get a lot more mileage out of it than that.
"Given the cost, it’s got about a six-and-a-half year payback, and we think the surface could last as long as 20 years," said DSC president Dr. Robert Huddleston. "There are fields like this out there that have been in operation past the warranty, but there haven’t been any out long enough to see how long they really will last."
Other costs that will disappear, once the new field is completed sometime in May, include costs to paint and line the field, which range between $3,000 and $4,000 each year, equipment depreciation expenses, and the cost to overseed, fertilize, and otherwise maintain the field, including manpower. There will be some maintenance and upkeep required for the new field, but not to the tune of the $100,000 currently required. There are also several purely athletic advantages to such a field.
"Injury rates are down on a field like this, as compared to a grass field," Irvin said. "Players don’t have any holes to deal with, no sprinklers to step on, the footing is more consistent. And any rug burn or turf toe problems are no worse than on a grass field."
Irvin also pointed out that the field will benefit the entire community, not just the college, and that the college is currently exploring partnership possibilities with several county and city entities.
"The more the field is used, the more the cost per event comes down, so there’s a potential for savings there as well," Irvin said. "Plus, the design of the field is such that this product gets better with usage."
The company that will be contracted with for the project is Turf Technologies based in California. One of the main differences between traditional artificial turf and the new synthetic turf is the absorbency of the synthetic surface, Irvin said. Twenty-seven pounds of rubber per square yard will rest under two-and-a-half inches of synthetic grass fiber on the new field. Also included will be a drainage system under the field.
"The old Astroturf was like playing on carpet on top of asphalt with no padding," Irvin said. "It was like playing football on a church gym floor is what it amounted to."
One important downside to the field in the short-term, at least as far as the local community is concerned, is that it will force the stadium and track to be closed during the construction period. The track will again reopen to the public on approximately May 1.
"We hope everybody will be understanding and work with us and use all the many streets and the city trail system and other tracks in town to walk on right now," Irvin said.
A big selling point for Dixie State on the turf ultimately selected was that the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, very similar to St. George in terms of climate, installed the same playing surface in its football stadium this past season, and is enjoying it, Irvin said.
"It’s not just the cost of the water," Irvin said. "It’s whether or not, when we have other technologies, should we continue to use water this way? If with water is the only way to do it, then that’s all you can do. Ri ght now, you can’t afford to put a golf course in this stuff. But for athletic fields, in my opinion, we shouldn’t being looking at anything other than synthetic fields from now on."

Magic show to raise funds for DSC music department
(ST. GEROGE – Jan. 13, 2004) Audience members have become accustomed to magic filling the air of the Dixie State College Cox Auditorium in a figurative sense, but magic will literally fill the Cox Auditorium Thursday, Jan. 22. The DSC Jazz Band will host a "Night-O-Magic" at 7:30 p.m. in the Cox Auditorium to help raise funds for the DSC music department.
Professional magician Steven Clark, also a member of the DSC Jazz Band, will be the main act for the show, which will combine classical magic tricks with the latest illusions. Illusions will range from throwing fireballs to levitations. A number of other magicians will also take part in the show.
Clark has been performing magic professionally for eight years and has been published several times in the prestigious magic publication, "The Linking Ring." Clark is also an active member of the International Brotherhood of Magicians, the world’s largest and most respected organization for magicians, which includes performers such as Rick Thomas, David Copperfield, and Siegfried and Roy.
The show will cater to both adults and children. Cost for admission is $2 for students with student I.D. and $4 for general admission. Tickets can be purchased in advanced by calling (435) 652-7900.

DSC activities slated for Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday
(ST. GEORGE – Jan. 13, 2003) A two-day celebration wil l take place at Dixie State College to commemorate the upcom ing Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday. Opera singer and story-teller Phillip Mentor, a West Indian baritone, will be on the DSC campus Saturday evening, Jan. 17, for a concert and Tuesday afternoon for the semester’s inaugural Dixie Forum. Both events will honor the life of Martin Luther King, J r.
Saturday’s concert, "Festival of Spirituals," will be performed together with DSC’s choral ensembles and will include music ranging from jazz and blues to gospel and spirituals. Mentor will personally perform songs that were favorites of King’s such as "If I Could Have Somebody," "Precious Lord," and "Amazing Grace," and other pieces that carry a human rights theme. The concert begins at 7:30 p.m. in the Cox Auditorium. Admission is $3 for students and youth, $8 for seniors, and $10 for adults.
Tuesday’s forum will begin at noon in the Dunford Auditorium on campus and will feature a similar theme. In addition to singing several songs to help illustrate his points, Mentor will talk specifically about King’s life and the contributions King has made to the world.
"I will be challenging the students and community to be better human beings and to build a better world," Mentor said. "As you begin to get older and you look around and you see the changes King made that transformed society it makes you realize that his strategy is actually what is needed, that it actually works, to the T. Even his worse critics quote him all the time now."
In addition to the concert and forum, Mentor will have spent approximately one week in residency in the St. George area since Jan. 12, visiting local classes and conducting clinics in the area high schools. He will then travel to the Ephraim, Utah, for the same purpose.
"I want to engage people who maybe haven’t had as much interaction with African Americans," Mentor said. "I believe it is important, for reconciliation, that we not just talk about it, but that we actually engage and act upon it in a positive way.
"That’s what I do – I use the arts to sell personal responsibility, being positive, and making a contribution to society and humanity."
Born in Belmont, Port of Spain on the island Trinidad and Tobago, Mentor’s extensive repertoire includes German, French, Italian as well as English material, which include Gospel and Negro spirituals. As a concert vocalist and baritone, he has performed throughout most of the United States and Caribbean.
His performances have earned him rave reviews in such well-known productions as The Marriage of Figaro, The Barber of Seville, Porgy and Bess and the Magic Flute. He has performed with the New Philharmonic of New Jersey, Montclair Chamber Orchestra and the Morristown Chamber Players.
Among his awards are first place in the North American Guild Voice Competition, African-American Singer of the Year in 1986, first runner-up in the Metropolitan Opera Regional and Outstanding Young Vocalist of New Jersey. Mentor has lived in the United States for 34 years. He currently makes his home in New Jersey.

GUEST EDITORIAL
By Robert C. Huddleston, President
January 8, 2004
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What a breath of fresh air to see the support from Governor Olene Walker relative to public and higher education funding. We have gone through three years of budget cuts or no increases, which have affected the quality of academic programs at all colleges and universities in Utah. It is easy to criticize Governor Walker’s recommended sources of funding for these needed increases, but she has shown great leadership in her vision for what needs to be accomplished. My hope is that her critics have other ideas in mind to accomplish these goals.
While I heartily support Governor Walker in most of her initiatives, I am concerned about a stance she has taken recently regarding developmental/remedial education. On December 11, 2003, she addressed the Board of Regents and the College/University Presidents relative to this topic. She challenged the Regents and the Presidents to have these courses as "self-supporting" by the commencement of the 2004-2005 academic year.
What she is asking is that development courses be charged non-resident tuition for all Utah residents. For example, at Dixie State College, six credits of remedial courses would cost the student $1,676 versus the in-state rate of $481. If a student needed to take a full load of developmental courses in reading, mathematics and writing, it would cost a resident $3,277 compared to the current rate of $889. It is the Governor’s plan to have volunteers teach these courses in a separate academy and charge Utah residents these extremely high rates.
Community colleges were established for the purpose of offering the first two years of a bachelor’s degree, vocational/technical education, continuing/community service education and developmental educati on for the adult returning to higher education or the high school graduate who is not prepared for college-level work. Developmental education has not been part of the mission of universities and, in my opinion, should not be. These institutions should have selected admission, and leave the developmental work to the open door, comprehensive community colleges.
A lthough Dixie State is an open door institution, the door is not open to every course and program if the student does not have the ability to succeed. We have mandatory assessment and placement. If a student does not have the skills to succeed in a particular course, we channel them into a course where they do have the ability to succeed. The key criteria used for a student’s placement in an appropriate math and/or English course is the American College Test (ACT) or the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT). Before we get too judgmental, let’s be honest with ourselves. If we had to take the test today, how many of us would be required to take a developmental reading, writing or arithmetic course. I can guarantee that some regents, governors, college presidents and legislators would have to do this.
Americans have come to value higher education. In many ways, higher education has been the gateway into the middle class . All ethnic and social classes in America have had access to po stsecondary education. Many of our minority and adult students would not be working in their current jobs without access to remedial education. The students that Governor Walker is asking to "foot the bill" for these courses are the least likely to be able to afford the higher tuition. Her idea may create a temporary cost savings in state funds, but over the long haul the St ate of Utah will pay untold amounts in social programs to assist the resulting under-prepared and under-employed adults.
At all community colleges in America, we have talented, trained and well-educated professionals who spend their careers working with high-risk students who need their support. Once again, I appreciate Governor Walker’s vision for education for the State of Utah, but she is off the mark with this proposal. Putting developmental programs in the hands of volunteers in some sort of off-campus site will end up costing the taxpayers more than what we are spending now with our current programs.
Respectfully,

Robert C. Huddleston
President
Dixie State College of Utah