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January 18, 2012                                                     Vol 13. No. 7

Oigara Invited to the White House
  
James M. Oiagara, PhD, assistant professor of education, during his visit to the White House.
James M. Oigara, EdD, assistant professor of education. was among a select group of educators invited to visit the White House recently.  The U.S. Department of Education hosted the visit for members of the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS), who received NCSS awards or grants during 2010 and 2011. 
 
The NCSS awarded Oigara a grant in 2010 to train pre-service and practicing teachers on how to utilize global positioning systems (GPS), geographic information systems (GIS) and Internet resources to enhance geographic literacy.  Oiagara also used the grant to offer workshops for local teachers, on how to incorporate geospatial technologies into their lesson plans.  The NCSS recognized Oigara for his efforts and research in this area, in 2011. 
 
“I feel honored to have had the unique opportunity to visit the White House and meet the people who work for the President and First Lady,” says Oigara.  “It was humbling to meet individuals, who are diverse in background, open-minded and welcoming, and who believe whole-heartedly in the power of change.”

The National Council for the Social Studies is the largest association in the country devoted solely to social studies education. 

Faculty Seminar Culminates in Philippines
Ten Canisius professors from various disciplines, along with President John J. Hurley, traveled to Manila January 1-13 to explore issues of faith and justice, firsthand. 
 
The trip marked the culmination of a semester-long faculty seminar sponsored by the Institute for the Global Study of Religion’s (IGSOR) and hosted by IGSOR Director Timothy H. Wadkins, PhD.  The faculty seminar examined the multi-dimensional aspects of the Jesuit-inspired commitment to faith and justice, in the context of globalization, teaching and learning.  Participants met weekly to discuss assigned readings and explore issues of global poverty, religion, race, information technology, transnational capitalism and politics, and the ways in which these issues affect faculty as scholars, teachers and learners. 

Faculty who participated in the seminar program are: Devonia Havis, PhD and Philip Reed, PhD, assistant professors of philosophy; Tanya Loughead, PhD, associate professor of philosophy; Michael J. Gent, PhD, professor of management and organizational studies; Rev. Frank LaRocca, S.J., assistant professor of management; Richard A. Bailey, PhD, assistant professor of history; and Paola Fajardo-Heyward, PhD, assistant professor of political science.  Seminar leaders included Wadkins, Patricia Christian, PhD, associate professor of sociology, and Patricia A. Coward, PhD, director of the Center for Teaching Excellence.