Highlights

UCF Alumnus Jillian Perez Dudziak and Project M Doing GOOD

October 2009

M.F.A. Studio Art and the Computer candidate, Jillian Perez Dudziak, is an alumnus and active member of Project M. Project M has been named to GOOD Magazine's 100 list. The list is a collection of the 100 most important, exciting, and innovative people, ideas, and projects making our world better. Founded by John Bielenberg, Project M is a two to four week intensive program designed to inspire and educate young designers, writers, photographers and filmmakers by proving that their work can have a positive and significant impact on the world. Project M has developed projects to help a conservation area in Costa Rica, Micro-financing in Ghana, New Orleans after Katrina, the communities of East Baltimore, Detroit, Rural Connecticut and Iceland, and connecting households to fresh water in Hale County Alabama.

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E. Brady Robinson featured in Art of Uncertainty exhibition

August 2009

Art of Uncertainty 2009 curated by Charo Oquet features photographs by Elizabeth Brady Robinson in a group exhibit at Estampas Las Mercedes in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic in August 2009. This project created by artist and curator Charo Oquet is a collaboration between Edge Zones Miami and different cultural institutions around the world where the work is on exhibit and viewed at the following venues; The Modern Art Museum of Santo Domingo, Estampas Las Mercedes, Spanish Cultural Art Center, Museum of Royal Houses of Santo Domingo, the Igneri Foundation of Santo Domingo, CENAR of El Salvador, La Fabrika of El Salvador.

• E. Brady Robinson is an assistant professor in the Department of Art

E. Brady Robinson featured in Paradox Now! exhibition

June 2009

The Arlington Arts Center's PARADOX NOW! features photographs by Elizabeth Brady Robinson. The exhibition which runs June 19 to August 22 presents eight contemporary artists who view history as a fluid dynamic, in dialogue with and affected by the present, and subject to revision.

• E. Brady Robinson is an assistant professor in the Department of Art

Photography Student respresents UCF at ACA's University Student Exhibition 2009

June 2009

Jennifer Surgent, B.S. photography program student at Daytona, will represent UCF at the Atlantic Center for the Arts University Student Exhibition 2009. Jennifer was one of four undergraduate students selected from twenty nominees to participate in the exhibition. The exhibits juror, John F. Simon Jr., says of Jennifer: "She is drawn by personal specters in her night wanderings but renders the mysterious darkness vibrant with color." The exhibition was established 20 years ago to benefit young artists from Florida universities.

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Francis Martin wins The Journal of Popular Culture Top Award

May 2009

Francis Martin received the Russell B. Nye award from The Journal of Popular Culture for his 2008 article, "To Ignore is to Deny: E.W. Kemble's Racial Caricature as Popular Art." The award, named for the scholar of American history and culture who won a Pulitzer Prize in 1944, recognizes the best article published in the journal each year.

• Francis Martin is an assistant professor in the Department of Art

Elizabeth Brady Robinson: Solo Art Exhibit

April 2009

Elizabeth Brady Robinson will exhibit her work titled El Super at Heineman Myers Contemporary Art in Bethesda, Maryland from May 2 to June 13, 2009. El Super examines immigration through the lens of commodity and exchange. The photographs of US Mexican convenience stores feature products that contain a variety of cultural signifiers and construct a sense of place.

• E. Brady Robinson is an assistant professor in the Department of Art

M.F.A. Student Robert LaWarre III to show work at the Ceramics Multiplex 2009 in Croatia

January 2009

M.F.A. student Robert LaWarre III has been selected to show his work at "the greatest and most important ceramic manifestation," Ceramics Multiplex 2009, at the Third Internation Festival of Postmodern Ceramics 2009 in Croatia. The exhibition will be held from April 11 to May 3, 2009 in the City Museum in Varazdin. LaWarre is one of 14 artists selected from the United States.
Visit Ceramics Multiplex 2009 to see a list of participating artists.

David Haxton presents photography at Prska C. Juschka Fine Art

January 2009

David Haxton presents his photography at Priska C. Juschka Fine Art in New York from January 15 to February 14, 2009.

• David Haxton is a professor in the Department of Art

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E. Brady Robinson Featured in Art Now Fair Miami

December 2008

The photography of Elizabeth Brady Robinson is featured at the Art Now Fair during Art Basel Miami 2008. Robinson's work is represented by Heineman Myers Contemporary Art. Art Now Fair runs December 4-7 at The South Seas Hotel in Miami Beach. A reception will be held on Friday, December 5 at 7:00pm.

• E. Brady Robinson is an assistant professor in the Department of Art

M.F.A. student Robert LaWarre selected for ceramics showcase

November 2008

M.F.A. student Robert LaWarre has been selected to show his work at the Buyers Market for American Craft, February 13-16, 2009 in Philadelphia, PA. LaWarre's work entitled Progression of Spring was selected as a finalist in the "Functional" ceramics category and another piece for the "Sculptural" category for the Niche Magazine Student Awards.

Robinson's photographs in new book

November 2008

Recent photographs by Elizabeth Brady Robinson will appear in Supermix: Union of the Diverse Contemporary Art in Miami, published by Charo Oquet and David Vardi of Edge Zones Press, Miami. The book's text is written by Amable Lopez Melendez, Chief Curator of Museo de Arte Moderno Dominican Republic. Supermix documents the works of many leading South Florida, Latin American, Caribbean and European artists that exhibit at Edge Zones Art Complex in Miami. A book signing will take place at Edge Zones Miami during Art Basel (June 10-14, 2009).

• E. Brady Robinson is an assistant professor in the Department of Art

CAH faculty's award-winning documentary

February 2009

"Rockwell," a short film featuring UCF College of Arts & Humanities faculty has won the Outstanding Cultural Achievement award at the Mofilm mobile short film festival. Rockwell was chosen from 250 films and honored at a ceremony hosted by actor and director Kevin Spacey. Lisa Mills directed the poignant documentary piece that focuses on Stella Sung and her composition, Rockwell Reflections. Sung's piece is written in five movements, each reflecting a painting by Rockwell, and was performed live by the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra. Sung is the Orlando Philharmonic's artist-in-residence. Mill's award-winning film is featured in the Orlando Sentinel Arts & Letters blog and in the UCF Newsroom.

• Lisa Mills is an assistant professor in the Department of Film
• Stella Sung is the director of the Center for Research and Education in Arts, Technology and Entertainment

Sung and Mills contribute to Ellis Island tribute performance

February 2009

Composer Stella Sung and film-maker Lisa Mills have joined Dance Alive National Ballet, the Ellis Island Immigration Museum and Ellis Island Foundation to produce One Day. . . Everything!. Choreographed by Judy Skinner, the work is based on modern America's immigrant ancestors who arrived at Ellis Island. It is funded in part through Meet The Composers MetLife Creative Connections and a UCF LIFE grant. The live performance, accompanied by Sung's music and film images by Mills and her students, will premiere on March 20 at the Phillips Center for the Performing Arts in Gainesville, FL. Dance Alive will also perform the first movement of the work at the Orlando Holocaust Museum's fundraising event on March 25 at the Rosen Centre Hotel.

• Lisa Mills is an assistant professor in the Department of Film
• Stella Sung is the director of the Center for Research and Education in Arts, Technology and Entertainment

UCF Welcomes New Partners, Programs to Downtown Emerging Media Center

October 2009

The University of Central Florida expanded its downtown digital media and simulation presence Monday as the school welcomed several new partners to its Center for Emerging Media. The center is already home to UCF’s Florida Interactive Entertainment Academy—a graduate video-gaming school—and other digital media and arts programs for students and the community. Read more at the UCF Newsroom.

2009 Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching awards

August 2009

The College of Arts & Humanities congratulates the following 2009 Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching award winners.

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2009 Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Awards

August 2009

The College of Arts & Humanities congratulates the following winners of 2009 Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Awards.

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2009 Teaching Incentive Program award winners

August 2009

The College of Arts & Humanities congratulates the following 2009 Teaching Incentive Program award winners.

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CAH Graduate Student Award winners

March 2009

The College of Arts & Humanities proudly congratulates the following recipients of 2008-09 Graduate Student Awards:

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Delia Garcia: University Award for Excellence in Professional Advising

April 2009

CAH Student Advising Director Delia Garcia has received the University Award for Excellence in Professional Advising for building her department from the ground up -- creating a budget, hiring staff and designing their workplace. Garcia's coworkers praise her for her "advising expertise" and her ability to understand students' needs and help them graduate in a timely manner.

• Delia Garcia is the director of the College of Arts and Humanities Student Advising Office

Faculty Members Present Paper at SIGGRAPH

October 2009

Darlene Hadrika and Stella Sung co-presented a paper at the 2009 SIGGRPAH conference in New Orleans, LA. The title of their talk, "Collaborative Animation Productions Using Original Music in a Unique Teaching Environment," focused upon the collaborative aspects of animation and music, and discussed ways in which UCF’s Digital Media animation program presents a unique approach to teaching animation in the academic setting. Since its inception in 2005, the animation program at UCF has taken a "team approach" in which students learn all aspects of production. This includes concept (narrative story), design, drawing, computer graphics, music and audio, and post-production procedures. Each film is screened and critiqued at the end of the spring semester.

• Darlene Hadrika is a research associate in the Department of Digital Media
• Stella Sung is the director of the Center for Research and Education in Arts, Technology and Entertainment

Digital Media professors present at SIGGRAPH 2009

August 2009

Darlene Hadrika and Stella Sung co-presented a paper at the 2009 SIGGRPAH conference in New Orleans entitled "Collaborative Animation Productions Using Original Music in a Unique Teaching Environment." The talk focused upon the collaborative aspects of animation and music and the ways that UCF's Digital Media animation program presents an unique approach to teaching animation in the academic setting. Since its inception in 2005, the animation program at UCF has taken a team approach in which students learn all aspects of production. This includes concept (narrative story), design, drawing, computer graphics, music and audio, and post-production procedures. Each film is screened and critiqued at the end of the spring semester.

• Darlene Hadrika is a research associate in the Department of Digital Media
• Stella Sung is the director of the Center for Research and Education in Arts, Technology and Entertainment

Digital Media Creates Ethics Based Video Game for Students

July 2009

The Digital Media program and Partnership for Research on Storytelling Environments (PROSE) have teamed up to create an ethics based video game designed to help students manage real life situations in a technological setting. The project aims to help future students think ethically about technology. PROSE is currently working on their third game titled "Knights of Astrus" which explored morals and value systems. The PROSE Lab will introduce first-year students to the video game to encourage ethical decision making. Read the full article.

Studio 500 Attracts Attention for Emerging Media Program

June 2009

The new Studio 500 is helping to make Orlando an entertainment force. UCF film students have been working with Tiger Woods, Derek Jeter, and Roger Federer to produce Gillete commercials in their new motion-capture Studio 500. Additionally, the Emerging Media Department recently teamed up with the UCF cheerleading team to capture the motion of acrobatic moves for the new Hannah Montana video game. The faculty and students of the department collaborate with Vicon Entertainment's House of Moves and Florida Interactive Entertainment Academy (FIEA). Read more about Studio 500 in the UCF Newsroom or experience their recent projects at www.cem.ucf.edu.

Digital Media students debut animated short

May 2009

Atlas’ Revenge, an animated short film by 25 undergraduate Digital Media students and one graduate student director, premieres at the UCF Center for Emerging Media on May 5. Nearly a year-and-a-half in the making, faculty member Darlene Hadrika oversaw the film’s production, while composer and UCF professor Stella Sung wrote the soundtrack. In the six-minute short, a goldfish must protect his home from a mechanical invader. More information is available at www.atlasrevenge.com.

• Darlene Hadrika is a research associate in the Department of Digital Media
• Stella Sung is the director of the Center for Research and Education in Arts, Technology and Entertainment

The Florida Review 2009 Editors' Awards Winners

October 2009

The Florida Review has announced its Editors' Awards winners for 2009. See a list of winners on the journal's Web site. The Florida Review, a literary journal published twice yearly by the University of Central Florida, publishes poetry and prose from emerging and established writers.

UCF alum Venditti's The Surrogates now a major motion picture

September 2009

On September 25, Touchstone Pictures releases The Surrogates, a major motion picture based on the work of UCF alum Robert Venditti. Venditti wrote the 2003 comic book series of the same name that was illustrated by Brett Weldele and published by Top Shelf Productions. The comic, set in a future where people live vicariously through artificial "surrogates", is "a resplendently grimy commentary" on identity and the role of technology in our lives according to Entertainment Weekly. Venditti's next graphic novel The Surrogates: Flesh and Bone also debuts on September 25, and his political/medical thriller The Homeland Directive will follow in 2010. He is also featured in an interview in the Orlando Sentinel.

Katie Beth Curtis Awarded First Prize in JASNA 2009 Essay Contest

September 2009

"Master's in Literary, Cultural, and Textual Studies student Katie Beth Curtis has won first prize at the Post-Graduate level of the Jane Austen Society of North America (JASNA) 2009 Essay Contest for her essay "Troubled Sisterhood: When Sisters Become Rivals in Mansfield Park." She will present her paper at the conference in Philadelphia in October and will receive free conference registration and free lodging, as well as a year's membership in the society. Her essay will also appear on the JASNA Web site.

Craig Saper Editor of Reprinted Book Foretelling the End of the Book

August 2009

Craig Saper edited a new edition of Bob Brown's prophetic book The Readies(originally published in 1930 and published now with Saper's annotations and Afterword with Rice University Press). More than fifty years before electronic forms of abbreviated writing became commonplace in text messages, Brown invented a new format for reading, called "readies" that would replace the book with something that resembled a proto-Kindle. Brown's contraption consisted of a small reel with microscopic text that would pass under a powerful magnifying glass, and as technology advanced, readers would eventually be able to radio readies to this device. Saper provides a contemporary analysis of the book and its impact on technology today. The Readies is available through Rice University Press.

English Professor Completes Philosophical Vampire Novel

August 2009

Susan Hubbard’s vampire novel, The Society of S, offers a fresh, ethical take on the popular vampiric fiction genre. Inspired by a dream, Hubbard’s novel contains characters that will change the way people think about the world around them. “To care about the environment, to care about ethics, to wrestle with questions of identity, these are all so important and in my mind extremely positive,” says Hubbard. Experience a new literary style, framed in an archaic and eerie genre, through The Society of S.

English Professor Holds Signing for New Book

June 2009

University of Central Florida English professor Cecilia Rodríguez Milanés will hold a booksigning for her latest work, "Marielitos, Balseros and Other Exiles," about Cuban-American exiles at 7 p.m. Thursday, June 11, at UrbanThink! Bookstore in Orlando.

Master’s and Undergraduate Students Present at International Conference

May 2009

Master’s in Literature alumna Mandy Mahaffey, Master’s in Literary, Cultural, and Textual Studies student Jessica Masri, and undergraduate English student Corrinne Woods, formed a panel entitled “Time/lessness in The Last Unicorn” at the 30th International Conference for the Fantastic in the Arts (International Association for the Fantastic in the Arts), March 18–21, 2009 in Orlando, Florida. Their presentations were, respectively: "Time is of the Essence!: Time and Identity-Formation in The Last Unicorn"; "The Broken Clock and the Eternal Sign: The Severance of Signified from Signifier in Peter Beagle's The Last Unicorn," and "The Timelessness of The Last Unicorn as a Mirror of Oral Tradition."

Master’s in Literature Alumna Joins Ph.D. Program at University of Maryland

May 2009

Master’s in Literature Alumna Ucheche Okereke-Beshel has been accepted into University of Maryland’s English Ph.D. Program and offered a $20,000 fellowship. She joins her new program in fall 2009

Master’s Students Present at Children’s Literature Conference

May 2009

Master’s in Literature alumna Mandy Mahaffey and Master’s in Literary, Cultural, and Textual Studies student Jeannina Perez presented at the Girls’ Culture & Girls’ Studies: Surviving, Reviving, Celebrating Girlhood Conference, October 16–18, 2008 in New Haven, Connecticut. Their papers were, respectively: “Gender Performativity, Sexual Orientation, Body, and the ‘I Kiss Girls’ Phenomenon in Music Videos: Empowering, Objectifying, or a Bit of Both?” and “Teaching Girls to Be Bratz.”

Terry Thaxton receives In-House Grant

April 2009

Terry Thaxton has been awarded a 2009 College of Arts & In-House Grant. Thaxton's research project, a book titled Take it Outside: Creative Writing in the Community, is intended for teachers and students of creative writing who want to develop projects that promote writing as a powerful tool for transforming the lives of people in their communities.

• Terry Ann Thaxton, M.F.A. is an assistant professor in the Department of English

Kelle Groom wins Outstanding Master's Thesis award

March 2009

Kelle Groom has won the UCF College of Graduate Studies award for Outstanding Master's Thesis. Groom received her M.F.A. in Creative Writing in December 2008. Her thesis, Five Kingdoms, is a poetry collection. Her poems and nonfiction have appeared in AGNI, Gettysburg Review, The New Yorker, Ploughshares, Poetry, and Witness, among others. Her awards include fellowships and scholarships from Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, Millay Colony for the Arts, Atlantic Center for the Arts, and the Sewanee Writers Conference, and grants from the State of Florida, Division of Cultural Affairs, Barbara Deming Memorial Fund, United Arts of Central Florida, Volusia County Cultural Council, and New Forms Florida, as well as a Florida Book Award. Her work was recognized as notable in The Best American Nonrequired Reading 2007, and this year her work has been nominated for four Pushcart Prizes in both poetry and nonfiction.

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Melody Bowdon receives CAH Excellence in Graduate Teaching award

March 2009

Melody Bowdon received the CAH Excellence in Graduate Teaching Award for 2009. Bowdon regularly teaches graduate courses in Technical and Professional Communication, Rhetoric and Composition, and Texts and Technology. Bowdon is currently directing four doctoral dissertations, two doctoral comprehensive exams, and two MA theses. She has served on numerous university and college graduate committees and has directed the Graduate Certificate in Professional Writing since 1999. She served as director of the Ph.D. in Texts and Technology from 2006-2007. According to Bowdon, "The heart of graduate education in the humanities is preparing students to find meaningful ways to enter into the existing streams of conversation in the field."

• Melody Bowdon, Ph.D. is an associate professor in the Department of English

T&T Ph.D. student to serve on the Bedford/St. Martins TA Advisory Board

March 2009

Rochelle (Chelle) Becker-Bernstein, a third-year student in the T&T Ph.D. program, was selected as one of ten composition teaching assistants from around the country to serve on the Bedford/St. Martin's TA Advisory Board for 2009. Ms. Bernstein, who is currently completing her coursework and looking forward to beginning her comprehensive examinations during the summer, was nominated by T&T faculty member, Elizabeth Wardle, for the honor. She submitted a CV and other materials, completed an interview with Bedford personnel, and was selected for the board. She will receive a $1000 stipend and travel expenses to a board meeting in Boston. Chelle's research focuses on mixed-mode instruction in composition, and her work with this organization will allow her to share her findings with and learn from her colleagues around the country through the Bedford blog and other outlets.

M.F.A. student in The Writer's Chronicle

November 2008

M.F.A. student Laurie Uttich's article "Present-Moment Beginnings that Reveal a Memoir's Ending" appears in the December 2008 issue of The Writer's Chronicle, the prestigious national journal published by The Associated Writing Programs. Uttich also has work forthcoming in the literary journal Creative Nonfiction.

Mill's film screens at the Baltimore Women's Film Festival

October 2009

Peace Corps: JFK's Bold Legacy, a short film by Lisa Mills, screens at the Baltimore Womens Film Festival on Sunday, October 25 at 4:00pm. The documentary features a live symphony performance, revealing a unique "backstage view" of the birth of new music from internationally renowned composer Stella Sung. The film won the Cultural Achievement Award at the Mobile World Congress Film Festival in Barcelona last January.

• Lisa Mills is an assistant professor in the Department of Film
• Stella Sung is the director of the Center for Research and Education in Arts, Technology and Entertainment

Alumnus' Film Premiers at LA Femme Film Festival

October 2009

Hope for a Thorn, a microbudget digital feature film written and directed by Erin Kitzinger, premieres at LA Femme Film Festival Sunday, October 18. The film was produced through the school’s new Entrepreneurial Digital Cinema MFA program, a unique graduate program that requires students to finance and produce marketable feature-length films on a shoestring budget. A member of the inaugural class of the program, Kitzinger graduated in August 2008 and now works as an editor in Chicago.

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MFA Student Dino Gallino and his film Red Tide Reaches Post-production Stage

October 2009

Red Tide, Dino Gallino’s final project for the MFA Entrepreneurial Digital Cinema program, has reached the post-production stage. The program requires students to create a feature-length film and raise $50,000 to complete the project. Gallino has accomplished this task despite a rough economy. MovieMaker spoke with Gallino about his experience at UCF and about the film which he plans to promote upon graduation. For more information about Dino Gallino and Red Tide, Read the MovieMaker interview.

Film Alumnus Awarded Best Feature for Acts of Mercy

October 2009

Laura C. Lopez, M.F.A. in Film Alumnus, was awarded the Silver Crystal Reel Award for the best Feature $1 million and under for her film Acts of Mercy. This was Lopez’s first film and was shot entirely in Orlando. Acts of Mercy has been well received by the film community and was screened at the Shanghai International Film Festival. More information is available from UCF Today.

Dear Mr. Gore: A Somewhat Cinematic Correspondence Awkwardly Tracing a Circular Journey Constructed on a Warming Planet

September 2009

Film faculty member Lisa Mill's film Dear Mr. Gore: A Somewhat Cinematic Correspondence Awkwardly Tracing a Circular Journey Constructed on a Warming Planet screens this week. The 65-minute documentary uses Mills' bicycle commute as a vehicle to explore fear and global warming. It features scenes from Orlando's Critical Mass and a bike ride with Mayor Buddy Dyer. The film screens twice this week at the Global Peace Film Festival: Wednesday, Sept. 23rd, 8:30p.m., Rollins College Bush Auditorium and Saturday, September 26th at 1:15p.m. at the Winter Park Library. For tickets and information, visit www.peacefilmfest.org.

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Christoper Harris' Film Selected for International Festival

September 2009

UCF Film Professor Christopher Harris' experimental film 28.IV.81 (Bedouin Spark) has been selected to screen at the 12th annual Antimatter Film Festival. The festival will be held October 9 to 17, 2009 in Victoria, BC, Canada. Currently an Associate Professor of Film at the University of Central FLorida, Christopher Harris award winning experimental films have screened at festivals, museums and cinematheques throughout North America and Europe, including the International Film Festival Rotterdam, the VIENNALE-Vienna International Film Festival, the Avanto Film Festival in Helsinki, Finland, the Viper International Festival for Film, Video and New Media in Basel, Switzerland, and Rencontres Internationales-Paris, among many others.

UCF Film Alum Starts Iraq's First Independent Film Festival

July 2009

UCF Film Alum Miguel Lima graduated in 2005 and joined the Army; but he promised to continue his film studies. After being deployed, Lima continued to talk with professor Lisa Cook. It wasn't long before he received a package of UCF student films he would use to create the first Independent Film Festival in Iraq. On July 3rd, over thirty military personnel witnessed the event. Lieutenant Thorell said, "I thought the screening was very well done, and as a UCF graduate, I was proud to see my fellow alumni's hard work providing entertainment for my fellow Soldiers here in Iraq." The show was a hit, and Lima summed up the event: "it was truly an honor to play the films for a deployed group of folks that are working hard every day." Read the entire article.

Film student Cipolla hits the big time

July 2009

Former UCF Film student Lee Cipolla is featured in an article by Orlando Sentinel movie critic Roger Moore. Cipolla's independently-produced films Harder they Fall and Know Thy Enemy were recently released on DVD by Lionsgate Home Entertainment. Know Thy Enemy has been a hit in Blockbuster video stores and Best Buys since its May release. Cipolla has cut his teeth on major Hollywood productions including roles as Production Assistant on Marley & Me and Fast & Furious along with numerous music videos for high profile artists.

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M.F.A. Graduate's Film Screened at Chinese Movie Festival

June 2009

Entrepreneurial Digital Cinema M.F.A. graduate Laura Lopez directed, wrote, and produced "Acts of Mercy" which is being screened at the Chinese film festival from June 13th - June 21st. First time producer Erica Harrell and Lopez met in 2004 as undergraduates at UCF. "Acts of Mercy" boasts an up-and-coming cast and was shot in Orlando at the abandoned Sunland Mental Hospital. Find out more about "Act's of Mercy" in the UCF Newsroom or visit www.actsofmercymovie.com.

Graduate Student Films Feature-Length Movie

June 2009

Dino J. Gallina, graduate student in the Film & Digital Media/Entrepreneurial Digital Cinema program, began filming his first feature-length film Red Tide. Gallina describes movie as "a slice of life about things around us." The film will be shot in Tarpon Springs and Orlando and is expected to be finished by summer 2010. For more information about the film, read the St. Pete Times article.

CAH faculty's award-winning documentary

February 2009

"Rockwell," a short film featuring UCF College of Arts & Humanities faculty has won the Outstanding Cultural Achievement award at the Mofilm mobile short film festival. Rockwell was chosen from 250 films and honored at a ceremony hosted by actor and director Kevin Spacey. Lisa Mills directed the poignant documentary piece that focuses on Stella Sung and her composition, Rockwell Reflections. Sung's piece is written in five movements, each reflecting a painting by Rockwell, and was performed live by the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra. Sung is the Orlando Philharmonic's artist-in-residence. Mill's award-winning film is featured in the Orlando Sentinel Arts & Letters blog and in the UCF Newsroom.

• Lisa Mills is an assistant professor in the Department of Film
• Stella Sung is the director of the Center for Research and Education in Arts, Technology and Entertainment

Sung and Mills contribute to Ellis Island tribute performance

February 2009

Composer Stella Sung and film-maker Lisa Mills have joined Dance Alive National Ballet, the Ellis Island Immigration Museum and Ellis Island Foundation to produce One Day. . . Everything!. Choreographed by Judy Skinner, the work is based on modern America's immigrant ancestors who arrived at Ellis Island. It is funded in part through Meet The Composers MetLife Creative Connections and a UCF LIFE grant. The live performance, accompanied by Sung's music and film images by Mills and her students, will premiere on March 20 at the Phillips Center for the Performing Arts in Gainesville, FL. Dance Alive will also perform the first movement of the work at the Orlando Holocaust Museum's fundraising event on March 25 at the Rosen Centre Hotel.

• Lisa Mills is an assistant professor in the Department of Film
• Stella Sung is the director of the Center for Research and Education in Arts, Technology and Entertainment

UCF Film Alumni Alicia Conway to show her at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival

February 2009

UCF film Alum Alicia Conway has been selected to show her short film RITE at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival. Conway's short film challenges the idea of tradition, custom, and ritual. People are constantly practicing rituals from weddings and funerals to the daily morning cup of coffee to body modification, without even realizing it. But some of these customs are not as pleasant and joyful. Conway's hope is that RITE will prompt people to think about and discuss the brutal things people do to each other in the name of tradition.

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Robert Thompson one of OBJ's "10 Businessmen to Watch"

October 2009

Orlando Business Journal names Robert Thompson among its "10 Businessmen to Watch." Thompson graduated from UCF in 2004 with a Bachelor of Arts in History and went on to become a founding partner at local marketing and public relations firm Thompson Wesley Wolfe.

Walters Awarded Grant for Virtual Fair Project

October 2009

Lori C. Walters was awarded a $1.47 million grant from the National Science Foundation to fund a 3D virtual recreation of the 1964-65 New York World's Fair. Virtual fairgoers of all ages will be immersed in an accurately modeled historical world with more than 140 pavilions on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines and an array of arts and humanities exhibits. Discovery Points throughout the virtual environment will afford opportunities for in-depth engagement in STEM topics that will empower participants to explore the broader consequences of technological innovations. Project partners include the Queens Museum of Art and New York Hall of Science.

• Lori Walters, Ph.D. is a research associate in the Department of History

History Professor Publishes Book on the History of the American South Workplace

September 2009

History Professor Robert Cassanello has published Migration and the Transformation of the Southern Workplace since 1945 edited with Colin J. Davis with University Press of Florida. Visit the publisher's Web site for more information.

Vladimir Solonari Publishes Book on Holocaust

August 2009

History professor Vladimir Solonari published Purifying the Nation: Popular Exchange and Ethnic Cleasing in Nazi Allied Romania with Johns Hopkins University Press. A description of the book can be found on the Johns Hopkins University Press Web site.

UCF Graduate Wins Governor LeRoy Collins Award

April 2009

Deborah L. Bauer, a UCF graduate student, won the Governor LeRoy Collins Award for the most outstanding essay or research paper on Florida history produced by a postgraduate student in a master's or doctoral program at a college or university in the United States. Her paper was titled "'_in a strange place_': The Experiences of Colonial Women in the British Floridas, 1763-1784."

UCF Graduate Wins Herman and Celia Chapin Award

April 2009

Julio Raul Firpo, a UCF graduate student, was awarded the Herman and Celia Chapin Award and given the opportunity to present his paper at the Florida Historical Society Annual Meeting. His paper is titled "The Origins of Orlando's Puerto Rican Community."

Amy Foster Wins Arthur W. Thompson Award

April 2009

Amy Foster won the Arthur W. Thompson Award for the most outstanding article in the Florida Historical Quarterly published in 2008. Dr. Foster's article titled "The Gendered Anniversary: The Story of America's Women Astronauts" was published in the Fall Issue of Volume 87.

Peter L. Larson Awarded British Academy Followship

April 2009

Assistant Professor of history Peter Larson was awarded a 1-month British Academy fellowship from the Huntington Library for the 2009-2010 academic year.

Peter Larson: University Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching

April 2009

Assistant Professor of history Peter Larson received the University Award for Excellent Undergraduate Teaching. Larson has made significant contribution to the UCF community by working with many campus organizations, including the Burnett Honors College and the President's Scholars Study Abroad Program.

UCF Newsroom

Hunter Shaw receives UCF Graduate Travel Award

February 2009

Hunter Shaw received a UCF Graduate Travel Award to present a paper at the Fifth Annual North Carolina Graduate Student History Conference at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, NC. The title of his paper is "For Home and Country: Confederate Loyalty in Western North Carolina," and it examines the concept of loyalty as it relates to North Carolinians in the Confederacy.

Kerem Hemed - Hochmat Israel as the New Yavneh -- A New Book by Moshe Pelli on the Hebrew Journal Kerem Hemed

September 2009

Magnes Publishing House of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem announced the publication of a monograph and an annotated index on the Haskalah periodical Kerem Hemed by Prof. Moshe Pelli, director of University of Central Florida Program of Judaic Studies and Abe and Tess Endowed Professor of Judaic Studies.

• Moshe Pelli is a professor in the Judaic Studies Program, and the program director of the Judaic Studies Program

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García participates in NEH Seminar

October 2009

Martha García was selected from a large applicant pool to take part in a Summer 2009 NEH Seminar at the University of Virginia. García participated in the seminar "Celestina and the Threshold of Modernity" directed by E. Michael Gerli, Commonwealth Professor of Hispanic Studies at UVA.

• Martha García, Ph.D. is an assistant professor in the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures

Gregory Thompson Awarded Grant to Study Dialect in Spain

September 2009

Gregory Thompson has been awarded an In-House Grant Award to study shifting pronunciation patterns in Spain and to investigate how they are changing the traditional view of the dialect of southern Spain. The project will study specifically the shifts in language usage and prestige in speakers of the Peninsular variety of Spanish (spoken in Spain).

Florin Mihai Publishes Guide for TOEFL Students

September 2009

A Complete Preparation Guide to the TOEFL is intended to help students develop the English language skills they need to succeed on the new Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). Each test component is explained from a theoretical and practical perspective and is accompanied by a variety of examples and exercises.

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Kerry Purmensky Publishes Book on TESOL Teching Techniques

September 2009

This book on service-learning for teachers learning TESOL techniques addresses the needs of the English Language Learners in the United States - the fastest growing segment of the United States population. Our schools and communities are greatly impacted by this changing population. This book details a highly effective service-learning project which assists preservice teachers in learning the value of critical pedagogy, and how mentoring ELLs can improve TESOL techniques, impact schools, and empower ELLs, using the National ESOL Standards.

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Marie Léticée Publishes Book on Caribbean Identity

September 2009

Education, Assimilation, and Caribbean Identity: The Literary Journey of the French Caribbean, Marie Léticée’s new book, examines the role education plays in shaping Caribbean identity.
ISBN: 9781584325543

López Cruz presents collection of essays on Cabrera Infante

August 2009

Humberto López Cruz's recent book Guillermo Cabrera Infante: el subterfugio de la palabra, published by Hispano Cubana, contains critical essays on the works of late Cuban writer Guillermo Cabrera Infante (Cervantes Award 1998). Infante's innovative prose places him among the preeminent figures of Latin American literature. These essays cover various aspects of his writing while examining a number Cabrera Infante publications as well as his activities as a journalist and editor of the controversial and short-lived newspaper supplement Lunes de Revolución.

• Humberto López Cruz, Ph.D. is a professor in the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures

Thad Anderson presents at 2009 PASIC Convention

October 2009

Thad Anderson will present a poster presentation titled "John Cage's Fourth Construction: An Imaginary Landscape" at the 2009 Percussive Arts Society International Convention in Indianapolis, IN. For more information, visit the PASIC Web site.

• Thad Anderson, D.M.A. is a visiting instructor in the Department of Music

Jeff Rupert swings From Memphis To Mobile

October 2009

Random Act Records presents From Memphis to Mobile, a new album from Jeff Rupert. Rupert, a master saxophonist, is featured in quartet and duet settings, with accompaniment from John Jenkins (drums) and virtuoso pianist Kenny Drew, Jr. as well as fellow UCF faculty members Richard Drexler (bass) and Lyman Brodie (flugelhorn). While continuing the tenor legacies of Lester Young and Stan Getz, Rupert charts his own path, with a gorgeous tone and inspired improvisations. A review from AllAboutJazz describes Rupert's work as "an inviting silk-sound that is never harsh, yet speaks so lyrically it's almost vocal."

• Lyman Brodie is an associate dean in the College of Arts and Humanities, and a professor in the Department of Music
• Richard Drexler is an adjunct in the Department of Music
• Jeff Rupert is a professor in the Department of Music, and the program director of the Department of Music

Yonetani Selected for Florida State Touring Roster

October 2009

Ayako Yonetani was re-selected as an official artist for the 2010-2012 Florida State Touring roster. Yonetani was first selected for the 2006-2008 seasons, and this is the third time she was selected. She is the only official violinist in the state.

• Ayako Yonetani is a professor in the Department of Music

Blake Tyson's southeastern tour includes UCF visit

October 2009

Blake Tyson spent two days on the UCF campus in mid-October as part of his tour of the southeastern U.S. During his residency, Tyson taught lessons, coached ensembles, held a masterclass, and performed a solo recital featuring his own compositions and those of Halim El-Dabh.

Potter to sing in The Messiah

September 2009

Thomas Potter will sing as bass soloist in Handel's oratorio The Messiah with the Orlando Messiah Choral Society in the Bob Carr Auditorium on Sunday, November 29, 2009.

• Thomas Potter, M.M. is an associate professor in the Department of Music

Ruth Golden directs master class

September 2009

Nationally recognized Master Teacher and Voice Instructor Ruth Golden directed a master class for students from the UCF Opera program, Rollins College, and local high schools. The class was also attended by UCF Film students. Golden is the Director of Vocal Studies for the Department of Music at the C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University. She has performed across the nation and abroad with companies such as the New York City Opera, Canadian Opera Company (Toronto), Orchestra Pasdeloup, Prague Philharmonic in Prague, and Orchestra Royale of Madrid.

Joe McCarthy presents Afro-Cuban percussion clinic

September 2009

Percussionist Joe McCarthy visited UCF to present an Afro-Cuban-based drum set clinic. Joe performed excerpts from his new book Afro-Cuban Big Band Play-Along and worked with groups of students on various Afro-Cuban styles.

Anthony Rivera (BME, 2000, Saxophone)

August 2009

Anthony Rivera graduated from The Peabody Conservatory of Music with an M.M. in Wind Conducting in May 2006. For two years, he was Director of Bands at New Town High School in Baltimore, Maryland, and now teaches at Eastern Technical School in Baltimore. In February 2007, the Peabody Wind Ensemble released a CD on the Naxos label entitled “Collage” in which he served as associate producer. In June of 2007, Tony was selected as one of twelve conductors for the Michigan State University Conductor’s Symposium with guest clinician Jerry Junkin.

Artie Almeida (BA, 1979; M.Ed. 1985; Ed.D, 2002, Saxophone)

August 2009

Artie Almeida has been chosen Alumni of the Decade (1970s) for the UCF College of Education. She also published her twenty-first teaching resource in November 2006. It is a general music resource book called Mallet Madness that contains ideas for teachers to use barred instruments and drums to teach the elements of music.

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David Jones (BME 2001, Saxophone)

August 2009

Dave is a professional saxophone and keyboard player based in the Nashville, TN area. Following graduation, Dave taught for 4 years in the St Augustine, FL public school system. Adept in a variety of genres and styles from classical to jazz to country, Dave has performed throughout the United States, Hawaii and the Caribbean. Shortly after moving to Nashville in 2007, Dave was invited to perform with Grand Ole Opry legend Mel McDaniel, and toured with Mel briefly before accepting the keyboardist position with Curb recording artist, Heidi Newfield in 2008. Dave appeared with Heidi on her US tour performing in 50+ cities and venues including the Ryman Auditorium and Grand Ole Opry stages in Nashville, TN, and will continue touring with her in 2009 as she promotes her album What Am I Waiting For.

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Justin Badgerow (BM, 1999, Piano)

August 2009

Justin Badgerow has been Assistant Professor of Music at Sul Ross State University in Alpine, TX where he taught studio piano, class piano, music theory, music appreciation and accompanies recitals. Recent performances include a recital with Grammy nominated vocalist Patrick Mason and a lecture recital in Merida, Mexico on music of Chavez and Copland.

Lisa Hopko (BME, Viola)

August 2009

Lisa Hopko is in her twelveth year of teaching at Maitland Middle School. Under her direction, the orchestra has grown to four levels of orchestra, in addition to the chamber music class. Her orchestras have consistently earned straight superior ratings in the Florida Orchestra Association Music Performance Assessments. She has served as Florida Orchestra Association 7-8 All State Orchestra Chair, District Chair for Orange county and is a certified adjudicator of FOA Music Performance Assessments. She had the honor of conducting All County Orchestras in Polk, Lee, Hillsborough, Brevard, Broward, Collier and Manatee Counties. She has been a member of the faculty for the Florida West Coast Symphony Youth Orchestra "Summer at the Symphony". She is a violist, and has performed with the Brevard Symphony, Florida Lakes Symphony Orchestra and Harry Connick, Jr.

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Marysol Quevedo (BM, 2005, Flute)

August 2009

Marysol Quevedo, a native of San Juan, Puerto Rico, received a BM in Flute Performance from the University of Central Florida in 2005. That same year she was admitted into the PhD program in Musicology at the Indiana University School of Music, and was awarded a Chancellor’s Fellowship to pursue the degree. She has held Graduate Assistant and Associate Instructor positions in the Musicology Department, and is the current co-President of the Graduate Musicology Association. She has recently finished her minor in Ethnomusicology, and has focused her electives in Latin American music topics, her primary area of study.

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Omar Carmenates (BME, 2004, Percussion)

August 2009

Omar Carmenates, received a full time teaching assistantship in percussion and earned a Masters Degree in Percussion Performance from the University of North Texas. A doctoral candidate at Florida State, he is an Assistant Professor of Music and Director of Percussion Studies at Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina.

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Robbie Schaer (BA, 2002, Trumpet)

August 2009

Rob Schaer is a freelance trumpet performer in the Los Angeles area. Mr. Schaer began performing on the streets of Disney World in Orlando, Florida when he was only 17 years old. He continued working at Disney World while finishing a Bachelors Degree in Trumpet from the University of Central Florida, studying with John Almeida. Mr. Schaer recently finished a Masters Degree and Doctorate in Musical Arts from the University of Southern California, studying with Boyde Hood. Schaer has been influenced by many great teachers including Charlie Davis, Wayne Bergeron, Don Green and Bobby Shew.

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Samantha Barnes (BM, 2007, Voice)

August 2009

Samantha Barnes, a former voice student of Priscilla Bagley, won the district Metropolitan Opera National Council competition in Chicago, where she just began her Master of Music degree, on a full scholarship, at Northwestern University. She took 3rd Place at the Regional Met auditions, for which she was awarded $2,000. Samantha Barnes (UCF BFA-Vocal Perfomance 2007) was a Metropolitan Opera National Council Awards-National Semi-Finalist this year (2009), is currently a Studio Artist at Chautauqua Opera, and is joining Arizona Opera as a Studio Artist this Fall. She just graduated with her Master of Music degree in Opera from Northwestern

Susan Davison (BA, 2004, Piano)

August 2009

Susan Davison is currently the founder of the Music of the Spheres Academy and Music Director for Hope Christian Academy in Kissimmee, FL. In 2006-2007, she worked at the Osceola County School for the Arts as the Piano and Music Appreciation teacher as well as the Piano Accompanist for the State Solo and Ensemble Festivals. She also served as an Adjudicator for the "Florida Federation of Music Clubs" at the University of Central Florida. Ms. Davison is the founder of the “Talmadge Music Academy” in Oceola County, Florida.

Travis Heath (M.M., M.D.A.)

August 2009

Since graduating from UCF, trumpeter Travis Heath, student of John Almeida, went on to pursue his education at Rutgers University, earning his M.M. and D.M.A. degrees while studying with William “Prof” Fielder and Dr. Scott Whitener. While at Rutgers, Travis led the graduate orchestra as principal trumpet for six years and appeared in performances of Mussorgsky’s Picture’s at an Exhibition in Carnegie Hall and Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony in Avery Fischer Hall.

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Neil Flory (BA, Composition)

August 2009

Neil Flory is an active composer and poet. He holds degrees in music from the University of Central Florida, the University of Florida, and the University of Texas at Austin. He has studied composition with Stella Sung, Budd Udell, James Paul Sain, Donald Grantham, Dan Welcher, Russell Pinkston, and Mark Schultz. He has composed a variety of works both in the acoustic and electro-acoustic mediums, and his music has been performed across the United States as well as in Europe, South America, Asia, Mexico, and Canada. His Venn Music I (for violin and guitar) is included on the 2003 Duo 46 release entitled Untaming the Fury (available through Summit Records), and his work A Dog Chasing its Tail (for actor and tape) appears on Volume One of the University of Florida SCI Student Chapter's CD series.

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Percussion Instructor Publishes Timpani Book

August 2009

Kirk Gay has published a book of timpani etudes and solos for beginning to advanced players. The book, titled Pedal to the Kettle, addresses the demands of today's emerging timpanists, bringing new, modern life to performing on this unique instrument. The etudes (written for 2 or 4 drums) are presented in a sequence that graduates in difficulty and focuses on common challenges faced in modern and classic repertoire, all while maintaining a musical approach that is fun for young students to play. The book concludes with a collection of creative concert solos.

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Trumpet Professor Tours Florida and North Carolina High Schools in the Spring

August 2009

UCF trumpet teacher, John Almeida, toured several Florida and North Carolina high schools during the end of the 2009 Spring semester. He performed as a guest trumpet soloist with several superb high-school-band wind ensembles including Lakewood Ranch High School, Douglas Anderson School of the Arts Wind Symphony, and Central Davidson High School Wind Ensemble.

Music Grad Student wins American Viola Society's David Dalton Research Competition

July 2009

Jennifer Mueller, a graduate student in UCF's College of Music, recently won first prize in the American Viola Society's annual David Dalton Research Competition. Her paper is entitled, “Finding Emotion in Bartok’s Viola Concerto,” and investigates emotional responses to music as a way to analyze musical form. The paper will be published in the Journal of the American Viola Society.

UCF Baritone to Sing in Richard Wagner's opera "Das Rheingold"

May 2009

Baritone Thomas Potter will sing the role of Donner in Richard Wagner's opera "Das Rheingold" with the Indianapolis Opera Company and Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, under the direction of Maestro Mario Venzago. More information may be found at: www.indyopera.org.

• Thomas Potter, M.M. is an associate professor in the Department of Music

UCF Music's Presser Foundation Award

April 2009

At the UCF Music Department's annual Honors Convocation, department chair Johnny Pherigo presented the Presser Foundation Award to Allessandro Bonotto.

UCF Wind Ensemble Composition Award

April 2009

At the UCF Music Department's annual Honors Convocation, Jay Batzner presented the UCF Wind Ensemble Composition Competition Award to Brandon Clinton.

David L. Brunner: Recognizing 20 Years of Excellent Service to the University

April 2009

As Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities at the University of Central Florida, David L. Brunner has been honored for his 20 years of excellent service to UCF. Brunner conducts the University Chorus and Madrigal Singers, teaches courses in conducting and music education, and coaches private composition students. He has received multiple "University Excellence in Teaching" awards while at UCF.

• David Brunner is a professor in the Department of Music

Eladio Scharrón receives In-House Grant

April 2009

Eladio Scharrón has been awarded a 2009 In-House Grant that will allow him to finish his work on the recording of the complete works for guitar of Manuel M. Ponce. This Mexican composer is one of the most important classical guitar composers in the 20th century. Three CDs are already in the final stages of production, and Professor Scharron will complete the fourth and final disc as a part of this award.

• Eladio Scharron is an associate professor in the Department of Music

Nora Lee García-Velazquez honored by La Prensa

March 2009

Nora Lee García-Velazquez has been named among 2009's "Hispanic Women Who Make the Difference" by La Prensa, the premier Spanish newsweekly in Central Florida. She won in the Education category along with Linda Rosa-Lugo, also of UCF. La Prensa Publisher/CEO Dora Toro and Justina Gonzalez Marti acted as events coordinator and chair of the selection committee for the awards.

• Nora Lee García-Velázquez is an associate professor in the Department of Music

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UCF Flute Ensemble tours Guatemala

March 2009

The UCF Flute Ensemble will tour Guatemala under the direction of Nora Lee García-Velázquez from March 6 to 13. The ensemble will appear in Guatemala City and Antigua, performing music by American, French and Latin American composers.

• Nora Lee García-Velázquez is an associate professor in the Department of Music

Potter with Imperial Symphony in Don Giovanni

January 2009

Baritone Thomas Potter sings the role of Leporello in a fully staged version of Mozart's opera Don Giovanni with the Imperial Symphony in Lakeland, Florida on Saturday, January 24.

• Thomas Potter, M.M. is an associate professor in the Department of Music

Kimberly Saunders Randall and Thomas Potter to perform Donna Elvira and Leporello in Don Giovanni

January 2009

Soprano Kimberly Saunders Randall and baritone Thomas Potter will appear in the January 24, 2009 performance of Don Giovanni with the Imperial Symphony of Lakeland on the Florida Southern College campus. Randall will sing the role of Donna Elvira and Potter will sing the role of Leporello.

• Thomas Potter, M.M. is an associate professor in the Department of Music
• Kimberly Randall is an adjunct in the Department of Music

UCF Partners receive Disney grants

May 2009

Two UCF partners have received Disney's Helping Kids Shine grants. The Orlando Repertory Theatre, home to the Masters of Fine Arts Program in Theatre for Young Audiences, received $10,800 to fund their ACT! Outreach Program. The Orlando Shakespeare Theater, host to third-year students in the Theatre Department's Masters of Fine Arts program in Acting, received $10,000 towards their Shakespeare Alive program. For further details see the Walt Disney World Community Relations Web site.

Milan students explore Gallagher's Phenomenological Mind

November 2009

A group at the University Vita-Salute San Raffaele in Milan has organized a Winter School for graduate students to discuss the Italian translation of The Phenomenological Mind, authored by Shaun Gallagher and Dan Zahavi. More information is available online here

• Shaun Gallagher is a professor in the Department of Philosophy, and an affiliated member of the Department of English

Philosophy Gets Creative with Ethics

September 2009

Michael Strawser’s proposal on Applying Creativity to Research in Ethics has been accepted for presentation at the 2009 Florida Statewide Symposium, Engagement in Undergraduate Research on September 25, 2009. How should we think about the many ethical dilemmas that face us today? How should research in current ethical dilemmas be conducted to move beyond impasses in judgment towards developing a consensus for action? Strawser will discuss the new Honors Interdisciplinary Seminar on Case Studies in Ethics that he is currently co-teaching with Nancy Stanlick. Their course is designed to prepare UCF students to participate in the UCF Ethics Bowl, which is already a creative act of engagement, but more importantly, they hope to open new possibilities in the study of ethical dilemmas that would allow for creative problem-solving in ethics.

Gallagher attends conference with Dalai Lama

April 2009

Shaun Gallagher participated in an invitation-only conference with the Dalai Lama and eight other scientists in Dharamsala, India at the Dalai Lama's residence. The theme of the conference was Attention, Memory and the Mind and was sponsored by the Mind and Life Institute. Gallagher presented his research on embodiment and intersubjectivity and led one of the morning discussion sessions.

• Shaun Gallagher is a professor in the Department of Philosophy, and an affiliated member of the Department of English

Dr. Shelley Park Granted Sabbatical for Spring 2010

March 2009

Dr. Park is working on a book, tentatively titled "Real (M)others: The Metaphysics of Maternity in Adoptive, Queer, and Blended Families." The central philosophical question posed by and explored in her work is "What is a real mother?" Interweaving personal narrative and theoretical reflection, Park explores the emotional and philosophical terrain of contested motherhood within the context of open and transracial adoptive families, queer and postmodern configurations of domestic space, and technological transformations of familial love. In so doing, she interrogates interpretations of "real" mothering that oppose biological and social embodiments of mothering, examines diverse social embodiments of mothering, queries the distinctions between "real" (material) and virtual motherhood and distinctions between "real" (normative) and queer domestic spaces, and explores the distinction between "real" (lived) mothering as distinguished from the idealized versions of motherhood that permeate our cultural imagination.

Dr. Nancy Stanlick Awarded First Annual UCF Creed Award for Integrity

March 2009

Dr. Nancy Stanlick has been awarded the UCF Creed Award in Integrity. The UCF Creed Award was created in an effort to honor the individuals who exemplify the tenants of the UCF Creed.

Harry Coverston Awarded CAH Undergraduate Teaching Award

March 2009

Dr. Harry Coverston was awarded the distinguished Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching Award this year.

Shaun Gallagher receives Distinguished Researcher Award

March 2009

Shaun Gallagher has been selected to receive the 2008-2009 Distinguished Researcher Award for the College of Arts and Humanities. Shaun Gallagher's research is conducted in the area of philosophical phenomenology, the philosophy of mind and the cognitive sciences. His work is highly interdisciplinary and draws not only from philosophy, but developmental and experimental psychology, neuroscience, social theory, and robotics.

• Shaun Gallagher is a professor in the Department of Philosophy, and an affiliated member of the Department of English

Gallagher lectures in Berlin

December 2008

Shaun Gallagher is a visiting scholar at the Zentrum für Literatur-und Kulturforschung (ZfL) in Berlin. He presents a lecture on embodied social cognition.

• Shaun Gallagher is a professor in the Department of Philosophy, and an affiliated member of the Department of English

St. Claire Participates in Semester At Sea

October 2009

Sybil St. Claire, a lecturer in the Department of Theatre, was one of 35 faculty members from universities across the nation selected to sail as an Instructor aboard the MV Explorer as part of Semester at Sea's Summer 2009 voyage.

• Sybil M StClaire is a lecturer in the Department of Theatre

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Theatre Faculty Member set sail on the Semester at Sea's Summer 2009 voyage

October 2009

Sybil St. Claire, a Lecturer in the Department of Theatre, was one of 35 faculty members from universities across the nation selected to sail as an instructor aboard the MV Explorer as part of Semester at Sea's Summer 2009 voyage.

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UCF Theatre alum on Survivor: Samoa

October 2009

UCF Theatre alum Monica Padilla will appear on Survivor: Samoa. Survivor: Samoa is the nineteenth season of the CBS competitive reality television series. The season premiered on Thursday, September 17, 2009. Monica was selected from more than 800 interviews and approximately 48 semi-finalists.

Alumni David Blue Lands Starring Role on "Stargate Universe"

September 2009

David Blue, graduate from UCF Theatre in both Acting and Musical Theatre, has landed a starring role in the SyFy Channel's Stargate Universe. Blue has been a regular on Ugly Betty as Logan Griffen and now will be playing Eli Wallace, a slacker who just happens to be an utter genius on Stargate. The show premieres October 2. Photo: Blue (left) with Lou Diamond Phillips.

Judy Siegfried Awared "Teacher of the Year" by Tremaine

September 2009

Judi Siegfried, dance faculty member in the Department of Theatre has been recognized as Tremaine’s “Teacher of the Year”. Siegfried was presented the award at the nationally known dance convention Tremaine in July, 2009. Siegfried has taught at Valencia, Rollins, and for over twenty years at UCF. “I am extremely honored to receive this award,” said Siegfried. “Dance education is my passion and I hope that I have made all of my students and UCF proud”. Her student of several years, Allison Terry, was presented with Tremaine’s “Teen Dancer of the Year” award.

Orlando Repertory Theatre collaborates with the Kennedy Center

September 2009

The Orlando Repertory Theatre and the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. are working together on a commission for author Jacqueline Woodson to write a stage version of her award-winning children’s book Locomotion. Both theaters — first the Kennedy Center, and then the Rep — plan to produce the show in a coming season. The Rep plans to produce Locomotion in 2011. The collaboration is featured in the Sunday, September 6 edition of the Orlando Sentinel. The article is available online here.

UCF Grad Student Born To Be On Stage

July 2009

Graduate student Trent Fucci will star as Prince Hal in The Arboretum's Summerfest production of Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part One July 8th-12th. Fucci will have the opportunity to play the role of Prince Hal for the next three summers if the play is well received. Read more about Fucci's career and future on stage.

UCF Summer Theater Opens with "Greater Tuna"

June 2009

Assistant Professors Mark Brotherton and Earl Weaver star in and direct this year's first UCF summer show, "Greater Tuna." Weaver will also direct "Cole!" later this summer.

UCF Partners receive Disney grants

May 2009

Two UCF partners have received Disney's Helping Kids Shine grants. The Orlando Repertory Theatre, home to the Masters of Fine Arts Program in Theatre for Young Audiences, received $10,800 to fund their ACT! Outreach Program. The Orlando Shakespeare Theater, host to third-year students in the Theatre Department's Masters of Fine Arts program in Acting, received $10,000 towards their Shakespeare Alive program. For further details see the Walt Disney World Community Relations Web site.

CAH Graduate Student Researcher of the Year

April 2009

Liz Brendel receives CAH Graduate Student Researcher of the Year award for 2008/2009. A M.F.A. student in the Theatre Department, Ms. Brendel's research titled "Aphra Behn's The Rover A study of Feminism and Class" won top honors at the 2008 Graduate Research Forum.

Theatre for Young Audiences/USA spotlights UCF Theatre grad

April 2009

Rebecca Podsednik, a graduate of the Theatre for Young Audiences M.F.A. Program, has been spotlighted by the International Association of Theatre for Children and Young People's United States Chapter. She is currently Tour Coordinator in the Theater for Young Audiences program at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

UCF students and faculty perform at Holocaust Memorial Resource and Education Center event

April 2009

Theatre students Luke Bernard and Erika Lyon performed at the Holocaust Memorial Resource and Education Center of Florida Tribute dinner for John and Rita Lowndes. The students were well received as they performed pieces from the recent Theatre Department production of West Side Story. Theatre faculty member Be Boyd also performed on behalf of the university's partnership organization The Orlando Shakespear Theatre. Other UCF departments involved in the event include Music, Film, Digital Media and UCF CREATE.

UCF Theatre production of Marisol invited to regional conference

January 2009

The Kennedy Center/American College Theatre Festival (KC/ACTF) Region IV Selection Team invites the UCF Conservatory Theatre production of Marisol to the regional conference in Greensboro, NC. Winners at the conference will perform at the Kennedy Center this spring.

A Meeting with Mardi Gras Zulu King

June 2009

In 1999, Dr. Myron Moorehead was Zulu King for the Mardi Gras parade in New Orleans that once started the tradition of blacks and whites celebrating together. He stopped by the College of Arts & Humanities to meet Dean Fernandez when he flew in to participate in Anthony Major's summer Advanced Documentary class.