Spring Break
Joining forces with area dental professionals, insurance providers and the Kansas City Chiefs, the UMKC School of Dentistry students participated in the third annual TeamSmile Dental Outreach program Saturday, helping administer free oral healthcare screenings to local children.
The Nursing Workforce Innovation Center opened at UMKC on Aug. 13. The center has many goals including improving the workplace environment, increasing retention and limiting the turnover rate of nurses in Kansas and Missouri. Susan Lacey, Ph.D., RN, director of the center said, "What tends to happen, according to what the literature says, is within the first year you lose one in four nurses.
With the spotlight shining so brightly on recycling, clean fuel and sustainable farming, green clothing is now emerging as the next step in eco-friendly living. Greening up a wardrobe can include buying products made from alternative fabrics, shopping at vintage and thrift stores, reusing worn out clothing as rags or for crafts and even taking better care of clothes so they last longer.
The UMKC School of Law helped shed some light on the politics of the judicial system last Friday at the "Red State v. Blue State: The Judicial Role in an Era of Partisanship" conference. The keynote speaker for the event was Suzanne Reynolds, professor at the Wake Forest School of Law and current Democratic candidate for the North Carolina Supreme Court.
With a passion for art and teaching, UMKC senior Karen Miazga won the Jack J. Isgur Foundation Scholarship for Education in the Humanities. With the emphasis of student education in math and science, the humanities in many cases are the first area of curriculum cut.
With a little humor, T. Boone Pickens brought his ideas about foreign oil dependence and making money to Kansas City last Monday, at the Marriot Muehlebach Tower. Presented by UMB and Rainy Day Books, the event featured a three course lunch followed by a speech from Pickens.
It was more than 'give a penny, take a penny' when Sigma Phi Epsilon had its philanthropy project for Children's Mercy Hospital last week. "We do this one week a year," explained fraternity member Matt Castilleja. "We go from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. everyday, then take the money to the Plaza on Friday nights.
The presidential race is not the only hotly contested race in Missouri. The race for governor, which pits Democrat Jay Nixon against Republican Kenny Hulshof, is not as close as the national race, but it is not decided either. According to the Rasmussen Reports, an electronic publishing firm that collects public opinion poll information, Nixon has a double digit lead over Hulshof.
Republican presidential nominee John McCain and vice president hopeful Sarah Palin visited Lee's Summit last Monday. The candidates spoke to a crowd of over 5,000 enthusiastic supporters at The Pavilion in John Knox Village. The speeches had many of the same ideas as those given at the Republican National Convention, as the candidates try to cement their message.
Ron Paul, the Republican candidate contender who garnered a large following during the primaries, urged the voters not to for McCain or Obama. He gathered third party presidential candidates for a press conference in Washington, D.C. last Wednesday. Besides Bob Barr, the candidate for the Libertarian Party, all of the major third party contenders were in attendance.
KC-Teach trains new teachers In response to underdeveloped science programs in urban schools, the National Science Foundation (NSF) donated $750,000 in scholarship funds to UMKC to help increase the number of quality teachers in Kansas City. The NSF, through its Robert Noyce Scholarship Program, allocated the money to UMKC's College of Arts and Sciences, School of Biological Sciences, School of Education and the Kansas City, Mo.
Sept. 5 5:34 a.m. Property Damage - A sink in the Bloch School overflowed into three offices. 11:27 a.m. Fraud - Victim had University ID stolen and it was used to purchase books on her account without permission. Sept. 6 10:07 a.m. Miscellaneous Investigation - Numerous cars at the Beta Fraternity House were covered in feces.
