September 24, 2001

Columbus State University is hosting several programs of public interest during the next week , including a forum on understanding terrorism Tuesday , a seminar on school bullying Friday , a lecture on the possibility of life or water in outer space and a lecture by Argentine novelist Guillermo Martinez - both on Monday, Oct. 1. A complete list events includes:

CSU Faculty To Participate In Forum To Help Understand Terrorism

An 'Understanding Terrorism' faculty forum at Columbus State will be held Tuesday in the Davidson Student Center auditorium from 12:30 until 1:30 pm. Sponsored by CSU's chapter of Phi Kappa Phi, National Honor Society, the forum is open to the public and will include several distinguished CSU faculty members. For more information, contact Terry Norris at 568-2320. He is professor and chair of criminal justice, director of judicial affairs and president of CSU' s Pi Kappa Phi.

Synovus CEO Kicks Off Annual Fund Campaign Sept. 25

Also on Tuesday, a 12:30 p.m. luncheon will be held in the Elizabeth Bradley Turner Center to kick off CSU's annual fund campaign, which has a goal this year of $1.15 million. This year's effort is spearheaded by Reaves Wrecking President Bill Reeves. Jim Buntin, senior vice president with Synovus, is the chair-elect this year and will lead next year's campaign, starting July 1, 2002. The pair has a record of success to build upon since the fund has increased 168 percent to $1,101,197 from its original campaign 1992-93.

To gear up for this year's fund-raising drive, the campaign leaders and hundreds of CSU volunteers will gather at for a kick-off luncheon to feature keynote speaker Jim Blanchard, chairman of the board and CEO at Synovus Financial Corp. Blanchard will focus on the economic, cultural and environmental impact CSU has on Columbus and the region. Scholarship students who detailed the educational opportunities they have experienced through contributions to the Annual Fund will reinforce Blanchard's message of CSU's importance to the community. For more information, contact Annual Fund Director Meri Robinson at 568-5172

Press Conference Scheduled Wednesday to Announce Festival Of Holidays

A press conference will be held at in the Rankin Gardens on Wednesday to announce a new holiday event in Uptown Columbus. Columbus State University is coordinating with an extensive list of local organizations this holiday season to host a weekend-long international festival called the Festival of Holidays.

Local Teachers, Counselors Targeted for Seminar on Bullying Sept. 28

A recent study indicates that 80 percent of children have experienced bullying in school from other students, and 15 percent of those children may be severely depressed. Furthermore, those who perpetrate the bullying are six times more likely to be convicted of a crime by the age of 24. These facts are central to Esther Williams' seminar 'Do Something About That Bullying or Else,' 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Friday at the Elizabeth Bradley Turner Center for Continuing and Regional Education Services. The program is designed for local teachers, school counselors and professional counselors.

Williams, a retired public school teacher of 25 years, is noted for a highly motivating approach in delivering professional seminars nationwide the past nine years. With degrees from Auburn University, she is also the founding director of Positive Paths, a professional counselling practice.

Her Sept. 28 seminar at CSU is the second in a three-part series to conclude Oct. 12 with a program on how to counsel a grieving child. For information, or to reach Williams, contact Candyss Westernhouser at 569-3062.

Virginia Tech Geochemist Explores Extraterrestrial Possibilities

Robert Bodnar, a distinguished lecturer for the Mineralogical Society of America, will deliver a public lecture 'Water in the Solar System and its Effect on our Search for Extraterrestrial Life,' 6:30 p.m. Monday, in the Omnisphere Theater at CSU's Coca-Cola Space Science Center.

Bodnar, a professor at Virginia Polytehnic and State University, is addressing this topic on an 11-campus tour which begins with the Oct. 1 Columbus date, includes Vanderbilt University and continues northward along the east coast. A final, European leg in April will include the University of Naples and the University of Geneva . For more information, contact CSU Geology Professor Tom Hanley at 568-2074 or visit Bodnar's Web site at www.geol.vt.edu/profs/rjb/rjb.html.

'Readings From a Vast Hell' Title of Oct. 1 Lecture by Argentine Author

Guillermo Martinez is a visiting scholar at CSU this fall as the Elena Diaz-Verson Amos Eminent Scholar in Latin American Studies. He will give a public lecture titled 'Readings from Vast Hell,' 7 p.m. Monday in the Elizabeth Bradley Turner Center Auditorium. Though a mathematics professor at the University of Buenos Aires, he has published several novels. He received the 1982 Argentine National Short Story Award. 'He is regarded as one of the most interesting authors of his generation,' said CSU Spanish Language Professor Alyce Cook. He has performed doctoral work in mathematics at Oxford University and has a related novel, 'The Oxford Series' in the works. For more information, contact CSU's Center for International Education Director Neal McCrillis at 565-4036.

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