Basic HTML Version
Campus Review
August 28, 2012
Page 8
Bass Receives Her Wagner Award; Bates Receives Best Paper Award
Clayton State a Major Presence at
Distance Learning Administration Conference
Mary Hudachek-Buswell Salutes Dr. Sally Ride
Clayton State University faculty and staff
played a major role in the recent Distance
Learning
Administration
(DLA)
Conference, held at Jekyll Island, Ga.,
wherein almost 200 representatives from
universities and colleges from throughout
the United States and Canada gathered.
The conference was focused on the best
practices in administration, technology
and teaching within the online environ-
ment.
The highlights of the conference for
Clayton State included Ginny Bass, direc-
tor of Degree Completion, receiving the
previously-announced DLA Outstanding
Instructional Support Award for 2012, and
Professor of Sociology Dr. Rodger Bates
receiving the Best Paper Award at the con-
ference for his article, “Distance Learning
for Special Populations.”
Bass’ award is one of three DLA Wagner
Awards to be presented to outstanding
individuals, to recognize them and/or the
groups that they represent, for their excel-
lence
in
Distance
Learning
Administration Innovation, Outstanding
Instructional Support, or Leadership.
In addition to being published in the
Conference Proceedings, Bates’ article
also was published in the June edition of
the Online Journal for Distance Learning
Administration. The paper summarized
research by Bates on offline distance
learning in a variety of environments,
including deployed military personnel,
prison populations, Native Americans and
athletes. This paper was partially devel-
oped through Bates’ previous experience
in providing ipod-based distance learning
opportunities for deployed USAF person-
nel in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Bates also recently published, “Dancing
with Wolves, Today’s Lone Wolf
Terrorists” in The Journal of Public and
Professional Sociology. This article
reviewed the growth and importance of
lone-wolf terrorists.
In addition, a typolo-
gy of single-actor,
self-radicalized ter-
rorists was devel-
oped.
The DLA Conference
also featured Clayton
State faculty mem-
bers Sherry Southard
(Legal Studies), Mara
Mooney
(Legal
Studies), and Dr.
Christie
Burton
(Bachelor of Applied
Science
program
coordinator) present-
ing, “Shifting from
Obligatory Discourse to Rich Dialogue:
Promoting Student Interaction in
Asynchronous Threaded Discussion
Postings” which was also published in the
Conference Proceedings.
In April 2010, Clayton State University
professors Mary Hudachek-Buswell and
Dr. Catherine Matos, both faculty mem-
bers in the College of Information and
Mathematical Sciences, were invited to
attend former astronaut Dr. Sally Ride's
Roundtable Discussion about Gender
Equality in Math and Science Education
at the Four Seasons Hotel in Atlanta. The
purpose of the meeting was a cause that
Ride, Hudachek-Buswell and Matos firm-
ly believed in -- the issue of motivating
young people, especially girls, to pursue
careers in the STEM (science, technology,
engineering and math) disciplines.
Thus, it was a very personal matter for
Hudachek-Buswell when, on July 23,
2012, an American icon; physicist, educa-
tor and astronaut Dr. Sally Ride, passed
away at the age of 61 after battling pan-
creatic cancer.
“Dr. Sally Ride was the first American
woman in space on June 18, 1983,”
recalls Hudachek-Buswell. “She was
more than a physicist, educator and astro-
naut. Dr. Ride was a powerful role model
for American women in STEM disci-
plines, inspiring generations of women to
reach for the stars. She broke through bar-
riers with grace and professionalism.
Catherine Matos (left), Sally Ride, Mary Hudachek-Buswell
Bates
Bass
Ride Farewell, cont’d., p. 11