RAMSAY TO TALK ON GLOBAL LEARNING
Violeta Ramsay, Linfield College professor of Spanish, will present “Culture and the Global World: Educating the Citizen of the 21st Century” Wednesday, Sept. 17, at 7 p.m. in 201 Riley Hall.
Ramsay will discuss her research on learning and teaching culture and global awareness. She will also describe how this research is important to the curriculum and quality of programs abroad, the preparation of students going abroad, the achievements of language majors, the cultural components of college courses and more.
“Global awareness has become a critical focus of academic programs and the mission of higher education institutions,” Ramsay said. “We know that the 21st Century world requires individuals with skills that enable them to deal with cultural difference.”
Ramsay’s research shows that the globalized world requires individuals who are able to not only work with people of different cultural backgrounds, but who can confront difference or diversity in any context to make ethical and informed decisions when cultural aspects are at stake. Recent research in the field of language acquisition connects to the acquisition of cultural proficiency.
“Research indicates that humans acquire the ability to deal with difference — ethnic or any other type — in developmental stages; each higher or more developed stage offers broader skills in dealing with difference,” Ramsay added. “Individuals react to difference according to the stage they have reached, and this has broad ramifications for the world of the 21st Century.”
Her lecture will describe the cultural aptitudes that each of those stages allow, as well as some of those ramifications.
A native of Mexico, Ramsay has been part of the Linfield faculty since 1990 and specializes in theoretical linguistics. Her main research interests include second language acquisition and the development of cultural competency. In addition, Ramsay has published research related to the evaluation of study abroad programs and the development of language acquisition stages. She is co-director of Linfield’s Language in Motion (LiM) program, which promotes language and culture in McMinnville schools. Ramsay also leads study abroad programs to Oaxaca, Mexico.
The lecture is free and open to the public. The Linfield College faculty lecture series offers one presentation each month by a member of the Linfield faculty. For more information, call 503-883-2409.
SHORT PLAYS PRESENTED AT THEATRE
Linfield College theatre students will kick off the fall season with an assortment of short plays.
“The Blonde and Other Slight Distractions” is a collection of six short plays written by David L. Paterson and directed by three senior theatre majors. The production will run Sept. 18-20 at 7:30 p.m., with a fourth show on Friday, Sept. 19, at 10 p.m. in the Marshall Theatre in Ford Hall.
“The Blonde and Other Slight Distractions” includes six acts featuring humorous and thought-provoking characters. The short plays by Paterson tell the stories of a kidnapping gone awry, two distant brothers trying to reconnect, a pair of lovers facing a daunting family holiday, a stockholder trying to charm his way into heaven, a friend forced to bury a friend and siblings seeking an amicable divorce.
Three senior theatre majors will direct the production as part of the Theatre Department’s fall icebreaker. “Closure” and “One Last Time” will be directed by Daniel Bradley; Nicholas Granato will direct “Thanksgetting” and “The Gate;” and Mariko Kajita will direct “The Blonde” and “Final Approach.”
Cast members include freshmen Benjamin Bartu from Berkeley, Ca., Marcos Galvez from Mount Hood Parkdale and Emma Coleman from Twin Falls, Idaho; sophomores Alyssa Lawrence from Dorchester Center, Mass., Samantha West from Boise, Idaho, Parker Wells from Clackamas and Robert Murphy Jackson from Mount Hood Parkdale; juniors Mic Cooney from Beaverton, Lukasz Augustine from San Diego, Calif., Logan Mays from Rocklin, Calif. and Travis McKenna from Elko, Nev.; and seniors Mackensie Sempert from Rhododendron and Cody Meadows from Anchorage, Alaska.
Tickets are $5 and seating is reserved. Tickets are available at http://www.linfield.edu/arts, by phone or at the Marshall Theatre Box Office. Located in the lobby of Ford Hall, the box office is open Monday through Wednesday 3-5 p.m.; Thursday and Saturday 3-7:30 p.m.; and Friday 3-10 p.m. The Marshall Theatre is fully accessible. This production is produced by special arrangement with Samuel French, Inc. For more information, call ext. 2292.
PSYCHOLOGIST TO GIVE LECTURE
Colin DeYoung, associate professor of psychology at the University of Minnesota, will present “Causes and Consequences of Cognitive Exploration: How Openness to Experience and Intellect Help Explain Human Personality” on Monday, Sept. 22, at 6:30 p.m. in the Richard and Lucille Ice Auditorium in Melrose Hall at Linfield.
DeYoung will discuss his research on understanding openness and intellect in order to understand human personalities. One of the most striking characteristics of human beings as a species is the complexity of our cognitive processes and representations of experience. No other species produces fiction, philosophy, representational art or mathematics. Among people, however, there is much variation in the degree to which people engage in these kinds of cognitive exploration. Controversy has lingered over whether to label these individual differences as openness to experience or intellect, but research indicates that these two labels, in fact, describe two different components of one broader trait.
In this presentation, DeYoung will describe what openness and intellect share and how they differ. DeYoung will explain what we know about the sources of these traits, including how they are generated by the brain and influenced by both genetics and experience, as well as what we know about the impact these important traits have on our lives.
DeYoung’s research focuses broadly on the structure and sources of personality, attempting to discover the relations among different personality traits and the neurobiological systems that influence them. His long-term goal is to map personality traits onto their sources in the ongoing functions of the brain, using neuroscience techniques including neuroimaging and molecular genetics. He has an A.B. from Harvard University and master’s and Ph.D. from the University of Toronto.
This lecture is sponsored by the Department of Psychology, the Office of Academic Affairs and PLACE, the Program for Liberal Arts and Civic Engagement. For more information, contact Yanna Weisberg, assistant professor of psychology, ext. 2724, yweisber@linfield.edu.
LINFIELD ACADEMICS, VALUE PRAISED
Accolades continue to come in for Linfield College, this time from U.S. News & World Report, Washington Monthly and USA Today. The rankings continue to note Linfield’s high quality academics and value.
Linfield College was ranked 124 among national liberal arts colleges in the 2014 U.S. News & World Report’s rankings of best colleges. The annual report contains rankings and information for nearly 1,800 colleges and universities. The rankings considered a broad group of statistics and other information, including graduation rates, SAT and ACT scores, alumni giving rates and high school counselor assessments.
Linfield was also ranked as one of the top 100 liberal arts colleges in the nation by Washington Monthly. In addition, Washington Monthly ranked Linfield at 35 for “Best Bang for the Buck” among liberal arts colleges in the nation. The second ranking looks at graduation rates, student loan default rate and net price among other factors.
Finally, USA Today and The Wall Street Journal Asia have partnered with College Factual to release their 2015 college rankings. Linfield College was ranked 249 out of 1,394 schools on the “Best Nationwide Colleges” list and 154 out of 1,223 on the “Best Nationwide Colleges for Your Money.” Linfield was specifically ranked 4 out of the 19 colleges and universities in Oregon.
CAMPUS CALENDAR
TUESDAY, SEPT. 16
11 a.m.-4 p.m.: Farmer’s Market, Dillin
2 p.m.: Men’s soccer vs. Cal Lutheran
WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 17
Noon: German language table, Dillin
7 p.m.: Violeta Ramsay, “Culture and the Global World: Educating the Citizen of the 21st Century,” 201 Riley
7 p.m.: Volleyball at Willamette
THURSDAY, SEPT. 18
7:30 p.m.: “The Blonde and Other Slight Distractions,” Marshall Theatre
FRIDAY, SEPT. 19
7:30 p.m.: “The Blonde and Other Slight Distractions,” Marshall Theatre
10 p.m.: “The Blonde and Other Slight Distractions,” Marshall Theatre
SATURDAY, SEPT. 20
Today and tomorrow: Men’s and women’s golf at Pacific Invitational
9 a.m.: Cross country at Sundodger Invitational
Noon: Women’s soccer at Puget Sound
2:30 p.m.: Men’s soccer at Whitworth
7 p.m.: Football at Redlands
7 p.m.: Volleyball at George Fox
7:30 p.m.: “The Blonde and Other Slight Distractions,” Marshall Theatre
SUNDAY, SEPT. 21
Noon: Women’s soccer at George Fox
2:30 p.m.: Men’s soccer at Whitman
