April 24, 2009

Appointments, honors and activities

— Tom Robertson has been appointed interim director of the Conference Division at Purdue University. Robertson, who has served in the Conference Division since 1983, previously served as assistant director of conferences and most recently as a senior conference coordinator. The Purdue Conference Division is one of the five largest collegiate conference divisions in the United States. It coordinates more than 700 events that are attended by approximately 80,000 participants each year.

— Charles Michler, an adjunct professor in the Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, has been named the Fred M. van Eck Director of Purdue's Hardwood Tree Improvement and Regeneration Center. As director, Michler leads the center's strategic planning for hardwood research and its staff of more than 50. Michler also serves as site director of the National Science Foundation Industry University Cooperative Research Center's Center for Advanced Forestry Systems, a partnership that includes Purdue, Oregon State University, North Carolina State University and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. Michler joined the Purdue faculty in 1999.

• Campus activities

— Two exhibits in the Patti and Rusty Rueff Galleries at Purdue focus on works by seniors in the Department of Visual and Performing Arts. The first, "Look," is an exhibit by fine arts seniors. A reception for this exhibit will take place from 5-7:30 p.m. May 1. The exhibit is open through May 1. The second is "Overdeveloped & Underexposed," an exhibit by seniors in the photography program. A reception for this exhibit, which will be on display April 27 to May 8, will take place from 1-3 p.m. May 15. The galleries, in the Yue-Kong Pao Hall of Visual and Performing Arts, are open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Gallery exhibits are free and open to the public.

• Faculty and staff honors

— "The Great Plains During World War II," by history professor R. Douglas Hurt, has been named a Choice Outstanding Academic Title for 2008. Choice: Current Reviews for Academic Libraries is considered one of the premier sources for reviews of academic books, electronic media and Internet resources of interest to those in higher education. Hurt also is the head of the Department of History.

• Student honors

—Eight Purdue University students traveled to the All-East Intercollegiate Livestock Contest, held at The Ohio State University April 16-18, and took home high team honors and first place at the overall competition. Team members include Ian Brooke from Albany, Ind.; Rob Defreese from West Point, Ind; Nicole Fitzsimmons from Columbus, Ind.; Chris Grimm from Wawaka, Ind.; Katherine Kuykendall from Richland Center, Wis.; Kyle Lehman from Napanee, Ind.; Katie Linhart from Louisville, Ky.; and Ryan Linn from Camden, Ind. The team was coached by Matt Claeys and Kyle Culp. For more information, contact Claeys at 765-494-4834 or mclaeys@purdue.edu

Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu

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