Prof. Salvest installs artwork at Memphis Brooks Museum
Professor John Salvest, Art, recently installed three works of art, "Consumo Ergo Sum," "Smoke Free (2004)," and "Seize the Day (2010)" at the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, 934 Poplar Avenue in Overton Park, Memphis. Salvest's exhibition is  on view through September 12. "Consumo Ergo Sum," a United States map created from plastic bottle caps, serves as visual commentary on consumerist society. Installed in the museum's first floor Kraft Gallery, the installation consists of thousands of plastic bottle caps that form a U.S. map measuring 4 inches by 168 inches by 96 inches. The title of the work, which translates as “I consume, therefore I am,” addresses both thetemporality of materialism and our nation’s obsession with mass consumption. "Consumo Ergo Sum" is flanked by two additional works by Salvest, "Smoke Free (2004)," an American flag created from cigarette butts, and "Seize the Day (2010)," a medicine cabinet filled with a mosaic of brightly-hued pain pills. Previous examples of Salvest’s work have been exhibited at the Brooks, including, most recently, a series of photographs that were included in a May 2010 exhibition of Tunisian mosaics. For details, call the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art at (901) 544-6200, visit the museum online, visit the Brooks blog online, or see the NewsPage release. 

Dr. Srivatsan, Dr. Badanavalu, publish internationally
Dr. Malathi Srivatsan, Molecular Biology, and Dr. Mahadevappa Prabhu Badanavalu, postdoctoral research associate in the department of Biological Sciences, have been studying the possible neurotoxicity of metal nanoparticles  in collaboration with Dr. Syed F. Ali of the National Center for Toxicology Research, and Dr. Richard C. Murdock and Dr. Saber M. Hussain of Wright-Patterson Air Force Research Laboratory. Their research paper, “Copper nanoparticles exert size and concentration dependent toxicity on somatosensory neurons of rat,” is published in the June issue of the international peer-reviewed journal, Nanotoxicology (Nanotoxicology, 4:150-160, 2010).

Facilities Management receives APPA award
Al Stoverink, assistant vice chancellor for Facilities Management, recently announced that Facilities Management has been awarded the APPA: Leadership in Educational Facilities Award for Excellence, the premier award for facilities management. Originally the Association of Physical Plant Administrators, APPA adopted its new name to reflect the increased higher education-based campus responsibilities of its members, some 5,200 individuals in approximately 1,500 institutions of higher education.The APPA Award for Excellence is designed to recognize and advance excellence in the field of educational facilities. Originally established in 1988, the Award for Excellence is APPA's highest institutional honor and provides educational institutions the opportunity for national and international recognition for their outstanding achievements in facilities management. The award is designed to highlight the essential role of facilities operations in the overall institutional mission and vision. Award for Excellence nominations are evaluated using the same criteria applied through the Facilities Management Evaluation Program (FMEP) in the areas of leadership, strategic and operational planning, customer focus, information and analysis, development and management of human resources, process management, and performance results. Nominated institutions also submit to a site review conducted by an awards evaluation team. The Award for Excellence designation is valid for a period of five years. Arkansas State began work on this continuous improvement effort in 2003. The site visit was conducted in March of this year, representing the final step of the seven-year process. Site reviewers were highly complementary of ASU, and granted the institution the Award for Excellence. Only 42 of APPA's 1,500 member institutions have received this award throughout the 22 years of the award's existence. This year, only ASU and the University of Nevada Las Vegas received this coveted award. Facilities Management will host a luncheon on Monday, July 26, at 11:30 a.m. in Centennial Hall to recognize the entire division for this prestigious achievement.

Distinguished Alumni for 2010 announced by Alumni Assn.
The ASU  Alumni Association will honor three outstanding individuals in its 27^th year of recognizing distinguished alumni. The Distinguished Alumni presentation ceremony will be held at halftime of the Homecoming football game on Saturday, Oct. 2. Since 1984, the ASU Alumni Association’s board of directors annually selects Distinguished Alumni award recipients from nominations submitted by the public. Selection of nominees is based on community service, professional achievement and service to ASU. This year’s honorees are: Maj. Gen. (ret.) George Barker, who has had a notable career in the military and humanitarian causes; Dr. Joel Gambill, long-time chair of the ASU Department of Journalism, and Prof. Julia Lansford, music professor and "voice of ASU" for four decades. For details and photographs, see the NewsPage release.

ASU alumnus named journalism educator of the year
Tommy Mumert, assistant professor of journalism at Arkansas Tech University, was named Arkansas journalism educator of the year by the Arkansas Press Association on June 25. Prior to joining the Tech faculty, Mumert spent 10 years in the newspaper business. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree and a Master of Artsdegree from Arkansas State University. Mumert received his award during a tri-state convention presented by the press associations of Arkansas, Mississippi and Tennessee at Harrah's Veranda Hotel and Mid-South Convention Center near Tunica, Miss. A member of the Arkansas Tech faculty since 1989, Mumert teaches courses in news writing, editorial, column and review writing, basic photography and news photography. He is also the advisor for the Arka Tech newspaper staff and for the Society of Professional Journalists chapter at Arkansas Tech. In addition to his teaching and advising duties, Mumert served as director of the news bureau at Arkansas Tech from 1989-2007. He assumed full-time teaching duties in the Arkansas Tech Department of Speech, Theatre and Journalism in 2007. Mary Fisher of the Yell County Record newspaper in Danville presented Mumert with his award. Fisher is a member of the Arkansas Press Association Board of Directors.

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