Fall 2013 Newsletter

News and Annoucemnts

Outstanding Student Awards

Congratulations to the 2013 Outstanding Student Award recipients!

Kinta M. Serve, Fort Worth, Texas, Graduate School – Doctoral Recipient

Nancy L. Sherrill, Boulder, Colo., Graduate School – Masters Recipient

2013 Outstanding Researcher Awards

Congratulations to the following faculty on receiving the 2013 Outstanding Researcher Award:

Dr. Bruce Finney - Professor of Biological Sciences

Dr. Rex Force - Associate Dean for Clinical Research for the Idaho Center for Health Research

Dr. Thom Hasenpflug - Chair/Associate Professor, Percussion & Director, School of Performing Arts

Dr. Tim Magnuson - Associate Professor of Biological Sciences

Dr. Michael A. Thomas - Associate Professor of Biological Sciences

Message from the Dean

It is an honor to be entrusted with the leadership of graduate education at Idaho State University, one of the nation's Carnegie-classified doctoral research high and teaching institutions and a leading public university. Since its founding in 1901, ISU has seen many changes, weathered many storms, and emerged stronger. Together with graduate schools at all universities in the United States, ISU's Graduate School currently experiences a period of change unlike anything seen since graduate education emerged in this country a century ago. The present is an exciting time, but challenged by dramatically shifting demographics, the need to prepare graduate students for roles in new and emerging areas of practice, research and commerce, and the global marketplace from which we recruit our students. ISU's Graduate School is well positioned to meet these challenges through leadership and innovation, and a commitment to serve locally, nationally and globally.

New emerging opportunities for collaboration and exchanges nationally and internationally will benefit our students. As we optimize our graduate offerings and quality of service to our students and alumni, we will increase the desirability of an ISU graduate education to students inside and outside the United States. Already, 48 US states and 59 countries are represented in the student body on campus. But, there is room for further expansion in both quantity and quality of our incoming graduate student body.

We must recognize our need to improve and change processes, become more flexible, and respond to the rapidly changing environment around us by reassessing our existing programs and creating new ones in response to need. I am excited and optimistic about the University’s commitment to refocus and renew our success in graduate and professional education through its Core Themes of Learning and Discovery, Access and Opportunity, Leadership in Health Sciences, and Economic and Social Impact. The Core Themes resonate particularly well with the mission of graduate education. Optimized governance systems for graduate education at ISU will be created to allow for timely implementation of program improvement and changes, and new graduate school policies will support curricular flexibility and earlier opportunities for students to engage in research and scholarly activities. These improvements will ideally position the Graduate School to partner with our other Colleges to achieve Core Theme success and continuously improve graduate education at ISU. The administration of the Graduate School looks forward to work with all of our colleagues on campus to create an environment for graduate students from which they can emerge as independent critical thinkers with moral responsibility, and in which they will thrive, immerse, and accomplish educational excellence.

Our priority will be to improve every aspect of our graduate students’ educational experience. The transition from being an undergraduate student who typically absorbs knowledge to one who creates new knowledge at the graduate level is particularly challenging. This transition requires a delicate balance of individual mentoring and intellectual guidance on the one hand, and guidance toward intellectual independence on the other, directed by creativity and rigorous application of the scientific method.

In closing, it would be remiss of me not to give credit and thanks to our interim leadership of the Graduate School. Dr. Nicole Hill as interim Dean, and Dr. Alan Egger as interim Associate Dean did a yeoman's job in steering the Graduate School to new levels of excellence in a challenging environment.

I look forward to work with all constituents who value graduate education, I welcome your input and look forward with excitement to a continued dialogue in the years to come.

Thank you!

Neels Van der Schyf, D.Sc., DTE

Dean of the Graduate School

Professor of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences

Dates & Deadlines

August 15th: Graduate Student Orientation @ 10 am in Ballroom, SUB. RSVP at graddean@isu.edu

August 26th: Classes begin

September 10th: Last day to apply for December Graduation

Apply for Graduation HERE!

November 1st: Spring Deadline for Non-Resident Tuition Waiver

November 11th: Pre-Registration begins for Spring 2014

December 1st: Priority Graduate School Deadline for Spring Semester

December 6th: Last day for Oral Exams

December 20th: Final Program of Study due for May 2014 Graduation

Graduate Student Association

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Contact Information

Graduate School
Idaho State University
921 South 8th Ave, Stop 8075
Pocatello ID 83209-8075

Phone: 208-282-2150
Fax: 208-282-4847
Email: graddean@isu.edu

Created by: Ms. Anna Siddoway & Ms. Rhonda Woodruff