At the end of January, Western will say goodbye to its dean of the Western Institute, Christopher Shove.

Shove will be resigning, as he has been given the great opportunity to serve as vice provost of Alfaisal University, a brand new school of research located in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Dr. Shove said he was contacted by a national search firm, and he gladly accepted the offer, as it was his previous boss who offered him the position.

     “It’s an exciting opportunity for me,” Shove said.

Shove will have the chance to play a part in the modernization of higher education in Saudi Arabia.

   “The university is an American-style university on purpose,” Shove said.

     Shove’s absence will mean that Joseph Bragin, provost and vice president for academic and student affairs, will be filling in for him in the meantime.

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Western’s vice president for financial planning and administration, Ron Olinger, announced on January 16 that he would resign his position effective March 1 to assume duties of chief financial officer at Benedictine College.

     Olinger has been at Western since July 2002, and has served the institution through rather difficult financial situations. Of all the changes he has seen during his time at Western, he considers two to be the most important. He said, “The name change was a great opportunity for Western, as was the change to the Banner system. When I came, we had a number of individual programs that didn’t interact with each other. Now, everyone can access a lot more information, and everyone is starting to see the benefits and the efficiency of the Banner system.”

     Olinger’s interim replacement, likely an on-campus appointment, will be announced around February 1, with a national search for a permanent replacement commencing soon after. The permanent new position will likely be named in July, giving new president Robert Vartabedian input on the decision.

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In hopes of improving the safety of Western, the Board of Governors approved the purchase and installation of an emergency safety plan estimated to cost $203,010. Ron Olinger, vice president for financial planning and administration, and Mark Mabe, the director of Information Technology presented information regarding the emergency safety standards of neighboring schools to the Board at the meeting on Jan. 4. The plan is comprised of four parts: A text message alert system, an indoor beacon system, an outdoor public address system and a Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) system.

Ten out of ten regional universities and several private schools presently rely on a text message alert system that informs faculty of the type of emergency and of its location. The projected cost of installing this safety feature is $6,900.

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The search for an associate dean of Student Development seems to be reaching an end as Western brings three candidates to campus.The associate dean will report to the dean of Student Affairs, oversee Recreation Services, the Center for Student Engagement, the Student Union and the Fitness Center.This person will also develop leadership programming for students and will be responsible for student behavior issues including judicial processing. (Full story)

(Along with Jesse West)

Imagine yourself walking into one of the science labs in Agenstein Hall.  It looks like something from That ’70s Show.  It’s cluttered, it’s old and many science students and faculty agree that it’s inadequate for their modern needs.  Long-awaited renovations and additions should bring the space and technology needed for today’s students.

     Renderings of the addition to Agenstein hall will be presented to the Board of Governor’s at the meeting Feb. 28.  Starting next summer, Missouri Western plans to tackle the biggest capital project in its history: a complete renovation of Agenstein Hall and construction of an addition to the building called Remington Hall, after Wes and Patsy Remington, who generously contributed $5 million to the university in October 2007.

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A program entitled “A Day On, Not A Day Off” was presented by Western’s Center for Multicultural Education in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day on January 21.

In observation of the holiday, most schools and businesses are closed. However, CME had a day that talked about many people that were a part of the Civil Rights Movement. Some of the key events that went on throughout the day informed the students and the St. Joseph community about the key figures in black history.

Sophomore Emily Feger is the one of the brilliant brains behind this program. Feger coordinated and came up with ideas for how the MLK day should be coordinated. With the help of CME Director Tay Triggs and Student Development Program Coordinator Sandy Rogers, Feger put together a museum of famous black inventors, athletes and civil rights leaders.

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After his Uncle Ben was killed by a desperate criminal that Peter Parker could have previously stopped by using his newfound spider powers, he came up with a mantra to guide his life. With great power comes great responsibility. That lesson blazed its words into the American comic book scene in 1962. Since then they have led Spiderman through more comic book series that you can shoot a web at and three hugely grossing movies. With power comes great responsibility. This has proven itself a universal truth.

Flip the sentence around and the truth still stands. Perhaps more truly considering this weeks coming elections.

With great responsibility comes great power.

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