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WSU Spokane Campus Bulletin
Issue 2007-06 (June 20, 2007)
 

IN THIS ISSUE

HOPE School Brings Promise to Kids with Hearing Loss
 

While a half dozen chicks run around in a large round tub, three painted lady butterflies wait to be released from their glass home by their four-and-five-year-old human friends. It’s a typical Wednesday afternoon at the HOPE school, where preschool age children with varying degrees of hearing loss enjoy opportunities they might not otherwise have.

Graduate student Nicole Eller works with Ethan Flynn
on his "th" sounds.

(Photo by Judith Van Dongen)

HOPE stands for Hearing Oral Program of Excellence. It all started a few years ago with the vision of a group of local audiologists, speech-language pathologists, teachers of the deaf, and parents of hearing-impaired children, along with two physicians specializing in cochlear implant surgery.

Recognizing a need for a Spokane area preschool that helps kids optimize their listening, learning, and speaking skills, rather than teach them sign language, the group formed a board that would turn that concept into reality. They reached their goal in 2004, when the HOPE school opened in a dedicated classroom facility in the Health Sciences Building, on the Riverpoint Campus.

Supported by faculty and students from WSU’s Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences and EWU’s Department of Communication Disorders, the HOPE school serves children ages 18 months through five years in a welcoming environment in which learning and play are intertwined. On Monday through Thursday mornings, the school hosts the early preschool group with children ages 3 or 4, followed by 4 and 5-year olds in the afternoon. A recently added Friday morning toddler group is open to eighteen-month to two-year olds and their parents.

In addition to regular preschool activities such as free play and circle time, the young students spend 30 minutes each day participating in speech centers, play-based speech therapy sessions led by graduate students. The graduate students, who are in fierce competition for this popular in-house clinic, may also conduct home visits to do supplementary work with the kids.

From left to right: JoBeth Deibel and students Ethan, Caitlin, and Chaylean wave goodbye to two butterflies they have just released.

(Photo by Judith Van Dongen)

Additional language-building opportunities are created through a monthly changing theme that inspires class activities and the use of experiences, including field trips and the hatching of small animals—chicks, butterflies, hermit crabs. The school also strives for each group to include a hearing model, a child with no hearing loss that has outstanding speech and language skills, and stresses parent involvement as a key factor in the students’ success.

Over the past three years, the program has steadily expanded its programs and number of students. However, the best measure of success is the seamless transfer of the program’s graduates into the public school system.

“Our goal from the beginning was that when kids leave here at the age of five or five and a half they can enter into the school system and be on par with, or even above, where the other kids are,” says JoBeth Deibel, the school’s educational director.

Proudly, she adds that that goal has been reached for the school’s first two graduates. This fall, Chaylean and Eli will enter a regular kindergarten class, without a need for further speech services or special attention.

That afternoon, four children look on in awe as two butterflies fly into freedom. Soon, they too will spread their wings and fly away, as they begin their journey to a future filled with promise.

For more information about the HOPE School, call 509-368-6899 or e-mail hopeschool@wsu.edu.

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Research Shows Individual Differences in Sleep Structure
Are Biologically Determined
 

Researchers have long observed significant differences in normal people’s sleep. Some are light sleepers, whereas others sleep deeply. Some fall asleep right away, while others take their time.

Such sleeping pattern variability has long been attributed solely to differences in circumstances, habits, and other non-biological factors. But now a study led by Hans Van Dongen, associate research professor and assistant director of the Sleep and Performance Research Center at Washington State University Spokane, has shown that these individual differences constitute traits—that is, they are in large part biologically determined and may even prove to be genetic in origin.

“This is the first study to reveal that substantial differences in sleep patterns exist even among healthy adults who are good sleepers,” said Van Dongen, who emphasized that normal sleep covers a wide terrain and that many different sleep patterns qualify as good sleep. “How much sleep people need and what the structure of their sleep looks like depends in large measure on their biology.”

The results of the NIH-funded research study were published in the June 2007 issue of the “Journal of Sleep Research,” with WSU graduate student Adrienne Tucker as the lead author. The study, which was conducted in large part at the University of Pennsylvania and was recently continued at Washington State University, assessed the presence and magnitude of biologically determined individual differences in the structure of sleep for a group of 21 carefully screened healthy young adults, and compared these individual differences to the effect of prior sleep deprivation on the structure of their sleep.

 

Building in Bali—Spokane Student to Design Culturally Responsive
Tourism Facility
 

This fall, when the days grow shorter and colder and the leaves change colors, landscape architecture student Josh Bernsen will be wrapped up in a vision of palm trees, rice fields, and Hindu temples.

Josh Bernsen tours the area with the leader
 of the local subak.

(Photo by Kevin Thompson)

Last month, the California native was one of only five students to participate in a study abroad program in Bali, Indonesia, led by Pullman faculty member Kevin Thompson. While his peers used the three-week trip for a course project that involved the use of film studies to examine the cultural landscape of Bali, Bernsen had a different agenda. For him, the trip marked the kick-off of his senior project, which will keep him busy for the next six months.

Bernsen’s project revolves around the Jatiluwih rice field terraces, a site that has been proposed for inscription into UNESCO’s World Heritage list. The Jatiluwih fields explain the significance of rice, which is the main food component on Bali and is considered by the Balinese people to be a gift of the gods.

The fields are run through a subak, a thousand year-old “irrigation council” that manages the religious, social, and agrarian traditions of a village. Temples are an integral part of the water distribution network, and each agricultural task is part of a religious celebration and is performed with the assistance of a priest. Rituals are calendared to stagger the supply of water throughout the growing period, making the subak methods a remarkably sustainable system of agriculture.

Bernsen will be designing a tourism facility for the small village of Pakraman Gunung Sari that combines comfortable accommodations with opportunities to learn about subak traditions. He stressed that most tourists who currently visit the village do so as part of day trips from other areas with better lodging facilities. As a result, visitors don’t spend enough time in the area to gain a thorough understanding of its cultural heritage.

The Jatiluwih rice field terraces.

(Photo by Josh Bernsen)

“There are only two hotels currently in this area, and neither of them really accommodates for different types of tourists and tourist activities,” Bernsen said. “What I’m trying to do is find the best location to accommodate tourists for overnight stay, without encroaching on the rice fields or disrupting local traditions.”

During his stay, he spent countless hours touring the rice fields and the village; watching the villagers farming; and conducting interviews with the subak leader and other locals.

His experiences in Bali have left Bernsen with a multitude of impressions and ideas. He is determined to have his design follow the traditional way of building—Balinese houses are like compounds in that they consist of multiple buildings, rather than a single building with multiple rooms. Currently, he is in the process of inventorying and analyzing his data with the assistance of Kerry Brooks, associate professor of landscape architecture and director of the GIS and simulation lab. He hopes to finish his conceptual design by the end of the summer, with the final presentation planned for December.

Bernsen's ultimate goal is to present his design to the people involved with the proposal to inscribe Jatiluwih in the World Heritage list. Whether or not it will end up being implemented, the project will be a valuable lesson in cultural landscaping that he hopes will help him open doors to a fulfilling—and perhaps even international—career in that field.

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Gardner to Assume Vice Presidency at WSU on July 1
  

John C. Gardner, vice president for research and economic development for the University of Missouri system, will become the vice president for economic development and extension for Washington State University on July 1.

In making the announcement, WSU President Elson S. Floyd praised Gardner’s long and distinguished career in economic development, agriculture and research and said he is the right person to coordinate the university’s efforts in helping build the state’s economy.

“Economic development is a vital part of what we do for our state and region. To be as effective as possible, I think it is important for us to coordinate our efforts under unified leadership,” said Floyd.

Floyd said the new vice president would be based in Seattle, which he referred to as the “hub of economic activity and growth in the state.” Gardner will also work closely with colleagues in Pullman and at each of the university’s campuses, as well as in research centers and extension offices around Washington, Floyd said....

 

Spokane Regional Site Selector Launches
 

A June 13 celebration on the Riverpoint Campus marked the official launch of www.selectspokane.com, a Web site designed to attract and expand businesses and jobs in the greater Spokane region.

The site is the brain child of the Spokane Regional Site Selector Consortium, an open group of public and private organizations committed to the creation and ongoing maintenance of this exceptional resource. The consortium is staffed and managed by faculty and students from WSU Spokane’s Interdisciplinary Design Institute.

The Spokane Regional Site Selector Web site consolidates demographic information with data on real estate sites and regional businesses, making it a one-stop-shop for site selectors, corporate real estate executives, and businesses interested in expansion in the region. The site design uses powerful, GIS (Geographic Information Systems) technology that enables visitors to rapidly tailor maps and reports to suit their needs and access data that would normally take days or even weeks to collect.
 

Attendees of the launch event try the new site, as the champagne waits to be uncorked.

(Photos by Judith Van Dongen)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 




Data that can be viewed through the site includes available properties, along with size, use, cost, development incentives, and contact information; and corresponding demographic reports on the labor force, education levels, consumer spending, and age distribution in the area surrounding each property. In addition, businesses are mapped by industry showing their distribution and concentrations throughout the area.

“As Spokane’s research university, WSU contributes to the region’s economic development in a variety of ways,” said Brian Pitcher, WSU Spokane’s chancellor. “Design Institute faculty and students work on community-based ideas to address design challenges and create knowledge relevant to everyday life. The sets of data represented in the Site Selector bring together those two priorities to make a significant contribution.”

In launching the site, the consortium recognizes the critical importance of providing quality online property and site selection information. More than ninety percent of the initial site selection screening is now done using the Internet.

The Web site has also strengthened the partnership between the consortium members—which currently include the Cities of Spokane, Spokane Valley, and Liberty Lake; Spokane County; Greater Spokane Incorporated; and Avista Utilities—and commercial real estate professionals. Consortium members have been working with the local real estate community for access to the Web site and training of their staff. Brokers will have the opportunity to add sites and make changes to existing listings on a real-time basis.

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HEC Board Approves New Nursing PhD Program for WSU
 

The Washington Higher Education Coordinating Board has approved a new Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing (PhD) program for the Washington State University College of Nursing.

Research opportunities for graduate nursing
students include working with associate professor
Jackie Banasik (back). Banasik is studying the
effect of weight loss on inflammatory mediators
and insulin resistance in overweight subjects who
have a family history of type-2 diabetes.

The Ph.D. in Nursing program was initiated by the college and university in response to a significantly increased employer, student and community demand for nursing education. An HECB State and Regional Needs Assessment had identified a substantial gap between the supply of prepared graduates in the healthcare industry and projected employer demand. Nearly one-half of the demand for additional workers within health care fields is in nursing.

To further measure demand, Web-based surveys were conducted with deans of schools of nursing (with and without doctoral programs) and students (enrolled students and alumni). Survey respondents strongly recommended the program; the deans also cited a growing need for faculty with doctorates, and said they would encourage their faculty to enroll in such a program.

“Nursing schools nationwide are turning away qualified applicants because they do not have the capacity to meet demand, in large part, due to a shortage of qualified faculty,” said Anne Hirsch, interim dean at the college, who was instrumental in bringing the program to fruition. “We are confident that our new Ph.D. program will attract nurses who aspire to teach, which will allow us to provide the educational programs needed to supply more professional nurses.”

The new program will benefit from existing research strengths at WSU’s Intercollegiate College of Nursing, which currently offers a Master of Nursing and Bachelor of Science in Nursing. The four- to five-year program will enroll nine students in summer 2007 and grow to a total of 46 students at full enrollment in its fourth year.

The program will be taught at residence sessions in Spokane and Vancouver and by interactive video and Web-based conferencing. On-site supervision of dissertation research will be conducted. The program, directed by Professor and Interim Associate Dean of Graduate Programs Ruth Bindler, will focus primarily on preparing graduates for academic teaching and research positions. However, the program also will provide some flexibility to respond to the needs of students whose interests lie in other areas such as health policy, health care outcomes, clinical research and administration. ...

 

Janet Frost to Join WSU Spokane Education Programs
 

Washington State University Spokane recently hired Janet Frost as assistant professor in math education. She will be joining the WSU faculty on the Riverpoint Campus this July.

As one of the new faculty members in the College of Education, Frost will be responsible for teaching math methods in the Master in Teaching program and will be involved in the recently announced Math-Science Partnership Initiative.

“My goals are to work closely with teacher education students and the Spokane educational community to help support utilization of the most effective instructional approaches in mathematics at all grade levels.” said Frost. “Additionally, I will promote equitable educational experiences across all subject areas.”

Frost comes to WSU from the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR), where she completed her PhD in Educational Specialties with a focus on inclusive pedagogy for diverse learners in mathematics education. She leaves UNR with a legacy of academic achievement, outstanding leadership, and exceptional community service, for which she was awarded a Regent Scholar Award.

Frost will continue to strive for diversity and equity in mathematics education by working on issues related to gender, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, and socioeconomic status. She plans to work collaboratively with area teachers, educational leaders, and community organizations to address these issues.

“We are extremely fortunate to add such a capable math educator to our faculty," said Joan Kingrey, academic director of education programs. "Janet’s research interests align with the work we are doing to improve math education and prepare math educators. She will be an excellent addition to the College of Education.”

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Ron Dalla Named Executive Dean for EWU at Riverpoint


Eastern Washington University president Rodolfo Arévalo announced Monday that Interim Provost Ron Dalla will serve as interim executive dean of EWU programs at the Riverpoint campus effective July 1, 2007.

Dalla will assume responsibility for the administrative leadership and day-to-day operations of EWU programs on the campus. He will provide oversight for academic programs, student services, and campus growth initiatives, as well as be involved in public relations and marketing efforts.

"Dr. Dalla will represent and promote the interests of Eastern on the Riverpoint campus, in cooperation with my office,” said President Arévalo. “He will work with the greater Spokane community to foster partnerships, and make connections and sustain relationships with other colleges and universities in the Spokane area."

WSU Spokane Chancellor Brian Pitcher said, "I am pleased to welcome the appointment of Dr. Ron Dalla as interim executive dean of the EWU Riverpoint Campus. Dr. Dalla's experience and skills and his commitment for EWU and WSU to work collaboratively will benefit the campus and community."

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WSU Will Aid Transition for People’s Clinic Patients
 

Washington State University President Elson S. Floyd has announced that the university will provide bridge funding to ensure continued health care for People’s Clinic patients as they make the transition to other health care options.

Closure of the clinic was announced this week after WSU’s Intercollegiate College of Nursing was informed that federal funding for the program, which totaled approximately $400,000 each year, would not be renewed effective June 30.

“The clinic performs an important service for many people in Spokane who need access to medical care. It is important for us to do everything possible to see that the patients’ interests are protected,” Floyd said. He said this funding will allow the clinic to continue to provide services as needed for up to a year while transition plans are developed.

“I am pleased we will be able to take the steps necessary to ease this transition for our patients,” said Anne Hirsch, interim dean of the WSU Intercollegiate College of Nursing.

The clinics provide primary health care and mental health services for underserved, low-income individuals, and also high school and college students in the community.

The original People’s Clinic, located in downtown Spokane, opened in 1998 and was designed to improve access to health care and mental health services in the Spokane community for underinsured and low-income families, to provide primary healthcare education to WSU Intercollegiate College of Nursing students, and to develop a community partnership model of primary healthcare.

Due to a demand in the community, three more clinics were established over the course of nine years with the last clinic opening in 2006 at Spokane Community College. Last year, the clinic served approximately 3,000 patients.

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Sirti Update—Clients Graduate, Move, Receive Loan Fund Monies, Test Solar Power, Introduce New Products
 

Sirti, a Washington State economic development agency focused on accelerating the development and growth of technology companies in the Inland Northwest, will be graduating one of its current tenants this month. “Graduation from a business incubator is the ultimate sign of start-up company success,” says Sirti director of client services John Overby. Pondera Engineers LLC, an innovative, full-service software and engineering services firm providing solutions to the global transmission and distribution delivery industry, will move out of Sirti—where it began as a start-up three years ago—to larger facilities, the result of rapid growth and successive significant year-over-year revenue increases.

Sirti Technogy Center

(Photo by Bonnie Woodworth)

Another start-up company, Pacinian LLC, is developing the next generation of tactile feedback technology for input device integration. In other words, Pacinian’s Haptic Touch™ allows users to rapidly type on a flat keyboard—a sleek, seamless, illuminated surface—without the need for vertical key travel. The company is temporarily located in the Sirti Technology Center (STC) but will be moving into the Sirti building at 665 Riverpoint Boulevard in the future.

GenPrime, a Sirti off-campus client that is a leading provider of microscopic organism analysis equipment and services, is the recipient of a $500,000 loan from the $3 million Sirti Technology Growth Fund created to accelerate technology companies that do not yet qualify for conventional bank financing. GenPrime plans to use the funds immediately to expand its market presence in the health care sector.

Sirti applauds the combined efforts of clients Ecolite/GreenVolts LLC in partnership with Avista Utilities to test a new solar power system that could provide an electricity boost to help relieve peak energy use. The ‘green’ prototype system, designed and assembled by Spokane Valley’s Ecolite Manufacturing, could help keep rising energy costs down and provide utility companies with a new clean energy source. Sirti staff introduced the two companies to Avista—bringing Avista’s access to market, investment, and use of their new test bed site in Rathdrum into play. “With GreenVolts’ technology and Ecolite’s established and progressive manufacturing capabililities, we are enthusiastic about continuing to provide counsel to this exciting partnership,” said Kim Zentz, Sirti executive director.

Sirti is working actively with another off-campus client, Ivus Industries, and its first product, the Lightning 180, a rechargeable flashlight that uses breakthrough ultracapacitor technology to reach full charge in less than two minutes, some 180 times faster than other rechargeable flashlights on the market today. Initially, Ivus is targeting the first responders’ market segment.

Sirti operates 40,000 square feet of leasable business incubator space on the Riverpoint Campus—28,000 in the STC on the south campus, and another 12,000 at the original Sirti headquarters building—more than triple the space since 2005. Although that space has been at 100 percent capacity, four companies will be graduating in the next two months, making room for other innovative technology companies. Sirti provides ongoing mentoring and custom consulting services for 22 on-campus and 30 off-campus companies.

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 Milestones
 

  • Interior design student Nicole Goulet is among the winners of the International Interior Design Association’s 2007 Student Sustainable Design Competition, which helps to raise awareness of interior design strategies that reduce negative impacts on our natural environment and improve people’s health and well being. Goulet won an award of excellence, along with $500 in cash, for her rendering “Urban Incubator.”
  • The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) has decided to award Ella Inglebret, assistant professor of speech and hearing sciences, the Certificate of Recognition for Special Contribution in Multicultural Affairs. Inglebret is receiving this honor in recognition for her efforts to prepare Native Americans to be professionals and leaders in the field of speech-language pathology. She will be formally recognized in a November 16 awards ceremony during ASHA’s 2007 convention in Boston, Massachusetts.
  • Lorna Schumann, associate professor of nursing, has been selected as the recipient of the prestigious State Award for Nurse Practitioner Excellence. She will be receiving the award later this month during the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) 22nd National Conference in Indianapolis, Indiana.
  • Three staff members from the Sleep and Performance Research Center received abstract awards during the Associated Professional Sleep Societies’ 21st annual meeting, held earlier this month in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Amber Smith, biomathematical modeling research assistant, received a Sleep Research Society Meritorious Abstract Award. Amy Bender, polysomnographic research assistant, and Lindsey Tompkins, sleep research assistant, both received Sleep Research Society Honorable Mention Abstract Awards.

If you or one of your colleagues or students has received a special honor or award, or reached another professional milestone, please e-mail the information to Judith Van Dongen at jcvd@wsu.edu.

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Community Connections

  • KPBX Kids' Free Concert
    The KPBX Kids’ Concert celebrates the summer of 1967 with Dead Man’s Pants at noon on Friday, July 13, at the Clocktower Meadow in Riverfront Park. There will also be special art projects from the MAC.
  • Eastern Washington Diabetes Network quarterly meeting will be held July 18th from 12:30-2:30 at Deaconess Health Education Center, 910 W Fifth Avenue, Spokane. Lunch will be provided compliments of Sanofi-aventis. Feel free to pass along this meeting notice to anyone interested in the Network! We will be brainstorming ideas to address goals so please plan on attending and supporting the growth of the Network. For more information you can call Jennifer Polello at (509) 232-8149 or visit the CHER website (Community Health Education & Resources).

Personnel and Staffing Changes
 

  • Please look for updates in the next issue of the Campus Bulletin.

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Way to Go!

  • Credit Bob Scharff, of the Facilities staff, for installing our shiny new outside Book Return. Folks who wish to return items without coming into the library can walk up to the northwest entrance to the Academic Center Building and leave books in the stainless steel return. (The Library staff suggest you bring Reserve items to the library when it is open, to insure they are checked in on time). Bruce Thompson of Capital Planning found the funds for the drop, which will improve life for students (and staff!) who need to return items when the building is locked or the library is closed. Thanks to everyone involved! (Bob Pringle, Director of Nursing and Riverpoint Campus Library Services).

Here's where you make someone's day a little brighter by extending your thanks for a job well done. Send your “Way to Go!” comments to Cinda Romans, and watch for your thanks to be published in an upcoming issue of the Campus Bulletin!

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The Bulletin is a monthly publication that is usually published on the second Wednesday of each month. The exact publication date may shift due to holidays. If you have an item that you'd like us to include, send it to us by Friday in the week before publication.
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The Bulletin covers news of interest to the faculty, staff, and friends of Washington State University Spokane, and associates on other WSU campuses and on the Riverpoint Campus.

Regular columns cover professional accomplishments, opportunities for involvement in the campus community and the Spokane community, notices of new developments on campus, upcoming events, personnel changes, and other news.

The Bulletin also serves as a source of information for external communications directed to alumni, future and current students, and friends of Washington State University Spokane. You'll read it here first!

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Editorial staff

 

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