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From Ogden to D.C.

WSU graduate Madelaine Tesori BS ’18 conducted 1½ years of research on the barriers to healthcare for African-Americans. She then took her findings directly to those most capable of implementing change — Congress. 

Tesori traveled to Washington, D.C., in April 2018 to present her work during Posters on the Hill, a program that gives students the opportunity to meet with legislators. She spoke individually with nearly all of Utah’s representatives. Her goal was to convey the importance of using research to inform policy decisions.

Posters on the Hill typically selects just one student per state, and Tesori said she will always be grateful for the opportunity to present her work.  

“This is the kind of thing researchers dream of,” she said. “I understand the impact that policy has on people’s lives, especially when it comes to healthcare; it can literally be a matter of life or death.” 

Tesori conducted her research with WSU’s Center for Community Engaged Learning Community Research Team. She also collaborated with Project Success  Coalition, a nonprofit organization that works with African-American communities in Utah, to conduct focus groups with residents. 

“I had a unique opportunity that I truly wish more people could experience,” Tesori said. “I got to listen to people’s experiences and hear about all the things that prevent them from accessing a human need we all share — healthcare. That was a powerful and raw experience I will never forget.”

Sparking Ethics Discussions in Kuwait

Transparency International’s 2017 Corruption Perception Index ranks Kuwait 85 out of 180 countries, but Weber State philosophy professors Richard Greene and Rachel Robison-Greene BA ’07 know passionate people are working to end corruption in the country — they met them while presenting at Kuwait’s first practical and professional ethics forum in December 2017. Greene directs WSU’s Richard Richards Institute for Ethics. Both he and Robison-Greene coach Weber State’s Ethics Bowl team.

“During the conference, we discussed ethics in governmental policies but also went beyond regulations and talked about how people can work out their differences in a civil way by getting to the heart of the matter,” Greene said.

The proceedings were presented to the Kuwaiti parliament, along with a demand for harsher penalties for those who violate the principles of ethics.

Ethics Bowl team members debate complex ethical issues through rational, respectful and civil discourse.

A Stop on the Campaign Trail

U.S. Senate Republican candidate and 2012 presidential candidate Mitt Romney visited Weber State in March 2018 for an event co-sponsored by the Ogden-Weber Chamber of Commerce and WSU’s Olene S. Walker Institute of Politics & Public Service. Romney was a guest lecturer for two political science classes, where he discussed national policies and Utah-specific challenges. He later met and posed for photos with students, faculty and staff. Democratic candidate Jenny Wilson is expected to visit campus in the fall of 2018.

Brick by Brick

Lindquist Hall continues to take shape and is expected to open in January 2019, providing a completely modernized building for College of Social & Behavioral Sciences students, faculty and staff. The renovations will transform the old Social Science building into a state-of-the-art facility with updated classrooms, laboratories, offices, a testing center and computer lab, and collaboration spaces.

Four Professors 176 Years of Teaching.

176 years = 64,283 days = 1,542,784 hours: That’s how much (combined) time WSU professors Rosemary Conover, LaRae Larkin, T.R. Reddy and Richard Sadler have spent inspiring curious young minds in the College of Social & Behavioral Sciences. The four said bittersweet goodbyes to Weber State in the spring of 2018, when they officially retired from the university.

Conover, an anthropology professor, joined the faculty in 1970; Larkin, an associate professor of history, began in 1991; Reddy, a political science professor, started in 1966; and Sadler, a history professor, joined Weber State in 1969. Their influence and impact as trailblazers, leaders and teachers will continue to be felt throughout the university. 

“All four of our retirees helped shape the College of Social & Behavioral Sciences into what it is today, and for that, we are grateful,” said Frank Harrold, dean of the college.