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Yearlong portrait exhibit opens in McGuffey Hall

Sarah Reder, For the Miami Student

An art exhibit made up of 10 paintings will arrive at Miami University this March and stay until March 2011.

The complete collection consists of 100 portraits of prominent Americans by Robert Shetterly of Brooksville, Maine. Subjects include activists, presidents and authors such as Susan B. Anthony, Rachel Carson, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and many others. The Miami exhibit will include 10 of these portraits, to be shown in McGuffey Hall for the entire year. The portraits will be installed Tuesday, March 2.

Senior Melissa Shotts will be one of the panelists for a discussion related to the exhibit.

"I joined the panel because I respect one of the main coordinators of this exhibit and he heard I would be a good candidate," Shotts said. "I hope the series of portraits will allow Miami students to stop and think about the type of impact they want to make on the world."

Shotts is excited to hear from the other panelists as well as artist Robert Shetterly, who will speak at Miami March 17.

Shetterly was born in Cincinnati in 1946. He graduated from Harvard College in 1969 with a degree in English literature. He began constructing the series of portraits in 2004 as a way to pay admiration to a group of Americans that he admired and thought spoke the truth during a time when he was saddened by the United States' response to Sept. 11, 2001 and the general direction in which the country was heading. The project, "Americans Who Tell The Truth," also inspired Shetterly to write a book of the same name, which includes the first 50 of his portraits with discussions.

Over the past several years, Shetterly has made appearances in more than 20 states.

Thomas Poetter, director of partnerships in the School of Education, Health and Society, said he helped put the panel together and will also be the facilitator of the event. Poetter said the panel would address a question from Shetterly himself. The question is "Consider what factors, institutions, attitudes have to be present in a society to insure a successful democracy. What are they? Do we have them? Why? Why not?"

Poetter said his favorite portrait is that of Samantha Smith, a child activist for peace.

"I think her story will resonate with school children who visit the exhibit," Shetterly said. "She exercised her voice in a small way, and it had a big impact on the world."

Poetter believes art to be an important part of any democratic society.

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"Art can challenge us to look at the world beyond our typical way and perhaps make us consider a different or better way forward that transcends the status quo," Shetterly said.

Senior Alexandra Neuman, an art history major, said she has attended events such as this over the past two years, both affiliated with Miami and not.

"It is important for students to take advantage of opportunities to see live art because that is the only way to gain some kind of emotional attachment to pieces," Neuman said. "Hearing from artists and art historians can make you look at paintings in a very different way."

Poetter said they hope the portraits will generate conversation about what it means to be a citizen, an activist and someone who thinks about advancing democracy and fostering social justice.

The panel discussion will take place at 12 p.m. Thursday, March 18 in McGuffey 225. There will also be a public lecture by and reception with the artist at 4 p.m. Wednesday, March 22 in McGuffey 322.

Gender-neutral housing available for students

Students interested in gender-neutral housing may start making plans for next year. With the passage of gender-neutral housing any second-year or older may choose the option to live with a roommate of their choice, regardless of legal sex for next year. If you are interested, contact Jamie Workman, coordinator of residence life, at workmaj2@muohio.edu.

Delta Zeta hosted the annual Puttin' on the Hits Thursday, Feb. 25. Five sororities and four fraternities placed in the competition. In the sorority dance portion, Gamma Phi Beta placed first, Phi Mu placed second and Alpha Phi placed third. In the overall sorority portion, Alpha Phi placed first, Kappa Delta placed second and Alpha Xi Delta placed third.

For the fraternity dance portion, Sigma Phi Epsilon placed first, Beta Theta Pi placed second and Delta Tau Delta placed third. For the overall portion, Beta Theta Pi placed first, Sigma Nu placed second and Sigma Phi Epsilon placed third.

All $16,000 raised in the event will go to Delta Zeta's philanthropy, St. Rita's School for the Deaf.

Stacey Lowery Bretz, professor of chemistry and biochemistry at Miami University, has been elected a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Lowery Bretz, who joined Miami in 2005, received a certificate and rosette Feb. 20 during the AAAS Fellows Forum in San Diego.

The AAAS is an international nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing science. Fellows must be nominated and elected as "a member whose efforts on behalf of the advancement of science or its applications are scientifically or socially distinguished."

Three other Miami faculty members, Hardy Eshbaugh, professor emeritus of botany, Richard Lee, distinguished professor of zoology and William McGrew, formerly of anthropology, have previously been named AAAS Fellows.

In a letter to Lowery Bretz, the AAAS said she is being honored for her "distinguished contributions to chemistry education research, particularly through the infusion of learning theory and the development of meaningful assessments and evaluation procedures."

The petition deadline has been extended 72 hours to Thursday, March 4 at 5PM for candidates seeking the position of Vice President of Student Organizations. This position is elected by the student body and manages all of the business services and fiduciary responsibilities -- including allocation of student organization funding -- for Associated Student Government. The petition deadline has been extended because only one candidate has filed to run for the position in the 2010 Student Body Elections.

For more information about the responsibilities of the position or running in the election, please visit: www.muohio.edu/asgelections or contact Adam Harris at harris17@muohio.edu.