Education Empowers A Nation

UB October,BULLETIN 2008 Volume 8, Issue 5 Sustained Agriculture Program Launched Contents Page 2 ♦ UB: Independence ♦ Semester Kickoff ♦ FEA:Patriotic Day ♦ CSME students UB agriculture students (L-R) UB’s Carol August; Romaldo Lewis MOU signing Page 3 ♦ FNAHSW UB Agriculture: Promoting Belizean Food Security. This was the theme at the launch of UB’s new, activities energized Sustainable Agriculture Associate Degree held at the Central Farm campus on September 30th. A highlight of the ceremony was the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU); Page 4 signing was UB President Dr. Santos Mahung and CEO in the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and ∗ UB Sports Page Cooperatives, Mr. Gabino Canto, who deputized for the Minister, Honorable Rene Montero. 17 students are enrolled in the first year of the new program; 11 students are finishing their second year under the Page 5 old program. UB’s Chairperson Carol August and Head of Production Unit Romaldo Lewis (see also page 5) took the media and guests on mini-tours of the Met station, rotary composting, agro forestry, ♦ Faculty/ Depart- production plots and agro processing. The Department is under the Faculty of Science and Technology. mental News ♦ UB Doctoral FST on the MOVE: ID Training and Bird Banding Candidates The Natural Resource Management (NRM) program of the Faculty of Science and Technology (FST) Page 6 assisted the Belize Audubon Society (BAS) in training their park managers and rangers. FST’s Dr. ♦ NRM’s Bird Elma Kay and Zoe Goodwin, a botanist from the UK working with the Belize Botanic Garden, put Banding/Mapping together a 3 1/2 day field course in plant identification and . The course taught the basics of Field Activities plant identification using scientific names. For example, going from North to South of Belize people may use a common name for a plant, say “cow foot.” In one place what people are calling “cow foot” is Page 7 a plant called divaricata in the bean family, while in other places “cow foot” is Piper aduncum, ∗ FMSS hosts a plant in the black pepper family. Another example is the Bursera simaruba; some people call LECTURE at UB it the gumbo limbo tree while others may call it chacah or palo chino or indio peludo. During the course the rangers learned to identify at the family level and learned the major plant families at Cockscomb ∗ Forensic Society Think-Tanks and how to properly collect and dry specimens for identification, as well as to deposit at the Forest Department’s Herbarium in Belmopan. ∗ Scotiabank FST was also involved in a bird banding workshop, which built on previous experience in mist netting birds. The Page 8 idea is to set up a permanent bird banding station on the * Calendar of Events UB Belmopan campus. Bird banding is a technique used worldwide to study bird migration and it is the backbone of many monitoring programs. Thanks to Dr. Leandra Cho- Ricketts and Dr. Elma Kay for information. (Continued on page 6) BAS park managers & rangers in training

1 FREE MATH TUTORIAL SERVICES: COME AND TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS GREAT OFFER. MEETING AT THE WELLNESS OFFICE. Belmopan schedule available: TIME: MONDAYS 10:00 - 12:00; 1:00 - 3:00; TUESDAYS 10:00 - 12:00; 1:00 - 3:00; WEDNESDAY 10:00 - 12:00; 3:00 - 5:00; THURSDAY 8:00 - 10:00; 11:00 - 3:00; FRIDAY 10:00 - 12:00. UB students participate in Independence parades in Belize, Belmopan and PG! UB holds Patriotic Day at Bmp campus! Kudos to Mrs. Elma Arzu, Coordinator of the Arts Department of the Faculty of Education and Arts and to the Office of Student Affairs for Patriotic Day activities on Sept. 17th: Poetry contest, Flag raising, History and Archives Display, films, greasy pole, etc. A highlight was the presentation of the UB Patriot Award to Mr. J. Alexander Bennett, education veteran and current part-time UB History lecturer; he also recently published his book on the comprehensive history of education in Above: UB students in Bz City Belize. Elma Arzu is fluent in 4 languages; Independence parade she is also an excellent singer and often leads the singing of the Belizean National Anthem. In addition to coordinating the Arts Dept., Above: FEA’s Elma Arzu she lectures in English and Literature; she is involved in much cultural community work. UB Holds Sexual Harassment Forum It happens everyday, and it may even happen to you. We sure hope not. But this is why UB’s Student Services held a forum on October 1 to sensitize the UB community to this global issue. Ms. Melissa Jenkins from the Women’s Department located in San Ignacio town, through UB’s office of Student Affairs, coordinated the Sexual Harassment forum to educate our students about the facts and consequences of it. They intend to do a follow-up to this opening forum. A Sexuality and Relationships Workshop is scheduled for Wed., Nov. 5th, 2:00 p.m., Jaguar. UB students at CSME Workshop in Trinidad and Tobago Seven UB students went to Trinidad and Tobago from September 15 – 19th to partake, along with other tertiary level students, in a CSME Workshop. CSME is the Caribbean Single Market and Economy. All four faculties were represented. The students are: Alex Ron Anderson, Bachelor-Natural Resources (also the SGA president), Rebecca Fabiani Castillo–Assoc. Primary Ed. (also Toledo Student Govt. President), George Exodus Tillett, Bachelor – Primary Ed.(also the VP of the Bmp Student Government), Kirk Douglas Augustus, Bachelor – Social Work, Jamaal Everett King, Bachelor-Management, Leshaun Wylis Tucker, Bachelor, Business Admin., and Rhonda Sheries Middleton, Bachelor – Nursing. The CSME sponsored the trip. The students’ visit was part of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat CSME Public Education Program, facilitated by 9th European Development Fund (EDF) Caribbean Integration Support Program (CISP). On Monday, Oct. 6, SGA held a meeting to report on the students’ visit. UB’s Semester Kickoff

(L) Nicole Dawson, Student Services secretary Vignettes of UB’s semester kickoffs The History Dept. was (C) Moses Sulph, Bz City SG president held on Sept. 3rd in Belize City at both Semester Kickoff (R ) Sharon Palacio, Coord., Student Services and Sept. 4th in Belmopan. and Patriotic Day!

2 Upcoming UB Counseling Sessions: BMP: Tuesdays + Thursdays: Oct. 21, 23; Nov. 11, 13; Dec. 2, 4 BZ City: Oct. 14, 16; Nov. 4, 6, 25, 27. For appointments or more information, contact [email protected] or [email protected]

FACULTY OF NURSING, ALLIED HEALTH and SOCIAL WORK (FNAHSW) The Faculty of Nursing, Allied Health and Social Work, FNAHSW, hosted visiting colleague Jeanne M. Isabel, Ms.Ed., ClspH, MY (ASCP) to our campus sites. She is Associate Professor of the Clinical Laboratory Sciences Program in the School of Allied Health Professions at Northern Illinois University (NIU). Professor Isabel was on a one- Trudy Tillett, Chair of Allied Health Professor Jeanne Isabel of Northern Illinois and Social Work University presents to UB students week visit to meet with representatives from the Ministry of Health, PAHO/ REPRODUCTIVE WHO, Belize Medical HEALTH FAIR-Oct. 22: Associates, Central Medical 8:45a.m.: Opening Ceremony in Jaguar Laboratory, Administration at Auditorium UB and with UB faculty and 10:00 a.m. Fair in front of Wellness students of FNAHSW. On Center, Belmopan Campus: VCT, September 16 at the Jaguar PASMO, BFLA, UB Nursing students: Auditorium in Belmopan, blood pressure, glucose testing, pap Professor Isabel presented on smear; HIV/AIDS quick testing the topic “Cutting Edge Issues/ Development in Laboratory Iyerefama Theresa I. Membere, Technical The 4th year Baccalaureate and Volunteer Nursing Lecturer, demon- Nursing Students invite you! Science NIU.” She also strates technique to UB’s “Fundamentals THEME: Health is wealth: presented on matriculation of Nursing” class. Investing in a safe reproductive requirements for UB students interested in applying to NIU lifestyle to further their studies.

Wed. Oct 1: FNAHSW Symposium at Jaguar Auditorium, Bmp, for International Day of Older Persons. Theme: Rights of Older Persons. Fri. Oct. 10: World Mental Health Day. Theme: Making Mental Health a Priority—Scaling Up Global Services Through Citizen Advocacy and Action. FNAHSW, in collaboration with the Bmp Mental Health Consumers Assn.: Parade from Bmp hospital to UB campus and the BIG TENT, for opening ceremony, mental health info; symbolic release of helium balloons, presentations, and more!. Thurs. Oct. 16: World Food Day. Theme: World Food Security—The Challenges of Climate Change and Bioenergy. FNAHSW—engaged in raising awareness; UB hosts a market day in Jaguar Auditorium, Bmp, 10 a.m.—2:00p.m.: begins with a Run-for-Food event, followed by Opening Ceremony, then presentations on nutrition and climate change, food displays and tasting in Jaguar lobby. Want more information? Contact FNAHSW lecturer Isabel Bennett, 822-3680, ext. 327

3 UB’s Recreation and Sports: Volleyball, Basketball, Softball, Football, Canoeing

UB ATLIB VOLLEYBALL The UB Black Jaguars Volleyball male and female teams played in and won the ATLIB Volleyball Regional Tournament, which was originally scheduled for September 27 in Independence but was postponed due to rain. The games were played instead at the UB Gym on October 4 against Stann Creek Ecumenical Junior College, Sacred Heart Junior College, Galen University and Independence Junior College. The competition began at 9:00 a.m and UB won! The UB Female Black Jaguars Volleyball is the defending ATLIB national volleyball champion, and many of the UB female players have been selected for the national Belize volleyball team! Additionally, the UB male volleyball team won second place in the last ATLIB tournament. Since both the female and male UB teams qualified on October 4th, they play again Saturday, Oct. 11th in San Pedro at the nationals.

ATLIB VOLLEYBALL ATLIB VOLLEYBALL Softball! SELECTION FEMALE SQUAD: SELECTION MALE SQUAD: Saturday, Nov. 1st Alva Ramirez Punta Gorda Sean Ho Belize Calling All FEMALE Softball Jamela Noralez Punta Gorda Paul Casimiro Belize Players to this Year’s Softball Cynthia Aranda Punta Gorda Windell Lemoth Belmopan Tryout and scholarship Heather Castro Punta Gorda Garrette Sutherland Belmopan Neisha Williams Punta Gorda Kyle Miller Belmopan opportunity. Katrina Gotz Punta Gorda Shane Armstrong Belmopan Contact: Mr. Claude “Too Marianne Ramclam Belmopan Elton Moore Belmopan Taal” Jones 822-3680 Ext: Nicole Longsworth Belmopan Adrain Garbutt Belmopan 439 Rosbelle Ogaldez Belmopan Micheal Neal Belmopan Cell: 623-7976 Kaina Martinez Belmopan Timothy Bardalez Punta Gorda Jasmine Anderson Belmopan Jermain Borland Punta Gorda Sharea Pandy Belmopan Lyndon Paraham Punta Gorda FEMALE CANOE TEAM: Stephanie Obrian Belmopan Kerret Paulino Punta Gorda Lucas Titus Punta Gorda Need UB female students for the 2009 Ruta Maya: Contact Claude “Too Taal” Jones at numbers above

Sat. Nov. 8th

Cheer on UB Black Jaguars Basketball in the Darren Bovell in front of new Black Jaguars ATLIB UB van. Mr. Bovell, apart from being a tournament at popular basketball star nationally, is part of Sacred Heart the UB Recreation and Sports team. College, 9:00 a.m.

4 Special Scotia Loan Packages available for faculty and staff: Check at the Scotia Service Ctr, Bmp campus or any branch office Faculty and Departmental News

Congratulations to Priscilla Brown Lopez, FEA lecturer, who wrote and edited with Cubola productions the text and workbook entitled “Living Together.” This is a first of a series of textbooks for primary school students and the textbooks are aligned to the primary school curriculum. In the near future similar texts will be planned for Infant 2 to Std. 6. DOCTORAL CANDIDATES AT UB: Note, too, that Priscilla Lopez is a doctoral candidate in the School of Education at University of Durham in England. She has been going up to England over the past summers and working online. We congratulate her on this latest achievement. Also note that the UB faculty involved in the Nova Southeastern doctoral program meet again in November for 16 hours; the Oklahoma University UB doctoral candidates last met over summer sessions and continue their inter-sessions work. Best wishes to all 13 UB faculty who are engaged in both teaching and doctoral studies.

Vignette of UB faculty and others in the Nova Southeastern Univ. cohort at a weekend session.

Professor Ricci of Nova Southeastern Univ. doing weekend lecture at FMSS’s NOVA room More ERASMUS Scholarships Tracy Sangster, English and Literature lecturer in the faculty of Education and Arts, leaves for a Master of Arts in English studies, literature, language and culture as part of the ERASMUS scholarships funded by the European Union. Tracy’s course is a 2 year full time course at the Freir Universität Berlin, Germany. Congrats and all the best. ...Leading UB’s agriculture: Carol August: Master’s degree in Botany; was Chair of UB’s Science Dept for 3 years; now Chair of UB’s Agriculture Dept in the Faculty of Science and Technology. Mrs. August also worked from 1978 to 2002 with the Ministry of Agriculture in the Legume and Pasture Research Division and the Soil and Plant Tissue Lab.

Romaldo Lewis: MBA from Universidad Mariano Galvez in Guatemala; M.Sc. in Agriculture Production. Mr. Lewis also worked with Chiquita Bananas International for 10 years as Director of Production for the Central American region. He was professor and Chair of the Agric program at Universidad de San Carlos, before joining UB; he is head of the Production Unit at Central Farm.

5 Images from Bird Banding Training Workshop At UB The students learned about operating mist nets, safe bird extraction and handling, banding, ageing and sexing techniques, molt strategies, biometrics, and data analysis. It was held mostly early mornings and late afternoons at the UB Belmopan campus grounds. Trainers were Dr. Nick Bayly, Camila Gomez and staff from Birds Without Borders. Birds Without Borders is a local agency that monitors birds at Runaway Creek Reserve.

(L) Mr. David Tzul from Birds Without Ageing a woodpecker At the banding table, Borders shows UB student Hope Amadi with Instructor Nick Bayly (R ) how to extract a bird from the mist net.

(Left): UB’s Dr. Elma (Left): UB Kay shows William, a guest student Gail from the Belize Foundation for McNab Research and Environmental extracting bird Education, how to “process” a from net. bird; that is, gather all the useful information. Dr. Kay is a Ph.D. and is an Assistant Professor in the NRM program. NRM Students Engage in Mapping Field Activity In addition to the bird banding training, NRM also held a GIS field trip to Las Flores in the Belmopan area. Students were taught mapping using GPS. UB’s Ms. Yael Atar Peled of FST provided the photos, and the Chair, Dr. Leandra Cho-Ricketts, notes that many of the courses in the Natural Resource Management program involve field activities that provide much opportunity for both real life work and for linking with relevant Belizean, regional and international organization organizations involved in environmentally-friendly practices and in managing natural resources.

6 Alexander Vasilescu lectures on Financial Crimes at FMSS

Dr. Vincent Palacio, Chair of the Faculty of Management and Social Sciences, Belize City campus, hosted guest speaker Alexander Vasilescu, Esq. at a September 15th lecture on Financial Crimes. The speaker’s visit was made possible through the U.S. Embassy’s Speakers’ Program, and over 75 Belize City UB students in Business Law, Hospitality Law, and Paralegal Studies attended. Dr. Palacio holds a Ph.D. in Recreation Resources Management. Dr. Vincent Palacio, Chair-FMSS, Bz City Mr. Vasilescu holds a J.D. from Cornell Law School. His experience includes work with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and several high profile securities cases. Mr. Vasilescu noted that SEC conducts market surveillance activities, investigates investor tips, complaints and media reports, and works closely with criminal prosecutors on parallel investigations, as SEC is a civil jurisdiction.

Speaker Alexander Vasilescu, Esq. Bz City FMSS students and lecturers

University Of Belize Forensic Society: UB Think-Tanks The Forensic Club is setting up for its first meeting. The University of Belize Forensic Society’s immediate purpose is to produce debaters and public speakers who have both technical excellence and academic integrity. In addition, the purpose of this club is to provide opportunities for students to build communication skills through practice and participation in intramural and interscholastic speech and debate competitions. Monthly meetings will be held throughout the year, once a month. Major events will include inter-class competitions and Inter- Campus Tournaments. One is tentatively scheduled for November 12th. Mrs. Tracy Sangster was originally heading this club; however, as she is now on study leave, Mrs. Elma Arzu of the Faculty of Education and Arts is holding over. We will update you on this as plans get underway.

Need a loan? Scotia Retail Service Center Opens on UB’s Belmopan Campus Over a year ago, Scotiabank opened an ATM at the Belmopan UB campus. This year at Orientation, Scotiabank also introduced its Student Loan Program, with special packages created for tertiary level students. Now in October 2008, Scotiabank and UB have agreed to the opening of a Scotiabank Retail Service Center, next to the Scotiabank ATM at the UB campus in Belmopan. This Center is now operating, and faculty and staff can now access a specially created Scotia loan packages targeted for their needs. You can get details from any Scotiabank branch office or from the UB Scotiabank Retail Service Center at the Belmopan campus.

7 The University of Belize: Poised for New Horizons; Calendar of Events Empowering Tomorrow’s Leaders!

Centralized Calendar System You are reminded of the University Calendar. If your faculty or university group is planning a meeting, activity or event, call the Office of Public Information at 822-3680, ext. 205.

UB Mission: The University of Belize is a national, autonomous and multi-location institution committed to excellence in higher education, research and service for national development. As a catalyst of change it provides relevant, affordable and accessible educational and training programs that address national UB Bulletin: All UB faculty, staff and Saturday Nov. 8: affiliates can submit information for publication UB Black Jaguars needs based on in the UB Bulletin. Send submissions via e- Basketball principles of mail to [email protected] or forwarded on a CD competes freedom, equity, to Silvana Woods, Public Information Officer In ATLIB c/o: the Administration Building—2nd floor, regionals transparency, merit Central Campus, Bmp. and accountability.

8