Four receive 'Distinguished Awards' at MSU Morehead State University's annual Academic Awards Convocation honored achievements by outstanding students as well as the recipients of the distinguished faculty and staff awards. After the ceremony, the honorees posed for an official photograph with MSU President Wayne D. Andrews, far left, and Provost Michael Moore, far right. They included, from left, Dr. Sylvia B. Henneberg , associate professor of English and director of the Interdisciplinary Women's Studies Program, Distinguished Teacher Award; April Haight,energy conservation manager, Distinguished Staff Service Award; Dr. Bruce A. Mattingly , professor and chair in the Department of Psychology, Distinguished Faculty Service Award; and Stephen J. Tirone, associate professor of art, Distinguished Creative Productions Award. Distinguished Creative Productions Award and Distinguished Teacher Award link Distinguished Faculty and Staff Awards link Posted: 5-1-06 Dr. Duncan to receive honorary Doctor of Public Service degree A man who has dedicated much of his life to excellence in education, pursuit of the public good, and the business of government will receive an honorary doctoral degree from Morehead State University at the 2006 Spring Commencement ceremonies on Saturday, May 13. MSU Board of Regents Chair James H. Booth will present the honorary Doctor of Public Service degree to Dr. Robert M. (Mike) Duncan of Inez. More than 1,000 students are candidates for degrees which will be conferred by MSU President Wayne D. Andrews during the 10:30 a.m. ceremony at the Academic- Athletic Center. A banker and attorney, Duncan has served in a leadership role on the governing boards of many private and public institutions, including six years on Morehead State's Board of Regents, where he was chairman from 1984-86, and as chair of the Board of Trustees of Alice Lloyd College. He also served a year as acting president of ALC. In addition to his service on college governing boards, Dr. Duncan's commitment to education led to his service on the Governor's Scholars Board and the University of Kentucky College of Law Visiting Committee. Prominent in state and national politics, Duncan is general counsel for the Republican National Committee and a four-term committee member. He was a White House Fellow in the administration of President George H.W. Bush. His civic activities include board membership on the Tennessee Valley Authority and Appalachian Regional Commission; the Center for Rural Development; Christian Appalachian Project, East Kentucky Corporation, and Highlands Regional Medical Center. The former president and board chair of the Kentucky Bankers Association, he is a past director of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, Cincinnati branch. He also was chair of Gov. Ernie Fletcher's transition team in 2003. Duncan is a graduate of Cumberland College (now University of the Cumberlands), and the University of Kentucky College of Law. Additionally, he completed the owner/president management program at the Harvard University Graduate School of Business. His numerous honors include the Vic Hellard Award for Public Service, membership in the UK College of Law Hall of Fame, and the Kentucky Jaycees Outstanding Young Man. He has received honorary doctoral degrees from the College of the Ozarks and Cumberland. Duncan was the subject of the CBS Sunday Morning Profile, and is listed in Marquis' "Who's Who in America." He and his wife, Joanne Kirk Duncan, are the principal owners of Inez Deposit Bank and Community Holding Co., with five offices in East Kentucky. Their son Rob, an assistant U.S. attorney, lives in Lexington. MSU's commencement exercises are open to the public. Additional information is available by calling (606) 783-2008. Posted: 5-1-06 Mattingly and Haight receive Distinguished Service Awards Morehead State University's annual distinguished service awards will be presented to a department chair with an extensive background in psychological research, and to a staff member who has been instrumental in helping MSU save resources and energy. Dr. Bruce A. Mattingly , professor and chair in the Department of Psychology, will receive the Distinguished Faculty Service Award. April Haight, energy conservation manager, will receive the Distinguished Staff Service Award. The awards ceremony is slated for 2 p.m. on Sunday, April 30, at MSU's annual Academic Awards Convocation which will be held in Button Auditorium. At the ceremony, outstanding graduate and undergraduate students and participants in the George M. Luckey Jr. Academic Honors Program will be recognized, as well as the recipients of the Distinguished Teacher and Creative Productions awards. Dr. Mattingly, in his 26-year career at MSU, has taken an active role not only in academics, but also in professional and community service. He has established himself as a leader on campus, serving on the Faculty Senate for more than nine years, and two terms as the faculty representative on the Board of Regents. During his tenure as a regent, he was instrumental in the establishment of what is now known as the President's Faculty Compensation Committee, which led to several initiatives to raise faculty salaries to benchmark levels. He played a key role in the development of the University's Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee, which regulates the care and use of animals in research, and supervises compliance with applicable federal laws. Dr. Mattingly also has served on numerous ad hoc committees that developed policies regulating research and grant activity. A strong supporter of student involvement in University research, he initiated an endowment to fund student travel to make presentations. More recently, he was the co-organizer with Dr. David Magane, of a two-day on-campus workshop for faculty and administrators designed to enhance undergraduate research and scholarly activity across the entire campus. He is also a founding member of the state-wide Posters-at-the Capitol organizing committee that arranges an annual showcase of undergraduate student research and scholarly activity at the Capitol building in Frankfort. Dr. Mattingly is a longtime member of the Kentucky Academy of Science, which represents faculty and students in 20 areas of social, behavioral and natural science, and mathematics. In recent years he has been in leadership positions with KAS, including president in 2005. Currently, he serves on the governing board as immediate past-president. He also serves on the steering committee of the Kentucky Biomedical Research Infrastructure Network (KBRIN), a consortium of 12 colleges and universities dedicated to improving the state's biomedical research capacity and infrastructure. As a result of his research program (34 grants, 63 publications, and more than 130 presentations), he has been invited to review research articles submitted to top journals within his specialties and has served on research grant review committees for numerous funding agencies including the National Institute of Health. Dr. Mattingly has taken an active role in the community, holding various positions with many programs and organizations, including: Rowan County Academic Boosters Club, Learning for Life Foundation, the Rowan County Senior High School Parent Teacher Organization and Morehead Optimist Club youth baseball program. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology and mathematics from Morehead State, and both a Master of Science degree and the Ph.D. degree in physiological psychology from the University of Kentucky. Additionally, he was awarded a Post-Doctoral Fellowship in psychopharmacology at the UK Medical Center. Haight's employment began at MSU in 1994, as the recycling coordinator. She was soon given additional responsibilities as energy conservation manager, and held a dual title until 2004 when her recycling coordinator duties were shifted. She has long been active in numerous conservation and recycling initiatives, and played a vital role in the development of the Community Recycling Center, a joint project of the City of Morehead, Rowan County Fiscal Court and MSU. The CRC is considered a model center in Kentucky, and has been recognized with awards at the local, state and national levels. Her involvement with the CRC began with continuous service on its board since 1991. Other collaborative efforts Haight has been involved with include the ongoing development of both the Rodburn Environmental Education Center, with MSU and the city, and the HVAC Training Facility, planned for Reed Hall on the campus. Haight has been awarded 16 non-research and one research grants, including one for the Campus Environmental Assessment. This assessment served as a marker for the University to gauge its environmental stewardship. She assisted MSU's Institute for Regional Analysis and Public Policy (IRAPP) with the environmental portion of the Community Outreach Partnership center funding proposal in 2002, and advised a student in the development and implementation of the National Wildlife Federation Campus Ecology Fellowship Program. Haight has been a supporter of the U.S. Forest Service, working as a volunteer in various capacities. She has assisted with trail maintenance, cleanups, bat surveys, an aquatic insect survey and more. Her master's degree thesis focused on the evaluation of wetlands constructed by the USFS. She coordinates the annual Eagle Triathlon/Duathlon as a fundraiser for MSU's cross country and track teams. Haight also is on the boards of the Daniel Boone Rails