Thursday, November 06, 2003

Wilmington, NC – The second annual College Day at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington is filling up. UNCW invites the public to register soon and become college students for a day through its College Day program from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 22. Check-in begins at 8:30 a.m. in Kenan Auditorium with orientation to follow at 9:15 a.m.

The UNCW College of Arts and Sciences and the Division for Public Service and Continuing Studies, together with the professional schools of business, education and nursing, are offering 45 one-hour, non-credit ‘classes’ for the lifelong learner. Participants may attend four classes, taught by award-winning teachers in the natural sciences, fine arts, history, literature, film, creative writing, philosophy, religion, Spanish, criminal justice, business and many other exciting academic disciplines.

The classes represent a diverse group of offerings. For instance, Michael Wentworth, director of the graduate program in liberal studies, will present “Hollywood Goes to College,” which details early to current Hollywood films about the college experience. The “Real ‘Rap’ on Rap” presented by James Johnson, professor of psychology, will illuminate the effects of rap music on listeners. While in the biology arena, Tom Lankford, professor of biological sciences, will teach participants about the “Status of Marine Fisheries: The Roads to Ruin and Recovery.”

The cost is $20 per person, which includes lunch at Wagoner Hall student dining facility. An optional cultural event will be offered that evening for a reduced rate of $5 per person. For information and enrollment, call 910/962-3195. Once enrolled, selection of classes/registration may be handled online at www.uncw.edu/collegeday or by mail. Media partners co-sponsoring College Day are the Wilmington Star-News and WHQR Public Radio.

A sampling of presentations is listed below. A more complete listing is available at www.uncw.edu/collegeday.

College Day participants may attend a UNCW University Theatre special presentation of Alfred Uhrey’s The Last Night of Ballyhoo at 8 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 22, in Kenan Auditorium. A special admission price of $5 for College Day participants will be available on the day.

MEDIA CONTACT: Stephen McNamee, College of Arts and Sciences at 910/962-3660.



A Sampling of College Day Courses of Interest

• Hollywood Goes To College: A Cultural Analysis of Films about the College Experience with Dr. Michael Wentworth, director of the graduate program in liberal studies. From early Hollywood films such as “Brown of Harvard” to more recent films Hollywood and evidently general viewing audiences as well have been fascinated by the American collegiate experience!

• Doing Film Documentary Work with Dr. Lou Buttino, film studies, award-winning professor, national lecturer and expert in communication studies, film studies and politics. According to Buttino, documentary production has expanded enormously. “With the digital revolution, and the costs coming down for equipment and software, we may be entering an exciting new era where many new voices are heard from. A kind of electronic democracy in the making.”

• The Real “Rap” on Rap: The Impact of Violent Rap Music on Interracial and Violent Attitudes with Dr. James Johnson, professor of psychology — a discussion on the effects of various types of rap music on listeners. Johnson’s research demonstrates the impacts of exposure to violent rap music. Johnson predicts that “The class will be interesting because it will focus on how exposure to stereotypical and violent media depictions influences how white people perceive black people and, more important, how black people perceive themselves.”

• The Status of Marine Fisheries: The Roads to Ruin and Recovery with Dr. Tom Lankford Jr., professor of biological sciences. “We will examine the status of marine fisheries, the complex factors that contribute to their depletion, and the urgent need to rebuild their populations. Marine fisheries provide food, income, employment and recreation throughout the world. With many stocks now either fully- or over-utilized, marine fish harvests appear to be approaching their upper limit.”

• Bringing Chile to North Carolina: This College Day “class” will focus on the people of Chile—who they are, what they do, and how they reacted to their UNCW visitors — come and find out how five UNCW professors gained valuable linguistic training and cultural insight about Chile through images, stories, artifacts, and music with Dr. Gregory Bechtel, nursing, Dr. Paula Kamenish, English, Dr. Stephen Pullum, associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, Dr. Scott Simmons, anthropology, and Dr. Renée Vincent, art and theatre.

• Assessing the Health of Regional Marine Ecosystems with Dr. Jack Manock, professor of chemistry. According to Manock “How we assess the health of regional marine ecosystems is based on the type of ecosystem we want to preserve, whether it is the natural ecosystem, resources for sustainable commercial exploitation, or pleasing ecosystems that underpin tourism and residential development. This decision dictates how we define and measure the health of our regional ecosystems; and ultimately determine if the ecosystem is at risk.”