Lawrence Central Rotary

Category: News

Doctor Roger L. Boyd Talks About the Baker Wetlands

The Baker Wetlands was the subject of Doctor Roger L. Boyd’s presentation. Doctor Boyd is the Baker Wetlands Education Coordinator and a biology professor emeritus, Baker University. Preservation of wetlands is important where ever they are found as they function as a check on flooding, filter pollutants and serve as a unique habitat for plants and animals. Haskell University acquired the area in 1854 and drained it and used it for agricultural instruction. Baker University acquired the site in 1968 and in 1990 restoration began. Drainage ditches were plugged with good results. A thirty year controversy threatened the project as plans to link up highway 10 with a passage through the wetlands was fought over. The project was finally approved with a promise to reduce the impact of a roadway on the area and there was a significant property exchange that benefited both parties.

An 11,800 square foot Discovery Center will open in July and there are plans for camping areas and trails. Recent rains have speeded up the restoration. The Baker Wetlands will function as a giant outdoor classroom for area students and researchers from Haskell University, Emporia State University and Kansas University.

June 11, 2015
Prof. Mark Gerges Discusses the Fall of France in World War II

Mark Gerges, Assistant Professor from the Department of Military History at Ft. Leavenworth, marked the 75th anniversary of the fall of France to Nazi Germany with his program at Lawrence Central Rotary. This historic event occurred in June 1940. Gerges’ explained that the fall was not a result of superior German military skill or resources, as some have claimed. Rather, France fell as the result of a number of small twists of luck and the initiative of a few German leaders.

Gerges used maps to highlight the planned movement of allied forces and German onslaughts. The French front was brittle; it had had no depth of resources. Half as many men were in the French army in 1940 compared to its force in 1914. But Germany was not as strong as they claimed either. In particular, the German tanks were not as plentiful along the French front as portrayed in the media. The photos of hefty German tanks were of tanks actually located in Norway, not on the French border.

Gerges also emphasized the strength and weakness of the two different command and control models that the Germans and the Allies used. The Germans encouraged individual initiative and maneuvering; the French used a “fan” approach where central control managed troop movements. Gerges believe that the German model is what gave them the victory.

Gerges will speak on “The Fall of France” at KC Library on Tuesday, June 30, at 6:30 p.m.

June 5, 2015
KU Business School’s Dee Steinle Discusses the New Online MBA Program

The School of Business at KU is launching anew online MBA program. The new facet to the school was presented by Administrative Director of Masters Programs, Dee Steinle, who is the wife of Central Rotarian Michael Steinle.

“It’s an interesting way for a University to do business,” she said of the growing online presence of university classes.

“Two years ago KU launched an online special education degree,” Steinle said. When market research showed an MBA would find an audience, the process began.

Citing her own middle school aged son’s ease with learning online she said predictions are that by 2020 there will be five million online students in the country. Currently there are 450 MBA programs on line but only 20 are ranked programs. “It’s getting harder for people to attend classes in person,” she said “so this is the answer.”

KU will provide the “talent,” creating the syllabus and teaching the courses, the first one to be offered in August, the second in October. EverSpring, a private company out of Chicago will handle the technical details.

“There’s going to be a lot of learning on my part as we ramp this up,” she said. They are formulating an admissions process and creating an eight-week cycle of class offerings. “We will try to keep human touches too, providing places for students and graduates of the program to come together.

For more information about the program point your browser to http://onlinemba.ku.edu/online-mba/

May 28, 2015
Lawrence Central Rotary Welcomes New Member Margaret Morris

Lawrence Central Rotary welcomed a new member and learned about a new KU program at its meeting on May 27.

Margaret Weisbrod Morris, chief program officer for the Lawrence Arts Center became an official Rotarian after having visited the club several times. President Carolyn DeSalvo gave her membership materials and her pin.

Margaret Weisbrod Morris came to the Lawrence Arts Center from the Kansas Arts Commission where she was the program manager for Arts in Education. She managed the funding, partnerships, and initiatives related to arts education for the state arts agency, and served as the program administrator and event producer for the Kansas Governor’s Arts Awards and the Kansas chapter of the Poetry Out Loud National Recitation Competition.

Before moving to Kansas, she created studio art and art therapy programs for non-profit organizations in Brooklyn and Manhattan, and provided training on the use of art in social service and community settings. Ms. Weisbrod Morris is active in the arts education and non-profit community, presenting in national forums such as the Arts Education Partnership’s National Forum, the National Association for State Arts Agencies National Assembly, National Art Education Association’s National Conference and the Americans for the Arts – Arts Education blog salon. She has served as a panelist for the US Department of Education, National Endowment for the Arts, Mid America Arts Alliance and the Oklahoma Arts Council.

Morris holds a B.F.A. in painting and printmaking from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and studied with Edith Kramer, the founder of the field of art therapy, to get her M.A. degree from New York University.

May 28, 2015
Local Agencies Work to Help Local Kids “Back 2 School”

Even though the 2014-2015 school year is just coming to a close, plans are already underway for “Back 2 School” for Fall 2015. The project will provide school supplies, backpacks, and new shoes to children who cannot afford to purchase those supplies themselves.

Every child needs school supplies to begin the school year with confidence. With “Back 2 School,” families who live at 185% of poverty level may apply for assistance. In USD 497, there are 1,648 children, ages 5 to 17, who qualify. That is 13.8% of the Lawrence school system enrollment.

Rotarian Jim Evers, Director of Development for Douglas County Salvation Army, introduced the join initiative to Lawrence Central Rotary members. Kyle Roggenkamp, Human Services Director at The Ballard Center and Penn House, and Colleen Gregoire, Vice President and Campaign Manager, United Way of Douglas County, shared stories about the project. East Central Kansas Economic Opportunity Corporation (ECKAN) is also part of the alliance. Other sponsors include First Christian Church, Hallmark, the City of Lawrence, Office Depot, Walmart and Radio 92.9, KLWN AM 1320, and KKSW 105.9.

Local agencies will work with the school district and other groups to develop a list of families who need “Back 2 School” assistance. In July, volunteers will encourage donations for paper, notebooks, pencils, and other materials listed by the local school district as necessary for a well-prepared student in the fall. United Way also hopes to include a new book for each child as well. In August, other volunteers will pack each backpack with the appropriate supplies for each grade level; buy shoes for children; and prepare for distribution day.

It is the second year of collaboration among these agencies. In 2013, the Penn House alone distributed school supplies to 598 children. Last year, the first year of collaboration, Penn House, Ballard Center, and the Salvation Army distributed backpacks and pairs of shoes to 833 children K-12. The goal for this fall is to serve 1120 children in four school districts: Lawrence, Perry/LeCompton, Baldwin, and Eudora.

May 23, 2015