The Niagara Index RSS Feed

Thank You to Local Businesses Who Supported NU’s Spring 2012 Phonathon

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 19:16:49 -0400

The Office of Annual Giving would like to thank some very special businesses who graciously donated gift certificates to support students during Niagara’s Spring 2012 Phonathon. During a three-week campaign, students worked diligently calling alumni, family and friends. These hardworking students raised a grand total of over $119,000! Gifts to the Niagara Fund support scholarships and financial aid, faculty and curriculum development, technology advancement, and campus improvements.

The Office of Annual Giving would like to express gratitude to the following businesses for their generosity and support: Hard Rock Café, Maximum Tan, Smith Brothers Pizza (the student callers love your pizza!), and a very special thank you to Brickhaus for accommodations for our Phonathon director. Their support has truly gone a long way and means so much to our students at Niagara University. We are all looking forward to the upcoming campaign this Fall!

To find our more about the Phonathon or how to become a student caller, please visit our website: http://www.niagara.edu/phonathon/

Dr. Brian Murphy

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 15:04:40 -0400

“Everything in my life has been an accident,” says Dr. Brian Murphy, an international investigative journalist, author, filmmaker, hockey player and chair of the department of communications studies at NU.
Growing up in Montreal, Murphy developed an aptitude for hockey. The sport got him into college after having to repeat his final year of high school because of his poor grades. “I was offered a hockey sports scholarship, of all things. So, I continued playing and was scouted for some minor league teams,” he says. However, he ended up leaving the sport to pursue a degree in history.
“Two weeks after graduation, I went to Europe and just stayed there for eight years,” he says.
Initially and briefly pursuing a second degree in history at the University of Edinburgh, he took a job designing the school’s newspaper and working for Gordon Brown, who became the Prime Minister of England in 2007.
After a few years of being “passed around the world of European journalism,” as he puts it, Murphy was offered a job writing for a radio station in the tiny South African country of Lesotho, which was in the middle of the Apartheid War.
The civil war was “turning the country of South Africa upside down; people were terrified to even go near the place. Looking back on it, I didn’t even have life insurance. I just got on a plane and went there,” he says.
One morning in Lesotho, Murphy awoke to a young teenage boy, a war refugee, breaking in to look for shelter and food. The break-in inspired Murphy to write stories of war refugees for international newspapers and magazines for two years.
“I got back to Europe and I was notorious; I got hired immediately … by one of the largest magazine publishing companies,” he said. He wrote in Europe for “The African,” which is equivalent to “Time” or “Newsweek” and is distributed by plane to avoid censorship restrictions in Africa.
From there, Murphy was offered a job with Internet Press Service, an international investigative journalism company based in Rome.
“They offered me a job and I jumped at it, to have a chance to work with these international hoodlums, it was great,” he said while explaining a disparity between the company’s high standards for journalism and mysterious business practices.
Murphy was sent to Ottawa to represent the company at the Parliamentary Press Gallery, where he was able to use his hockey skills to ice skate to work on the world’s longest outdoor ice skating rink. It conveniently ran between his home and work.
After three years in Canada, Murphy started an operation in Zimbabwe to replace a group of journalists who had become political refugees after their office in Botswana was shot up and destroyed by the South African military.
“I’ve been through everything you could possibly go through as a war correspondent,” he says. He spent nearly a decade reporting on the war.
In 1990, Murphy’s book, “World Wired Up,” was published. It spoke of the potential of the newly developed Internet to be a tool for social justice, was published. This led to his co-founding of PeaceNet in San Francisco after leaving Africa in 1995. PeaceNet was the first national, Internet-based news website for non-profit and charity organizations.
Desiring a change of pace after six years with PeaceNet, Murphy went to the University of Massachusetts to get a ph.D. There, he fell into the position as the director of research for the Media Education Foundation. He eventually wrote and directed films such as “Rich Media, Poor Democracy.”
While simultaneously working full time for the MEF and earning his ph.D., Murphy began teaching three days a week at NU. How? He commuted every week from Massachusetts to Niagara from 1999 to 2003, when he finally settled in to NU full time.
Murphy isn’t shy about sharing stories in the classroom.
“I’m real,” he said. “I’ve done everything I want to do … I’m dedicated to doing this job but in terms of my own personal requirements of achievement, I’m just having fun; that’s it. And when I can get the students to have fun, too, that’s one of the best things.”

Professor Bohdan Pikas

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 14:59:18 -0400

Professor Bodhan Pikas has been at Niagara University for the past 43 years. Pikas may not be the youngest professor on campus, yet the man who grew up in the strawberry plantations in a house with no water or electricity knows how to connect and relate to his students. He not only has a passion for marketing, but for teaching as well. This is what makes Pikas one of the most intriguing professors on campus.
The U.S. Army Calvary veteran, attended college at the University of New Haven where he met his wife and graduated with an undergraduate degree in three years. He then continued his education at the University of Buffalo where he earned his MBA in one year. Ready to move to New York City for a job in the investment field, Pikas received a call from chairman Dr. Ockerman at NU offering him a position in marketing. When accepting the position at age 38, Pikas became the youngest full-time professor in NU’s school of business.
Initially, Pikas was under the impression that he was teaching marketing, but when entering the classroom he was handed an economic and finance book. Having a minor in economics and finance Pikas knew what he was talking about, but teaching five courses and preparing for each was more than expected.
“We spent all night working on it, No PowerPoint’s!” Pikas said. “I’d walk into class with 30 pages of preparation and half way through the class the kids knew I was in trouble and I knew I was in trouble.”
He quickly learned a valuable lesson from his wife. She told him, “You’re just reading, you’re not teaching.” From that point forward Pikas had his new motto for teaching – “If I’m going to suffer, I’m going to have fun,” he said. “I began talking to the students like they were human” Pikas said.
If you’ve ever sat through any of Pikas’ classes you know he does just that – treats your like you’re human. He is straight forward, to the point, realistic and prepares you for the real world of business.
“I consider them my kids, I watch out for them. When someone talks bad about them, they have to answer to me,” Pikas said while describing his connection to his students. “I walk into the classroom and I enjoy my kids. I enjoy the ability to joke.”
Recently, Pikas began working with students, aiding them through the process that leads to getting their work published in professional journals. “Those are great moments,” he said. “I can go in and teach and get some great laughs going, but that type of thing is really cool.”
Pikas treasures every day when he teaches. It is difficult for him to think of just one most-prized moment.
He doesn’t only care about the success of his students, but more importantly their success in the real world. He prepares students for what they don’t expect and he loves a challenge in class.
When asked how he connects with his students, he could not really answer. “I’m certainly not their age group,” he joked.
However, one could argue he is more on top of what’s up and coming than his students. One thing is for sure – he’s got passion. His passion for marketing, teaching and for his students’ accomplishments leads him to encourage all to be curious. “Curiosity will get you anything. You’re nothing without it,” he said.

Professor John Overbeck

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 14:51:41 -0400

Professor John Overbeck worked in a number of executive positions for IBM for more than 30 years. He was even the managing director for the Ford Motor Company. He returned to his alma mater in January 2009. “Going from overseeing management teams that could include 700 people to teaching classes of undergraduate students was quite the culture shock,” Overbeck says.
Overbeck always wants to exceed expectations. Therefore, he was a little nervous when beginning the challenge of teaching for the first time.
After being selected as one of Niagara University’s most intriguing professors, one could say he’s met that challenge. Overbeck, who currently teaches sales communications and principles of marketing, has an interesting approach to his interactive teaching style — theater.
He’s created a theater workshop, to be more specific. His goal is to have students stand on their own two feet literally.
“The techniques used to ease and loosen up actors before a performance can also be used to head a business meeting or give a public speech,” Overbeck says. “Students who are tense sound tense, and so the workshop is intended to get them feeling comfortable — able to address a room with confidence.”
Though he does not have extensive knowledge or practice of theater, Overbeck offers invaluable real world experience, stemming from his previous time involved with Wal-Mart and Wall Street.
“I can give a first-hand perspective and like I tell my students, ‘The sale doesn’t even start until someone says no,’” Overbeck says.
Like many other well-liked educators, Overbeck stresses the importance of interactive learning. He refers to this approach as “learn by doing.”
“There is only so much you can learn from a textbook without putting that knowledge into practice,” Overbeck says.
The ability market oneself and network among peers is also very important Overbeck says. After all, NU’s own Brother Augustine was instrumental in Overbeck’s opportunity to teach at NU.
Since returning, Overbeck has quietly carved a name for himself among the NU faculty and his students. To him, that’s what makes it all worth it.
“The growth in education and personal maturity from a sophomore to a senior is truly incredible, and the thought that I play a part in that transformation is something I will forever cherish,” he says.

Dr. Robert Kane

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 14:49:30 -0400

Perhaps the most valuable quality any historian can have is being modern. Dr. Robert Kane definitely fits that description.
“I think the key to teaching history is that it needs to be relevant to now. It can’t just be matching policies and terms with historical figures,” Kane says.
Kane has been a professor in the history department at Niagara University for the past eight and a half years. He’s been an Academic Senator, chair of the General Education Committee, and an executive in the faculty union. He teaches a variety of 10 different courses. Before that, Kane completed his bachelor’s degree at Williams College with honors in 1988. Afterwards, he worked in Japan until 1991 when he came back to the states to complete his master’s degree in Asian studies at Cornell University in 1992. In 1996, he achieved his second master’s degree in history and in 2002 his doctorate in the same study at the University of Pennsylvania. To this day, Kane’s overall historical focus is Woodrow Wilson and racism in Japan. He attends conferences and continues research, while teaching at NU.
Besides teaching, Kane has worked as a member of the Restoration Advisory Board for Lake Ontario’s Ordinance Works.

Dr. Kalen Churcher

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 14:41:22 -0400

Challenging, interactive, intriguing.
These are three words Communications Professor Dr. Kalen Churcher uses to describe her classes. Even though Churcher’s classes are indeed challenging, driving students to strive for their best; interactive in which her classes are fun and stimulate a lot of participation; and intriguing—her classes are interesting and keep students wanting to take more, lots more.
She teaches everything from media literacy, media writing, media culture, stereotyping in the media and politics in the media to media theory, mass communications law, senior seminar, honors thesis and independent studies.
You counted correctly. Churcher has taught taught more than 10 classes over the four years she’s been at NU. As interesting as each of the classes are, there are by no stretch of the imagination easy. In fact, many students associate Churcher with “tough love” — She is a knowledge, helpful and very kind professor, but she pushes students to challenge themselves to the best of their ability.
“I really want my students to succeed, and sometimes that means challenging them to do things they don’t think they’re capable of. Students too often underestimate themselves. We all do that from time to time, and we all need that extra push, too.”
Before becoming a Purple Eagle, Churcher was a professor at Penn State and worked for a newspaper company in Wilkes Barre, PA, where she was a journalist for the court system. Even more interestingly, she had the opportunity to work as a journalist for a prison.
“I was a journalist at a newspaper in Wilkes Barre for about seven years, and for about three of the years I covered crimes in court,” said Churcher. “I covered trails, hearings or any sort of crimes that happened in the area.” However, when doing her ph.D., she did her dissertation on journalism in prisons. She spent two months studying inmate produced media at the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola, a maximum security men’s prison.
“I was not scared,” she said. “I interviewed about 25-30 prisoners. They either wrote for their magazine, or they were DJs on the radio station. They have a magazine in the prison and they have a cable television station. I studied how the inmates used administration used media to control prisoners and the prison population. It was an amazing experience.”
From journalism in court crimes to covering stories in prison to teaching at Niagara, it is safe to say Churcher has just about done it all. The Ithaca native was impressed by all NU had to offer.
“I really liked the idea there was a social justice department here,” said Churcher. “You get this whole idea about cultural studies, where you get classes like media culture and stereotyping. That’s unique for ungrad programs. It was a great opportunity for me to be able to combine journalism with studying and analyzing and critiquing the media.”
The great opportunities continue to arise. Thanks to her hard work at dedication, she also runs the CMS Review, the communication department’s newsletter; NU Beginnings, an introductory course for freshman; and has written numerous publications. All in all, she is a rising star.
Humorous, compassionate, smart. These are three words Churcher’s might use to describe her, and a few of the many reasons she was nominated as one of the most intriguing professors on campus.

Dr. C. Henrik Borgstrom

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 14:35:31 -0400

Parlez-vous français?
Compassionate, committed, captivating.
These are words that only begin to describe the dedication to which Dr. Henrik Borgstrom shows in his teaching. They are words that helped him become one of Niagara’s most intriguing professors (even if he’s not so sure that’s a good thing).
It’s hard to believe that Borgstrom once thought of doing something other than teaching. During his undergrad, he initially majored in business finance and banking. However, after a study abroad experience in France, he came to realize his true passion. Upon his arrival back to the U.S., he changed his focus to French and went on to receive his ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin.
“I find it hard to distinguish myself from my colleagues, but I think an effective teacher connects with their students on a profound level,” Borgstrom says. “I followed my interests in French, literature, and theater because I loved it, ended up in a doctoral program and here I am.”
Borgstrom is not a native French speaker and finds this to be one of the most useful assets he can bring to the classroom. He knows what is was like to go through a piece of literature the first time around and understands what his students are going through. Borgstrom connects so well with his students because of his ability to be ubiquitous in and out of the classroom. It is evident that he is there for the students through his hands-on approach to education. He creates an environment that is inviting and makes students eager to learn. Borgstrom knows how important it is for the students to get the most they can out of a class and is always willing to work with students on developing a meaningful assignment. He truly goes above and beyond for all of his students.
Outside of the classroom, Borgstrom has a huge passion for theater. Since a very young age he has been involved in writing, acting and directing, and it has remained a fervent interest of his.
Whether Borgstrom is on stage or in front of classroom, his performance always results in a standing ovation. After 13 years of teaching at Niagara University, Borgstrom still looks forward to the start of a new semester.
“The students are the best part. I can teach the same course for years and each time it’s new and different,” he says.

Dr. Alexander Bertland

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 14:26:07 -0400

A professor’s obvious goal is to teach his students, but Dr. Alexander Bertland conducts his classes differently. “I am not interested in teaching, I am interested in having a conversation,” he says.
Since 2006, Bertland has been having conversations with his students and says he enjoys when his students teach him something. “The students that I’ve had always bring something new and challenge me and themselves when they speak in my class. Students don’t realize what kind of language they’re learning and using,” he says.
Bertland’s specialized classes, such as philosophy of art and business ethics, are his most well known courses on campus.
“I had a choice to teach medical or business ethics and I decided on business because it’s all about how people establish a community and how societies and communities come to exist. We ask ourselves ‘how do we sustain these communities and how do we lead people without cheating?’” he says.
When not teaching, researching, writing, advising philosophy students or members of the Class of 2012, Bertland enjoys fantasy baseball. He’s even attended a draft in Arizona. He’s also an avid fan of English Premier League soccer and has created his own fantasy team called the Niagara Authority.
“I came in third one year out of two million people. I thought that was pretty cool,” he says.
Another hobby of Bertland’s is fencing, which he partakes in two to three times a week. He has been practicing and competing for three years. “I was never an athlete, but I keep improving with each tournament,” he says.

Dr. Abigail Levin

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 14:26:07 -0400

At 10 a.m., Dr. Abigail Levin sits in the front of her classroom on her desk with a smile on her face and greets her animal ethics students. In order to keep up with her fast-paced conversations, her students take out their notebooks and get ready to write as fast as they possibly can.
While always teaching up a storm, Levin makes a point to be cheerful in her political philosophy, eastern philosophy, animal ethics, and environmental ethics classes on campus. But she also often challenges her students preconceived ideas.
“I love to teach all of these courses, because I think that they really make me, and hopefully my students, revisit habits and prejudices that we tend to take for granted,” Levin says. “These courses, I hope, make us aware of the smallness, and privilege, of our lives in the developed west.”
Students who’ve had Levin know, she is a vegetarian and supports many clubs and activities on campus that encourage vegetarianism and environmentally friendly practices. She was a major supporter of establishing the vegetarian section in Clet Dining Hall in order to provide more variety for students.
“From the time I was old enough to recognize that meat was once a live animal, around 8 or 9, I was viscerally turned off by it,” she says.
On top of teaching, Levin is a Big Sister to a student attending Niagara Falls High School, a member of the Rochester Zen Center (a Buddhist community) and is an adviser for the NU Alliance, and NU's Gay-Straight Student Alliance.
When not teaching or partaking in various organizations, Levin keeps life simple.
“I am a huge board game/card game nerd. I will drop anything to play poker or Scrabble, and I'm always up for learning new games. My husband and I have three cats: Oise, Elsinore and Donny, and we play with them all the time,” she says.

Professor Nanette Harmon

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 14:21:15 -0400

American Sign Language Professor Nanette Harmon has been teaching at Niagara for five years now and she is definitely one-of-a-kind. Harmon uses her positive, energetic attitude to create a comfortable and fun environment.
“I try and get to know each and every one of my students. It’s the mother in me. Everyone calls me ‘Mom Harmon,’” she says, laughing.
Harmon has hands-on experience with deaf culture. When she was just a child, she was diagnosed with hearing loss. As time went on, she adopted an autoimmune disease, causing her to go deaf.
Harmon showed a great interest in the deaf community. Her sister started teaching her to sign at a young age.
“I first became interested in it when my oldest sister studied deaf education and started signing when I was around 9,” she says. “Anything my big sister did was amazing to me, and she started teaching me to sign. I found it fascinating.”
“It’s a hands-on learning experience,” Harmon says. “When people think of the deaf, they think of people like Helen Keller. There are so many variables that affect deafness. I can’t die till I’ve taught everyone that there is something to know about deafness, because it is so incredibly misunderstood. My goal is to create passion and broaden the view.”
For more information or some interesting conversation, be sure to stop by Harmon’s classroom, where she always provides candy, educational lessons, and, of course, a warm smile.
As Harmon says, “My mom always said, ‘If you can’t dazzle them with your brilliance, bring them food and they’ll overlook it.’ ”