Friday, December 2nd

Predictors of Success in Online and Conventional Courses
Presented by Brian Wolff 
Faculty Member in Biology, Normandale Community College

Friday, December 2nd (2011)
Room: C1016
12-12:50pm

Abstract: Numerous studies have been conducted to evaluate differences in student performance across online and conventional course delivery platforms. However, relatively little work has been done to evaluate differences in student performance at community and technical colleges, which are likely to draw students with less developed study skills than four-year institutions. I have evaluated ten predictors of student performance in my conventional and online environmental biology courses via multiple and logistic regression analyses and have found that students enrolled in online sections are associated with lower final exam scores and are at significantly higher risk of failure. However, mode of delivery is not a significant predictor of final exam performance and is not the best predictor of a negative outcome, defined as a failure to complete the course or pass the final exam.


Bio: Brian Wolff earned his M.S. in Environmental Biology at the University of Minnesota, Duluth, and his Ph.D. in Conservation Biology at the University of Minnesota. He has been teaching biology, environmental biology, and ecology at the University of Minnesota and Normandale Community College since 1994. Brian has fifteen years of experience as a distance and online instructor. He is the author of several scholarly papers and his research has been published in peer-reviewed pedagogical journals.

Friday, November 18th

The Impact of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) in Business Decisions
Presented by Pierre Callies
Faculty member in Business, Normandale Community College

Friday, November 18th
12-12:50
Room C1016


Abstract: Marketing management courses tell us that "location" is primordial to be successful. Yet, how many companies actually select their retail locations scientifically? How many companies know where their clients come from? How many companies know what route their clients utilize to shop at their
location? How many companies know the areas of influence of their retail stores? Very few! So, they often fail to maximize sales,  because so many clients will not come as their retail location is not    convenient.

Today, with the power of Information Technologies combined with research, it is possible to know exactly what customer behavior is. GIS gives everybody precise maps of what is going on! That is because a  small drawing is worth a thousand words. Statistics that only renders numbers can now be displayed in ways that enlarges and enriches the business picture.

It will be discussed how GIS is used in making business decisions. Not only will maps be presented, but also tools that help at all levels of business and management that they can improve services and increase return on investment by cutting cost down.

Speaker Bio: A native from France with an M.B.A. from the Carlson School of Management, Pierre is working toward a Ph.D. in Geography Information Decision Systems and Economics.  He believes that the next business frontier is about the sound management of geographic resource.  Pierre also teaches business courses at Normandale Community College

Friday, November 4th

Ironies in the History of Dublin
Creation and Destruction in its Architecture and Literature as it Lost and Regained Political Independence
A lecture by Patrick O'Donnell
Faculty member in English, Normandale Community College

Friday, November 4th
12-12:50 in C1016

Speaker Bio: Patrick O’Donnell, originally from Dublin, teaches Shakespeare and Composition in the English Department. He completed his Ph.D. at University College Dublin in 2010.

Abstract: This is both an architectural and literary exploration of the history of the city that will prepare anybody interested in the Study Abroad class ‘Ireland: Literature, Landscape and Culture’ that is travelling to Ireland in May, 2012.

Friday, October 28th

Dostoevsky:  Madman or Mystic—Dostoevsky’s Importance in Nineteenth Century Russian Literature

A lecture by Richard Brown, faculty member in English (Normandale Community College)

Friday, October 28th

12-12:50 in room C1016

Abstract: Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky is arguably one of the most influential writers of his era in Russian literature.  The Nineteenth Century in Russian literature is reflective of a period of great social, economic, and political upheaval in Russia during that historical time.  Dostoevsky’s writing presents a complex and dynamic depiction of that turbulent period in many of its facets, bringing a deep thoughtful examination of the philosophy, sociology, psychology, and spirituality evident in that period of chaos and pre-revolutionary change in Russia.  In many ways, Dostoevsky is examining in his writing a definition of what it is to be Russian in those contexts.  His novel The Brothers Karamazov is an excellent example of how those themes are presented and developed, and is a fine representation of Dostoevsky’s genius.

Speaker Bio: Having taught English composition and literature at Normandale Community College since 2000 (a second career, by the way), Richard Brown has had a fascination with European literature throughout his academic career, both at the undergraduate and graduate levels.  Russian literature, particularly that of the Nineteenth Century, has been a special area of that interest.  Having read and studied Dostoevsky extensively throughout the years, and studied it in graduate school, it is the expression of that passion for Dostoevsky’s writing that has led to this presentation.

Anthony J. Nocella II: Anarchism and Higher Education

The Institute of Scholarly Inquiry (ISI) at Normandale Community College is pleased to announce its first colloquium of the 2011-2012 school year: 


Anarchism and Higher Education
A lecture by guest speaker Anthony J. Nocella II
Location: C1016*
Date and Time: Friday, October 14th, 12-12:50
(*Please note that all colloquia this academic year will be held in C1016.)

Trivia: Name this anarchist!

Bio: Anthony J. Nocella II is a Visiting Professor teaching critical urban education in the School of Education at Hamline University. Nocella has published more than ten books and twenty-five academic articles, co-founded more than fifteen active political organizations including the Anarchist Studies Initiative, the first anarchist academic center in the world. His interests include peace and conflict studies, critical criminology, and critical pedagogy.


Abstract: Although there are many expressions of anarchism, a basic definition poses it as a marco socio-political economic ideology rooted in a non-governmental direct democracy in which individuals live and participate in collaborative society free from domination and authoritarianism. Anarchism is founded in the belief that the individual can best determine how to live his/her life. Anthony J. Nocella II, an internationally recognized scholar for his work in the field of anarchist studies, will integrate material from his co-edited anthologies Contemporary Anarchist Studies: An IntroductoryAnthology of Anarchy in the Academy (Routledge, 2009) and TheAccumulation of Freedom: Writings on Anarchist Economics (forthcoming from AK Press, January 2011) to speak of the rise of anarchist studies within higher education, stressing the importance of continuing to view the academy as a site of radical contention against and challenge to dominant power structures such as capitalism, a plutocratic government, the military and the prison industrial complex.  


As always, colloquia offered through the ISI's educational lecture program are free of charge and open to the public.