Pulitzer Prize Winner for Speaking at Tech; plus . . .

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Pulitzer Prize winner to speak at Virginia Tech

Pultizer Prize-winning science writer Ed Yong will speak at Virginia Tech on October 19.

The event is part of the Hugh and Ethel Kelly Lecture Series, which has brought Pulitzer Prize and Nobel Prize winners and other distinguished speakers to campus since 2013. Attendees will be asked to wear masks.

Yong is a science writer for The Atlantic. Poynter named him “the most important and impactful journalist” of 2020 and received journalism’s top honor, the 2021 Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Reporting, for his crucial coverage of the coronavirus pandemic.

Yong’s lecture, “The Art of Science Journalism,” will take place at 2:30 pm in the Anne and Ellen Fife Theater at the Moss Center for the Arts. Organized by the Institute of Critical Technology and Applied Sciences in association with the College of Engineering, the event is free and open to the public, but registration is required.

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Star Johnson. Courtesy of Virginia Tech.

Virginia Tech professor wins math award

The Mathematical Association of America has awarded Estrella Johnson, Associate Professor in the Department of Mathematics at Virginia Tech, its 2022 Annie and John Selden Award for Research in Undergraduate Mathematics Education.

According to the association’s website, the award honors “an investigator who has established a significant record of published research in undergraduate mathematics education and who has been in the field for up to 10 years.” Johnson’s research focuses on the pedagogical practices of mathematicians with the goal of better understanding and supporting high-quality, ambitious teaching in undergraduate mathematics classrooms.

An ongoing focus of Johnson’s research is on inclusion and diversity, both in the math classroom and in science in general. With that interest, Johnson also serves as associate dean for inclusion and diversity at Virginia Tech’s College of Science.

His research has been published in the Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, the Journal of Mathematical Behavior, the Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education, the International Journal for Undergraduate Mathematics Education, the International Journal of STEM Education, and more.

Johnson earned a bachelor’s degree in secondary mathematics education from New Mexico State University in 2007 and a master’s of science in mathematics teaching in 2009 and a doctorate in mathematics education in 2013, respectively, from Portland State University in Oregon.

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Southside Virginia Community College Hosts South Hill Open House on October 18

Southside Virginia Community College plans to host an open house at the Lake Country Advanced Learning Center on South Hill on Tuesday, October 18 from 3:00 pm to 6:00 pm

During the event, attendees will be able to tour the SVCC facilities and lab areas while learning about the programs offered at the center, including information technology, electrical, HVAC, and welding.

Attendees will also have the option of receiving assistance in completing applications for admission for the spring 2023 semester, as well as participating in mock interviews with local industries.

The first ten attendees to sign up for a mock interview will receive a prize.

The Lake Country Advanced Knowledge Center is located at 118 East Danville Street in South Hill. For attendees interested in registering for a mock interview or for more information about the event, please call (434) 955-2252.

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Dedication of Fran’s house. Courtesy of Mountain Mission School.

Mountain Mission School opens renovated residence hall

Mountain Mission School in Buchanan County officially opened “Fran’s House,” a newly renovated girls’ residence located on the school’s campus.

Named for Frances Gibson McGlothlin, who was present at the ribbon cutting, along with her husband, Jim McGlothlin, the new residence was previously used as the Little Boys’ Hall, but after renovations, a gift from the McGlothlins, which included the addition of a second floor, it will now be used to house the older students who make Mountain Mission School their home.

MMS President Chris Mitchell welcomed faculty, staff, students, and guests to the ceremony, noting that in 1973, the building first known as Toddler Hall was completed and named the Mrs. PH Building. Welshimer. The BD Phillips Trust Fund provided the funds to build the original building, which served the school for some 49 years.

Jim McGlothlin told those gathered for the event that the renovations and naming of the building in his honor was his Christmas gift to his wife, according to a statement from the school.

“We don’t give each other Christmas presents,” he said, noting that instead they choose to give to groups like Mountain Mission School and encourage others to do so as well. The funds that went into the construction of Fran’s House represented that gift two Christmases ago, he said.

“This could be the best gift I’ve ever given her,” he said, according to the school.

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