College of Social and
Behavioral Sciences
Volume 15, Issue 1
September - October 2013
Student Activities
ANTHROPOLOGY
Shannon Dunn was awarded the
“Volunteer of the Year Award” for the
YWCA Ready to Learn program. Shannon
has been an invaluable asset to the Ready to
Learn program over the last year and has
continued her involvement. Within the
multiple families that she has worked with
she has been considered a blessing. Her
kindhearted demeanor and her eagerness to
motivate others, has made a lasting
impression on program participants, August
2013.
The 19th Annual Truman and Reta Wood Scholarship
Dinner was presented by alumna Stephanie Schriock,
president of the political action committee (PAC)
EMILY’s List, a national organization dedicated to
electing pro-choice Democratic women to political
office, as the keynote speaker. The dinner will honor
Minnesota State Mankato’s 2013-2014 Wood
Scholarship winners, Maria Carrillo-Perez and Kyle
Hoffman, and silent auction proceeds will go to the
Wood Scholarship Fund, September 21, 2013.
Stephanie Schriock, keynote speaker at the 19th Annual
Truman and Reta Wood Scholarship Dinner
SOCIAL WORK
MSW graduate students Tanya Borchert, Shelly Holt,
Rachel Johnston, and Kira Wellner and social work
faculty, Michelle Alvarez and Laurie Strunk,
Shannon Dunn was awarded the “Volunteer
participated in a service abroad trip to San Pedro,
of the Year Award” for the YWCA Ready to
Belize. The faculty and students participating in this
Learn program
service abroad trip worked with three schools in San
GOVERNMENT
Pedro, Belize (Holy Cross Anglican School, Roman
Marcus Hansson, a former exchange
Catholic School, and Island Academy), serving students
student from Sweden, in political science/
in Kindergarten through 8th grade, May 2013.
IR (Government Department), 2006, was
David Wentzel, May 2013 BSSW graduate, was offered
recently hired as Energy & Environment
a job with Congressman Tim Walz’s office as the
Communications Specialist at the U.S.
Veterans Field Assistant for the 1st District of
Embassy in Stockholm, Sweden. Together
Minnesota, June 2013.
with the Swedish and US Chambers of
Commerce they launched a new internship
program for US students willing to gain
international experience working for major
Swedish companies, June 2013.
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College of Social and Behavioral Sciences Good News
Faculty and Department Activities
charge of the battlefield within. Lisa will travel to each of
these locations and work with these officers and their
departments over the course of the next year. Christian
Dobratz has consulted and worked with Lisa for the past 5
years.
ANTHROPOLOGY
Ronald Schirmer and two graduate students participated
in, “Got an Artifact? Want to Know What it is?” where
they were on hand to identify archeological finds from the
Blue Earth County Area, Mankato, MN, September 17,
2013.
Ronald Schirmer presented, “Sixty-Six Years of Red
Wing Archeology: From Middle Mississippian Outpost to
Regional Aggregation Center,” as the 2013 Elden
Johnson Distinguished Lecture for Minnesota
Archaeology Week, Minneapolis, MN, September 17,
2013.
Christian Dobratz was video interviewed by Trish Van
Pilsum for Fox 9 News regarding an investigation they are
conducting into the use of Taser’s by police officers. The
interview explored appropriate and inappropriate uses of
this device (particularly in Minneapolis) to see if there
was a connection regarding the use of the device in
greater instances against minorities.
Ronald Schirmer discussed, “Waseca County
Prehistory,” and the contributions the collections at the
Waseca County Historical Society have made in
understanding the County’s prehistory, Waseca, MN,
September 24, 2013.
Tom Inglot gave a guest lecture, “State Paternalism
Revisited: Early Legacies of the Welfare State and the
Socialist Experience in Eastern and Central Europe,” at
the University of Regensburg, Germany, June 15-23,
2013.
The Department of Anthropology was awarded a
$70,000 contract from the Minnesota Historical Society to
conduct a county-wide survey of Le Sueur County,
August 2013.
Tom Inglot co-organized a mini-symposium (three
conference panels) at the annual conference of
Europeanists (Council on European Studies, Columbia
University). He presented a paper (co-authored with
Dorottya Szikra and Cristina Rat), “The New Politics of
Family Policy in Hungary, Poland, and Romania Since
the EU Accession: Domestic vs. International
Influences.” He also chaired a conference panel and
served as a roundtable discussant on another session of
the symposium, Amsterdam, Netherlands, June 25-27,
2013.
GENDER & WOMEN’S STUDIES
Jocelyn Stitt was awarded a Faculty Improvement Grant
to attend the 7th Annual Feminist Theory Workshop, May
3, 2013.
GEOGRAPHY
Martin Price, Alton Byers, Donald Friend, Thomas
Kohler, and Larry Price edited, “Mountain Geography:
Physical and Human Dimensions,” published by
University of California Press, September 2013.
Joseph Kunkel was interviewed by the Rochester Post
Bulletin about the 1st district congressional race and
emerging Republican candidates to oppose Tim Walz,
June 13, 2013.
GOVERNMENT
Christian Dobratz and Lisa Wimberger of the
NeuroSculpting Institute presented a training seminar,
“Emotional Warrior Training: Surviving and Managing
LE Stress,” at the International Law Enforcement
Educators Trainers Association, Chicago, IL, May 2013.
Joseph Kunkel was interviewed by Charlie Shaw,
Politics in Minnesota, about Republican candidates and
their prospects of defeating 1st Congressional District
Representative Tim Walz in 2014, September 19, 2013.
Bill Lewinski, professor emeritus in Law Enforcement,
was interviewed for a podcast produced by Police
Magazine dealing with the subject of high-risk hostage
encounters and other high-stress, rapidly unfolding
events. This interview was featured in the Force Science
Institute Ltd newsletter, June 2013.
Pat Nelson defended her dissertation, “Social Network
Analysis Model for Law Enforcement Identification of
Community Intelligence Contacts,” to complete her PhD
in Public Policy Administration with concentrations in
Homeland Security Policy Coordination and Mediation,
Terrorism, and Peace from Walden University, August
20, 2013.
Christian Dobratz was interviewed by Charlie Smith,
producer and Director of the upcoming documentary
titled “Everyday Warrior.” Everyday Warrior explores
the rise of PTSD and suicide among Law Enforcement
Officers and one woman's quest to bring meditation tools
to these officers. The documentary will follow Lisa
Wimberger as she prepares to go to the International Law
Enforcement and Trainers Association Conference, where
she will lead her NeuroSculpting® workshop to officers.
The documentary will then follow three officers from
around the globe as they implement Lisa's tools and take
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College of Social and Behavioral Sciences Good News
Law Enforcement and Corrections presented, “The Will
to Survive…and Win!” with Mike Kralicek, who was
catastrophically injured in the line of duty as an Idaho
police officer, for law enforcement and corrections majors
and currently licensed Officers, and Fire Fighters EMS,
April 25, 2013.
positions for a specified amount of time. Robin Wingo
and Debra Gohagan share administrative responsibilities
for this contract.
Robin Wingo, Minnesota Valley Action Council Board
President, cut the grand opening ribbon for their new
facility. She was assisted by MN Representative Clark
Johnson and U.S. Representative Tim Walz. MVAC
serves adults, youth, and families in nine counties with
housing, energy, employment, and transportation needs,
Mankato, MN, September 16, 2013.
HISTORY
Lori Lahlum presented, “The Scandinavian Republican
League in South Dakota,” at the Dakota Conference,
Sioux Falls, SD, April 2013.
SOCIAL WORK
Nancy Fitzsimons was presented the “Changing Policies”
Changemaker Award by Arc Greater Twin Cities which
recognizes individuals whose efforts have resulted in
systems and policy changes that benefit individuals with
disabilities and their families, May 2013.
Robin Wingo cut the grand opening ribbon for MVAC
SOCIOLOGY
Barbara Carson, Catarina Fritz, and Vicki Hunter were
awarded a Faculty Improvement Grant for a selforganized 5 day writing retreat, May 3, 2013.
URBAN & REGIONAL STUDIES
Mitchell Berg received a $450 scholarship from the
International City Manager’s Association to attend the
ICMA Conference, Boston, MA, Sept.22-25, 2013.
Mitchell Berg’s article, “Are You Interested in Adjunct
Teaching?” was published in the Minnesota City County
Management Association Newsletter, Fall 2013.
Debra Gohagan was awarded a Faculty Improvement
Grant to attend Queen’s University, Belfast, Northern
Ireland, Irish History Institute to explore the development
of a summer school program for MSU, Mankato students,
May 3, 2013.
The Department of Social Work, MSW Program at
Minnesota State University, Mankato was awarded a
contract for $255,168 from the MN Department of
Human Services for an undergraduate and graduate level
Title IV-E Child Welfare Stipend Program (CWSP) at
Minnesota State Mankato. This program’s goal is to
support recruitment, education, and retention of a wellprepared public child welfare work force to enhance the
service delivery system in Minnesota. Nine MSW
students and 13 BSSW students will receive the CWSP
stipend along with other educational opportunities and
advisement. Once graduated, scholars will accept
employment in county, tribal, or state public child welfare
Janet Cherrington-Cucore was awarded a Faculty
Improvement Grant for visiting towns and cities in
various regions of the U.S. to study economic
development by attracting retirees to a community, May
3, 2013.
Tony Filipovitch and Smita Rakshit published the
chapter, “Sustainable Design for Campus Residential
Housing,” in the book, Cities for Smart Environmental
and Energy Futures: Impacts on Architecture and
Technology, August 2013.
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