MSU College of Humanities and Public Affairs

07/13/2023

Learn more about the college merge and academic transformation at Missouri State. Remember to follow us at the new Missouri State Reynolds College of Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities.

Dean of the new Reynolds College of Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities explains.

07/01/2023

Today we merged into a new college! Follow us to Missouri State Reynolds College of Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities.

Dean Shawn Wahl welcomes all to the new Judith Enyeart Reynolds College of Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities — RCASH. “Dream Bigger Together” Driven by the legacy and inspiration of Judith Enyeart Reynolds, the RCASH community feels empowered to “dream bigger together.” “This includes...

05/22/2023

Dr. Victor Matthews carried the banner and led the graduating students one last time during commencement Friday, May 19th. It was the end of an era for Dean Matthews and the College of Humanities and Public Affairs.

July 1, 2023 will mark the beginning of the College of Arts, Social Sciences, and Humanities.

05/16/2023

Dr. Victor Matthews is retiring after an amazing 39-year career at Missouri State University!

Dr. Victor Matthews is retiring after an amazing 39-year career at Missouri State University!

It was a special evening that included video tributes from a few of Dean Matthews’ colleagues . . .
https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/Cf5hUV4nWE0?playlist=Cf5hUV4nWE0&autoplay=1&iv_load_policy=3&loop=1&modestbranding=1&start=

05/09/2023

On May 6, the Missouri League of Women Voters State Convention was held in Columbia. The theme was "Getting in More Good Trouble," and three Missouri State University students (one a former student) got in some good trouble by attending. All are/were from CHPA (Sociology/Anthropology and Political Science). Two of them, Liz Wertz and Zion Stevens (pictured), were voting delegates at the convention.

Suzanne Walker-Pacheco and the Paws to the Polls program won the Harriett Woods Award for Exemplary Community Service.

05/02/2023

College of Humanities and Public Affairs sweeps university teaching awards this year.

The Faculty Center for Teaching and Learning announced the nominations and awardees for their Excellence in Teaching Awards (2022-23) with 7 out of the 13 nominations coming from CHPA.

There were five awards granted and four came from within CHPA. The recipients were:

Jessica Elliott, Assistant Professor, History – “Engaging Students in Online Communities”

Timothy Flannery, Associate Professor, Economics – “Providing Real Life Applications Students Can Relate to and Use”

William Harwood, Assistant Professor, Philosophy – “Citizenship and Engaged Scholarship”

Scott Worman, Associate Professor, Sociology & Anthropology – “Making Learning Accessible, Affordable, and Student-Focused”

The Foundation Teaching Award were given to:

Michelle Morgan, Professor, History – Teaching
Kyler Sherman-Wilkins, Assistant Professor, Sociology & Anthropology – Service
William Sandel, Assistant Professor, Criminology – Service
Aida Hass, Professor, Criminology – Teaching

The Board of Governors Faculty Excellence in Public Affairs Award was given to Suzanne Walker-Pacheco, Professor of Sociology & Anthropology.

Congratulations to all CHPA nominees and awardees. We thank you for your service and contributions to Missouri State!

05/01/2023

April 28 -29 the Model Arab League hosted an event in Strong Hall. Drs. David Romano and Ashley Leinweber hosted the event. The Model Arab League is a group similar to the Model United Nations but is based on the influential Arab-specific international organization. The group learn about the Arab League, the member countries and the issues they face. The event brought together students from Drury, University of Missouri, Missouri State University and Ozark High School.

Dr. Romano's class won the Overall Distinguished Delegation Award for representing Syria. Dr. Leinweber's students received several awards too as did Drury and MU. The high schoolers did not win any awards but seemed to enjoy the experience.

04/24/2023

Dr. Kyler Sherman-Wilkins (he/him), Assistant Professor of Sociology, traveled with seven members of his Health Equity Research Collective (HERC) group to present their research at the 2023 Annual Meeting of the Midwest Sociological Society in Minneapolis, MN. The group which consists of both current students and recent alumni (Class of 2022) presented on topics ranging from the impacts of Medicaid expansion on health, to patterns of sleep inequities among U.S. women. Founded in 2021 by Dr. Sherman-Wilkins, HERC is a team of undergraduate scholars and advocates who work to conduct and disseminate research aimed at identifying the patterns, extent, and determinants of health inequities across the local, State, and national level. HERC will be holding a Research Showcase on Wednesday, May 3rd from 3:30PM-5:00PM in Strong 408.

04/20/2023

https://youtu.be/00QiDVv8M6I

04/12/2023

On April 11, Paws to the Polls made its third trip to Jefferson City to speak with legislators, the second one for this semester and legislative session. There are many ways to take action on supporting or opposing current legislation, but repeated feedback from legislators indicates that nothing beats a personal visit to the capital.

On each trip to Jefferson City, all participants learn an incredible amount, meet new legislators, and reconnect with ones previously visited with. The students do an amazing job of representing our campus, diplomatically relaying key information to the legislators.

The group went to support a variety of House bills from both Democratic and Republican legislators that would restore/allow greater access to voting for college and high school students of voting age and those that permit people who have completed their prison sentence to vote while under community supervision (probation or parole) and make it more feasible for those in jail who are otherwise fully eligible to vote, to do so. It is also important to express concerns about other elections-related bills, which the students also did effectively.

The beautiful weather and chance run-in with a representative from Republic the group met on a previous visit led to a wonderful tour that included climbing the many steps up to the outside of the dome. If you know of students who may be interested in joining Paws to the Polls in its quest to increase civic engagement on campus and provide nonpartisan sources of information, please have them email [email protected]

04/12/2023

It was a busy and productive local election day for Paws to the Polls on April 4th. The group tabled from 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. at the Davis-Harrington Welcome Center, one of the central polling locations in Springfield. Group members answered voting-related questions and handed out nonpartisan voter guides and sample ballots to those who wanted to do some last-minute preparing before casting their vote.
They also had the opportunity for some photo ops with the Greene County Clerk, Shane Schoeller, and with university administration.