Campus and community briefs
Music faculty, guest in concert Friday at USU
Lynn Jemison-Keisker, the musicians of AirFare, Leslie Timmons and Nicholas Morrison and guest soprano Carolyn Talboys-Klassen will be featured in a concert Friday at 7:30 p.m. in the Eccles Conference Center.
The free concert is being offered by Utah State’s music department and will include works on the flute, clarinet and piano.
Jemison-Keisker is an associate professor at USU and director of the opera theater for the university.
AirFare is a woodwind duo featuring Timmons on flute and Morrison on clarinet. They have performed together since 1992.
Timmons is an associate professor of woodwinds and music education at USU, while Morrison is a clarinet teacher, associate director of bands and associate dean of the College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences.
The concert comes on the heels of a recent concert tour to Guatemala that included the same performers except soprano Talboys-Klassen. The tour was organized by Jemison-Keisker’s husband, Richard.
Hale Centre Theatre to host writing workshop
Utah’s premiere family theatre will hold its inaugural Ruth and Nathan Hale Comedy Writing Workshop Feb. 12 at 4 p.m. in West Valley City.
The event is free and open to students and advisers from any of Utah’s accredited universities, colleges and junior colleges. Seasoned writers and producers at the workshop will offer tips in writing and refining scripts, as well as feedback.
Participants will also receive a ticket to the musical Big River, which will follow the workshop at 7:30 p.m.
Those interested should RSVP by calling the Hale Centre Theatre at (801) 984-9000.
Emeritus English prof. made poet laureate
Gov. Mike Leavitt appointed Utah State University emeritus professor Kenneth Brewer as Utah’s second poet laureate.
The ceremony took place in the Gold Room of the Capitol on Jan. 24. Brewer, a member of the English department, will serve for a five-year term.
The position of poet laureate was created in 1997. In order to be considered, poets must have at least two volumes of poetry published by an independent publisher, a history of public service to the state and its literature community, national as well as local visibility, and an active writing career.
Frank McEntire, director of the Utah Arts Council, said the poet laureate will have a project that enhances the visibility of Utah writers and encourages writing in Utah communities. To this end, Brewer will work to create a video archive of contemporary Utah writers, which will be accessible to students researching the literary west.
“This will be a tremendous resource and will help tell Utah’s story,” Brewer said.
His goal is to travel around the state during the next five years, talking with Utah authors about their work and producing 15- to 30-minute video segments with each author.
David Lee, Utah’s first poet laureate, endeavored to visit every public school in Utah to read his work and to encourage Utah students to write.
Lee served as poet laureate from 1997 to 2003.
Chemistry student wins national award
Amy Fuller, a senior chemistry major, has been awarded one of two travel awards given nationwide from the Chemistry Division of the Council of Undergraduate Research.
The funds from this award, which amount to $250, will be used to support Fuller’s travel to the National American Chemical Society meeting in New Orleans, La., where she will make a poster presentation on her research. The meeting will be held March 23 through 27.