THE UNIVERSITY DARY KANSAN
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2009
NEWS
5A
ACADEMICS
Business school promotes professor
Poppo is school's second female full professor
BY ANNA ARCHIBALD aarchibald@kansan.com
Laura Poppo has worked most of her life to attain the title of professor.
Her years of work paid off when she was named the first female full professor in the University's School of Business since the early 1990s. She is now the only female business
professor at the University.
In the School of Business, it takes at least five years to become an assistant professor, six more to move on to associate professor and another
Poppo
six or more to become a full professor. Poppo said because business was still somewhat of a male-dominated profession, women were expected to put parts of their life on hold to make it to a higher ranking than men.
"Business is still a relatively new profession beginning in the late
Follow writer Anna Archibald at twitter.com/ archmonarch.
80s," said Poppo, who earned the title of professor last month. "It has been historically dominated by men. A woman's reproductive cycle and the tenure of a professor don't always work well together."
Despite the lack of encouragement for women in the professional world, Poppo said that the University was very "human," and that since she came here in 2007, she could see they cared about her as a person.
"While I was working at the first job, a senior faculty member said to me. "This is not a good time for you to get married or have kids," Poppo said. "But many'of my male colleagues my age were married and had kids."
Many people, including Poppo, said it seemed strange that she was only the second female full-professor of business in the history of the University.
"I'm so proud," Poppo said. "I've worked really hard to accumulate the research and background to get this far."
Other universities in the area, however, have the University beat in the number of female professors.
Melanie Horton, administrative assistant to the dean at Kansas State University, said the School of Business had two female professors and the University of Missouri had three.
Before Poppo, Marilyn Taylor was the last female business full professor at the University.
Toni Dixon, director of communications in the School of Business, said Taylor hadn't taught since the late 1980s or early 1990s.
"I'm very excited about it," Dixon
said. I have the same questions as to why it's taken so long, but I'm looking forward to a woman moving to the top echelon of the school."
Stacy Kovar, accounting professor at Kansas State since 1997,
has been a full professor for a year and a half.
"If you look at our profession historically, it has just been in the last 20 years that numbers of women have matched men in Ph.D. programs," Kovar said. "When I first took an interest in the profession, there were a lot more male than female faculty."
She said over the years, some schools have done a better job than others at recruiting and
"It's been challenging recruiting women at K-State because of the history involved," she said. "It takes a long time to get through being unrepresented in the workplace and this is not necessarily the easiest place to attract women to."
"A woman's reproductive cycle and the tenure of a professor don't always work well together."
Poppo said the University has proved to her it is possible to balance all these areas of her life and receive support from colleagues while doing so. Consequently,
LAURA POPPO Business professor
Poppo said the encouragement she's received from her husband over the years has helped her through the long journey. She has been married for 14 years and has two kids.
Cory Boor,
Medicine Lodge
senior and business
minor, said he had
never had a female business professor.
"It's important for students to be taught from a female perspective as well," he said. "We're taught about the contrasting relationship between male and female bosses in the workplace and I think it's important to get the same thing out of instructors."
Edited by Sarah Kelly
NATION
New England church tries to set down roots
MILITARY
WATERTOWN, Mass. — It's hard to tell in the quiet of a color-splashed autumn morning, but Redeemer Fellowship Church is trying to set roots in a rough neighborhood. For churches, anyway.
BY JAY LINDSAY Associated Press
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Dead churches are a familiar story in New England, which
Air Force Sgt. Robert Stinson, a 24-year-old flight engineer, died in combat on Sept. 1, 1944. The remains of the World War II airman missing for 65 years after his bomber crashed into the Pacific Ocean are being returned to the family for services on Friday.
Until this new church opened last month, its 19th-century Congregational church building in suburban Watertown was empty for nearly two years. Just across the street, a closed Baptist church is filled with conds. So is a former Catholic church a half mile away.
recent surveys indicate is now the least religious region in the country. But some see opportunity in a place where America's Christian faith laid its roots.
"You look at this area and it's a great area of potential, it's a great area of need," said Redeemer Fellowship pastor Chris Bass, a Houston native.
Several Christian denominations see New England as a "mission field" — a term often associated with unchurched, foreign lands. As they evangelize and work to plant new churches, they speak of possibility, but also frustration. The area's highly educated population is skeptical and often indifferent to their faith.
Soldier's remains found 65 years later
Associated Press
BY GILLIAN FLACCUS Associated Press
HIGHLAND, Calif. — For two decades after her son's bomber went down in the Pacific Ocean during World War II, Vella Stinson faithfully wrote the U.S. government twice a month to ask whether his body had been found — or whether anyone was looking.
The mother of six strapping boys went to her grave without the answer that has finally reached her two surviving sons 65 years later: The remains of Sgt. Robert Stinson are coming home.
Military divers recovered several pieces of leg bone from the wreckage of a B-24J Liberator bomber found at the bottom of
the ocean off the coast of the island nation of Palau.
DNA testing showed the femur fragments belonged to the 24-year-old flight engineer who died in combat on Sept.1,1944.
Stinson's remains arrived under U.S. Air Force escort Wednesday and will be buried Friday at Riverside National Cemetery with full military honors.
In between, the body will be kept at a mortuary less than 100 yards from the home where Stinson grew up with his brothers.
"He's not someplace on a little island or at the bottom of the ocean. He's home," said Edward Stinson, who was 9 when his brother died.
Designated driver does not mean least drunk.
Better yet, why don't you get a Responsibilibuddy?
Responsibilibuddy
1: a person chosen to abstain from alcohol at a designated time so as to help their friends who are drinking, including: a: transporting them safely to and from home b: not letting them leave drinks unattended c: monitoring the effects of their alcohol consumption d: encouraging them to not leave with strangers e: calling for help if needed
So you want to be a Responsibilibuddy? Take the test:
When at a party or bar..
A. Don't accept an already opened can or glass.
B. Don't leave your drink unattended.
C. Don't let your friends do A or B.
D. All of the above.
If you said D you are on your way to being a real Responsibilibuddy. Already opened or unattended drinks can easily be spiked with "date-rape" or other drugs. You won't know what hit you.
Discuss this fact with your friends and
[ Play It Safe. ] when you celebrate on Halloween.
s91q 161
HPV Fact #9: HPV often has no signs or symptoms.
There's something you can do Visit your campus health center.