(Posted January 26, 2013)

Brad Andrew, associate professor of economics," has the talk he gave (with former student Gabe Castro), "Can You Beat the Market?" published in the latest edition of Juniata "Voices."
Brad Andrew, associate professor of economics," has the talk he gave (with former student Gabe Castro), "Can You Beat the Market?" published in the latest edition of Juniata "Voices."

HUNTINGDON, Pa. -- The largest-ever edition of "Juniata Voices," an anthology of lectures, articles and presentations given by Juniata faculty and visiting speakers, has posted its 2011-12 edition online.

The journal is online at http://www.juniata.edu/services/jcpress/voices/.

The new "Juniata Voices" features presentations on the record of the Chief Justice of the United States, John Roberts and how Roberts has led the Supreme Court by Adam Liptak (the New York Times reporter covering the Supreme Court), a talk on the horrifying legacy of the Rwandan genocide by Eugenie Mukeshimana, a survivor of that genocide, and a lecture on how superhero comics can reflect changes in cultural mores and political power through history. Other lectures include talks on a higher education investment strategy, on analyzing pigments on Pennsylvania Dutch fraktur documents, and an argument on why the United States should not join the International Criminal Court by Keith Pesto, a federal magistrate judge for the Western District of Pennsylvania. Pesto is an adjunct faculty member at Juniata.

The journal, which can be accessed online at http://www.juniata.edu/services/jcpress/voices/, has released a collection of notable lectures on campus every year since 2002. This edition is the 12th to be released by the college (one edition was released in 1993).

"I'm pleased the newest edition is our largest because it shows the wide range of topics open to our students and community," says editor David Hsiung, Knox Professor of History and editor of the journal. "I'm very pleased, because I was fortunate enough to be involved in organizing the conference, that we were able to include presentations from a conference on how comic book are used as texts in higher education."

"I'm pleased the newest edition is our largest because it shows the wide range of topics open to our students and community."

David Hsiung, Knox Professor of History and Voices editor

As always, several Juniata graduates who returned to Juniata to speak during the 2011-2012 academic year are included in the issue. Alan Fletcher, a former science journal editor, described how the founding of the International Rice Institute helped fuel the Green Revolution in developing countries in the 1960s by developing new rice varieties. Another alumnus, Jesse Rhodes, an assistant professor of political science at University of Massachusetts and a 2003 graduate, spoke about "Consistency We Can Believe In: The Politics of K-12 Education in the Obama Presidency," which presented an interesting case outlining how education policy in the Obama administration displayed a surprising consistency with the seemingly different agenda of the Bush administration.

The 2012 Juniata commencement address was delivered by Dr. James Madara, a 1971 Juniata graduate and the chief executive officer of the American Medical Association. Madara found humor in his own adventures in building social networks and advised students to branch out beyond their comfortable circle of friends to make connections.

Two Juniata students are featured in the current Voices. Elise Mihranian, a junior from Chester Springs, Pa., delivered the winning speech in the 2012 Bailey Oratorical Contest. Mihranian recommended students to look up from the myriad electronic devices capturing their attention and build solid personal relationships.

Other lectures or presentations during the 2011-2012 academic year included a talk by Rabbi Rami Shapiro, who spoke on "The Divine Feminine" in biblical Wisdom literature. In addition, Jim McLay, New Zealand ambassador to the United Nations, spoke on how small states can play crucial roles in global politics and at the United Nations. A political scientist, Marc J. Hetherington, of Vanderbilt University, spoke at Juniata on "Personality, Polarization and the 2012 Election" and explained how personal attitudes toward authoritarianism can affect the more polarized political atmosphere that exists in the United States currently.

Three talks on using comic books as educational tools are included in this year's issue. Julian Chambliss, associate professor of history at Rollins College, spoke on "Superhero Comics: Artifacts of the U.S. Experience." Brock Eastman, a high school teacher and a 2007 Juniata graduate, spoke on how comics can help students approach science education in "The Spectacular Teacher-Man: Comics as Primary Text in a Science Classroom," and Nick Sousanis, a graduate student at Columbia University, Teachers College, contributed part of his doctoral dissertation, which is being written in comic book form. The piece is titled "Comics as a Tool for Inquiry." Robin Becker, who has written four volumes of poetry, contributed "Bird of Prey" from her 2006 book "Domain of Perfect Affection."

Juniata faculty also are well represented in the anthology. Alison Fletcher, associate professor of history, presented "Not All Those Who Wander Are Lost," a roadmap for students that tells them to eschew roadmaps. Brad Andrew, associate professor of economics, teamed with 2012 graduate Gabe Castro to outline "Can You Beat the Market? Evaluating a Simple Investment Strategy," which revealed how colleges with small endowments can maximize growth for their investments. Michael Henderson, associate professor of French at Juniata, answered his title question in "Without Art, How Would We Know Each Other?" by talking about Francophone literature and how the ultimate role of literature is in defining a cultural identity and "delivering" that culture beyond its borders.

Richard Hark, professor of chemistry at Juniata, spoke on using high-tech laser analysis tools to identify pigments in artwork in the lecture, "Investigating the Juniata College Collection of Pennsylvania German Fraktur: Art Historical Perspectives and Scientific Analysis."

Contact April Feagley at feaglea@juniata.edu or (814) 641-3131 for more information.