25th Annual AURCO Conference

Friday Night Reception & Ignite Talks (April 5): 7:00 PM - 11:00 PM	Download Schedule-at-a-Glance
Saturday Conference (April 6): 7:30 AM - 2:15 PM	Download the Poster
AURCO Business Meeting (April 6): 2:30 - 4:00 PM

The Apple Falls Close to the Tree: Regional Campuses in our Own Backyard

We hope to see you at the 25th Annual AURCO Conference. Our theme “The Apple Falls Close to the Tree” refers to the regional campus system in Ohio that links us in positive and productive ways to our main campus universities —“Regional Campuses in our Own Backyard.”

When

Conference: Saturday, April 6, 2019
Reception: Friday Evening, April 5, 2019

Where

KSU Regional Academic Center
2745 Creekside Drive
Twinsburg, OH 44087

2019 Conference General Chair

Conference Chair: Renate Prescott ~~ Email: rprescot@kent.edu

Keynote Speaker

Keynote Speaker Presentation: K, R, and P Vitamins for Ohio’s Regional Campuses
Nathan P. Ritchey, Ph.D.

Vice President for Kent State System Integration
Interim Dean, Regional College
Saturday, April 6, 2019, 8:30-9:00 a.m.
Regional Academic Center, Twinsburg

Nathan Ritchey is the senior officer responsible for the oversight of Kent State University’s seven Regional Campuses, with faculty rank as a full professor in mathematics. He also currently is the Interim Dean of Kent State’s Regional College and oversees eSPorts.

Dr. Ritchey previously served as vice president for strategic initiatives and founding dean of the College of Science and Health Professions at Edinboro University of Pennsylvania. Prior to that, he served for 24 years at Youngstown State University and held faculty and administrative positions, starting in 1989, earning the rank of professor in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics and department chair from 2000 to 2013. He also worked as a medical researcher at St. Elizabeth Health System in Youngstown, Ohio, from 1990-2000.

Ritchey’s areas of expertise include mathematics, operations research, mathematical modeling, medical decision making, probability and university accreditation. He has authored numerous articles and co-authored several mathematics textbooks.

After receiving a Bachelor of Arts in mathematics degree from Mansfield University of Pennsylvania, Ritchey earned a Master of Science in applied mathematics degree and a Ph.D. in mathematics from Carnegie Mellon University.

Friday Night Reception

Friday, April 5, 2019
6:00-9:00 PM
D’oeuvres & Cash Bar
Hilton Garden Inn
8971 Wilcox Dr.
Twinsburg, OH 44087
866-238-8235
330-405-4488

The AURCO reception will be held at the Twinsburg Hilton Garden Inn Friday, April 5, from 6:00 until 9:00 p.m. (inquire at the front desk for the specific location). D’oeuvres will be served, and a cash bar will be available along with two complimentary tickets per guest.

The evening’s entertainment will feature Billy Crowbeak Faluski, who has been creating Native American style flutes since the early 1980s and performing at various venues in Northern Ohio since the 1990s.

“Although not tribally enrolled, I am proud of my Cherokee descent on my mother’s side. My love of the Native flute began after hearing the music of Arnold Richardson, a Tuscarora elder, at a pow wow. Arnold began mentoring me in my journey as a flute maker. Over the years, I have seen the interest in the Native flute grow and enjoy sharing this gift with anyone willing to listen. The simple melodies seem to bring peace and tranquility to those who open their hearts to it.”

Visit Billy Crowbeak’s flute making site at www.woodpeckercreationsflutes.com, and at Facebook at Billy Crowbeak Faluski. Listen to samples of his songs and see his flutes on the Youtube channel Billy Crowbeak.

Reception: Friday, April 5, 2023
Conference: Saturday, April 6, 2023 

Download Schedule-at-a-Glance 

Download Conference Poster 

Download Campus Map 

Conference Chair

Monica Widdig widdigm@ucmail.uc.edu

Conference Location

University of Cincinnati Blue Ash College
9555 Plainfield Road
Blue Ash, Ohio 45236

Keynote Speaker

John T. McNay, PhD
Professor of History
University of Cincinnati – Blue Ash

Bread and Roses: An Academic Tale
Regarding the work that we all do, John McNay will review the political and academic environment as it has developed in Ohio over the last couple of years. He will examine the several controversies over attempts to control what we can teach, how we can teach, and what tools we can use. He will discuss threats and successes regarding academic freedom and shared governance. And he will suggest strategies to ensure our ability to continue to do the vital work of quality education in Ohio.

John T. McNay, PhD, is a specialist in the history of American Foreign Relations and a professor of history at the University of Cincinnati, Blue Ash College. His special focus is the Cold War. Professor McNay has published books on the period and received a research fellowship at the Nobel Peace Institute in Oslo, Norway in 2016. But most AURCO members will know him from his work with the AAUP. He was president of the UC AAUP union chapter in 2010–2012 and served as president of the AAUP’s Ohio Conference for eight years until 2020. In 2015, the national AAUP gave him the Al Sumberg Award for work defending academic freedom and governance in Ohio. He has also received awards for service from UCBA and UC’s Faculty Senate. He was recently elected to the AAUP’s national council. A Montana native, McNay has taught at UCBA for 22 years. 

Reception & Ignite Talks: Friday, April 5, 2024
Conference: Saturday, April 6, 2024 

Download Conference Poster 

Conference Chair

Caryn E. Neumann, PhD
neumance@miamioh.edu

Conference Location

Miami University Middletown
4200 N University Blvd
Middletown, OH 45042

Keynote Speaker

Dr. Helane Adams Androne
Languages, Literatures, and Writing
Miami University Middletown

Dr. Helane Adams Androne is a Professor in the Languages, Literatures, and Writing Department at Miami University Middletown, where she teaches ethnic American literatures and speculative fiction. In her 21 years in academia, she has chaired a department and co-directed the Ohio Writing Project's graduate program (twice now) for K-12 teachers. She has also published articles in a number of journals, including Pedagogy: Critical Approaches to Teaching Literature, Language, Composition, and Culture; MELUS: Multi-Ethnic Literature of the United States; The Journal of Pan-African Studies; and, The Journal of Communication and Religion.

She has successfully single/co-authored almost $200K in external and internal grants, has presented for more than 70 conferences, workshops, and lectures (including for the Smithsonian), and has 2 books and more than 15 other academic and artistic publications. Helane's current research focus is on the emergence, use, and validation of the sacred. She's been working on a book that examines myths and magic as the sacred in texts by Octavia Butler, N.K. Jemisin, and Nnedi Okorafor. She's fascinated by how black women authors use the sacred as an activist methodology for community and belonging, expanding love relationships, and for the survival of trauma.

Dr. Helane also has part-time gigs as a writer, actor/VO Artist, and entrepreneur, but her craziest gig to date is being a wife and mom in a loud, ridiculously snarky family.