General News

Eastern MBA Student Researches Gender Transition Issues
Story and photo by Marc Schoder
Communication Services

Rose Clark-Hitt, an MBA student at Eastern New Mexico University, wanted to help transgender people, but was not sure how to best reach people about the issue of gender transition – the process of fixing incongruence between physical sex and psychological gender.

"I wanted to do anything I could to help people who are going through gender transition," says Ms. Clark-Hitt. "Those who have gone through it have a lot of problems with their families as well as in the workplace."

She says that she co-wrote the case study, "A Beautiful Swan," to focus on the individual and organizational ramifications of gender transition in the workplace. Dr. John Humphreys, assistant professor of management at ENMU, was co-author.

When she came to Eastern a couple of years ago she met Mike Holt, a professor teaching a 300-level counseling class. He let her speak to his counseling students because few had heard of or had any experience with someone going through gender transition.

The birth of her paper did not fully develop, according to Ms. Clark-Hitt, until she ended up in the College of Business at ENMU. "I didn't think of applying it to business until I took Organizational Behavior from Dr. Lee Weyant a year ago." In that class, after studying diversity management, she wrote a term paper on gender transition in the workplace, namely the implications for management.

The hours of research and interviews Ms. Clark-Hitt conducted found that many laws on gender transition were shifting around the country. "I found a lot of information about laws that are changing. New Mexico just became the third state last April to pass a law to prevent discrimination toward people based on gender identity."

Ms. Clark-Hitt based her research paper on diversity management literature in general because there is very little research on gender transition in the workplace. "I did interviews for that paper and the number one thing that helped management and co-workers deal with it was education," she says. Last spring, after presenting her paper at a research conference at Eastern, she decided to look for more answers to her question: "Does education really help?" The answer took her to northern California.

"I flew out there to interview six people, for five or six hours one afternoon, who have gone through gender transition and find out what there experiences were," says Ms. Clark-Hitt. "I wanted to find out what they had gone through so that I could take their general impressions and write a fictional case study to encompass all of the general experiences people go through."

Some of the problems related to going through the gender-transitioning process ranged from being demoted to a job in the basement away from the general public, to being outright terminated, and being threatened and harassed.

The case study was focused to business students and human resource managers in order to make them think, "What would I do if I were in this situation?" According to Ms. Clark-Hitt, some people who went through a gender change composed detailed letters describing what they were experiencing, and that it is actually a medical condition called Gender Identity Disorder. Some of them went into medical causes; what the transition involved, like living as the opposite gender for a year and undergoing medical treatments. They outlined the steps they were going to go through so that their co-workers would understand what was happening and would not be as afraid.

Most of the people that Ms. Clark-Hitt talked to said that explaining everything upfront gave them more success with the transition because it helped reduce other people’s anxiety about the unknown, making it easier for everyone. In her interviews, Ms. Clark-Hitt found that many of the companies would not have formal training sessions, but that several of the subjects of the gender changes were allowed to send out letters stating what they were going through.

One problem that everyone in the interviews had experienced was the bathroom issue with co-workers. Some co-workers, women and men alike, were not comfortable with sharing the bathroom with someone who was changing their gender. Most human resources managers came up with the temporary solution of a unisex bathroom.

According to Ms. Clark-Hitt, the purpose of the case study is for human resource managers to make them ask themselves how they would handle the situation. One of the considerations in handling such a case concerns legal requirements like, "Can I fire the person?" If that option is available some companies will often simply fire the person. On the other hand, many Fortune 500 companies have policies against discriminating against transgender people.

This summer, Ms. Clark-Hitt will present her study at The Fourth International Conference in Organizations, Communities and Nations at UCLA.

ENMU Graduate Student Writes Book Article on Reunion with Father and Two Half-Sisters
by Jessica Raynor
Amarillo Globe-News
(reprinted by permission)

Tracy Chavez of Portales sat on the plane feeling her stomach churn. How could she face him, the man who abandoned her years before? The man who
everyone says gave her the red hair on her head, the freckles on her face? Who had her on her knees every night for 19 years, praying for his return?

She thought she had a little time to confront her father, to see the sister she hadn't seen since she was a toddler. The universe had other plans.

``My (older) sister Lissa (Bussby) peeked her head around the corner (in the terminal),'' said Chavez, now 22. ``I knew she was my sister somehow. You could
tell both of us were trying not to cry. She points over and says there's your dad. It was like looking in a mirror.''

Her story of reuniting with her father, Ronnie, and meeting another half-sister she didn't know about will be published next month in a story collection called ``TRUE: Real Stories About God Showing Up in the Lives of Teens.''

Irene Dunlap, author of the collection, said Chavez wrote a strong story – strong enough to beat out 80 other submissions.

``She realized that she could trust God through the whole storm, that she had enough faith through the whole thing,'' Dunlap said. ``She could look back
in retrospect and see God was with her all along.''

Chavez didn't think that three years ago she'd write a story about seeing her father again. She was getting used to college life at Eastern New Mexico
University, moving forward with her dream to become a writer. She never forgot that her father took her half-sister, Lissa, and left town,barely keeping in contact. She never forgot how that put a little emptiness in her childhood in Belen, N.M., driving her to look in phone books when she traveled to find her father's name.

``After praying for years and years, I didn't think it was going to happen,'' she said."

One day during her freshman year, Chavez was urged by her roommate to listen to an answering machine message. It was Lissa. Chavez returned the message, and an awkward conversation ensued. At the end, Chavez had the contact information for her father and eventually set up a meeting on her Christmas break in 2000.

That's when she met her half-sister, Elena Simmons, in Albuquerque, the daughter from another of her father's failed marriages.

``I remember looking at my sister (then 15 years old) and thinking `she's beautiful,''' Chavez said. ``She has beautiful eyes. How is she related to me?''

A couple of days later, Elena Simmons accompanied her on that fateful flight to Marshall, Texas, to meet Ronnie Simmons, her father – another awkward reunion. ``We found something we both had in common,'' she said. ``I'm addicted to coffee. We talked about how he's addicted to coffee, too."

She told him how she felt about his leaving. She told him she wanted a relationship, but only if he was ready. She hasn't heard from him or her sister Lissa since. But the experience brought her closer with Elena, now a freshman at the University of New Mexico. Elena Simmons also recently played the saxophone at Chavez' wedding at ENMU campus fountain.

Chavez wrote about what she learned about in her story, titled ``Desires of the Heart:''

``Instead of answering my prayers, knowing that I'd be even more hurt from it, God waited until it was the right time,'' she wrote. ``He waited until I was mature enough to accept it because He knew I would be disappointed. He knew.''
(photo by Wendel Sloan)

Editor's Note: There was also a nice feature about Tracy, written by editor Mike Linn, on the front page of Sunday's Portales News-Tribune.

ENMU Offering Two-Saturdays Course on Lewis and Clark
by Scarlet Smith
ENMU Communication Services

Eastern New Mexico University is offering a one-credit-hour, two-Saturdays course highlighting the Lewis and Clark Expedition. History 493/593 will be taught by Dr. Donald C. Elder III, professor and chair of history.

The course will meet on two Saturdays: Feb. 7 from 8 a.m. to noon and 1-5 p.m., and on Feb. 21 from 8 a.m. to noon and 1-4 p.m. The course will meet on the Portales campus, but will be broadcast to instructional television sites in Clovis, Hobbs, Roswell and Ruidoso.

According to Dr. Elder, 2004 marks the 200th anniversary of the beginning of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Since then, the United States has sponsored many other voyages of exploration, both on earth and in outer space. This course will examine this rich history of exploration, paying close attention to the causes and effects of the expeditions.

“This is a perfect course for anyone that may just need that one extra hour to graduate, or is interested in the history of this era,” said Dr. Elder.

For more information or to register, please contact: Extended learning, ENMU Station #9, Quay Hall, Room 106, Portales, NM 88130, or call 505.562.2165, or the toll free number in New Mexico is 800.537.5376, FAX 505.562.2168, or e-mail Donald.elder@enmu.edu.

Amarillo High Graduate Was First Player to Sign with Zia Soccer Team
by Tracy Chavez
Communication Services

When Anna Funck graduated from Amarillo High School, she made her way across the state line to Eastern New Mexico University where she was the first player to sign with the inaugural soccer team.

Head coach Travis McCorkle said he had known Ms. Funck and thought her soccer skills and personality would be a good blend for the team. Ms. Funck said she liked the soccer staff and after visiting the ENMU campus made her decision to become a Zia.

She proved to be a good choice for the University, scoring the team's first two goals during a pre-season scrimmage. "Zia's get Funck-y," the newspaper said.

"She contributed to the team through her technical ability, her strong club background and her individual toughness," Coach McCorkle commented.

Ms. Funck spent the season playing defense, though in the past when playing for AHS and Amarillo club teams she played as an offender.

"The season went well," she said. "We proved everyone wrong who thought we'd come in last in the Lone Star Conference." ENMU placed ninth out of 10 teams.
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"We need to work on some stuff, but I'm satisfied with it being a first-year team," Ms. Funck said.

Ms. Funck made headlines again when she was nominated by the LSC as Player of the Week and then at the end of the season when she was voted Second Team All - LSC.

"It was shocking, I wasn't expecting it," she said.

Coach McCorkle said that Ms. Funck making Second Team All-LSC is an affirmation that her efforts were noticed for the whole year, not just for one week. He said that she is deserving of the awards and is pleased with her season accomplishments.

Currently, her younger sister, April, is following her big sister's path and playing varsity soccer at AHS.

When Ms. Funck isn't at the field, she's hanging out with the friends she's made at ENMU. "I've made a lot of friends here; I'm planning on staying here all four years," she said.

Ms. Funck eventually wants to coach soccer, but hasn't yet decided on a major.

"I would recommend Eastern because the classes are small and it's not that big of a change coming in from high school," she said. "The teachers here know you – and that's a good thing."
(photo by Jill Butler)

ENMU Presenting 'Of Mice and Men'
by Scarlet Smith
Communication Services

Eastern New Mexico University will present "Of Mice and Men" on Feb. 19-21 at 8 p.m. on the Mainstage of the University Theater Center. Tickets can be purchased in advance or at the door. Mainstage tickets are $7 general admission, $6 senior citizen, $5 pre-college, and $4 for ENMU students, with current activities stickers.
The box office opens a week before the first performance from noon to 6 p.m. Performance nights the box office re-opens at 7 p.m.

The play is directed by Ms. Janeice Scarbrough, associate professor of theater.

A John Steinbeck novel, "Of Mice and Men" is a story of the relationship between two cousins, George, a soft-spoken farm laborer, and Lennie, a sweet, mildly retarded cousin. In the harvest season, they find themselves working with other men, a foreman named Curly and his beautiful wife. A misunderstanding takes place between Curley's wife and Lennie and one day the situation escalates into a tragic conclusion.

For information, please call 505.562.2711.

ENMU Is On TV
Eastern is currently sponsoring the 7:56 a.m. local news break on KOBR-TV in Roswell each Wednesday morning during the Today Show. After an announcement that the newscast is sponsored by Eastern New Mexico University, a 30-second award-winning ENMU TV spot is shown. If you have the right software, you can view the spot by clicking here.

ENMU Women Sponsoring 'Lovers for Learning' Dinner
The Eastern New Mexico University Women organization is sponsoring a "Lovers for Learning" scholarship fundraiser dinner at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 10, upstairs at The Roosevelt restaurant in Portales.

The Valentine's dinner will feature musical entertainment and a silent auction. Tickets are $25 per ticket, with proceeds going toward women's scholarships at ENMU.
The menu includes a choice of green chili chicken or 8-ounce New York center cut steak.

At least year's event, ENMU Women raised more than $1,400 for women's scholarships. The dinner is not intended to be a "for couples only" event. Anyone who wants to support women's education at ENMU is encouraged to attend. Seating capacity is limited to 70.

For ticket information, call 505.562.2347 or 505.359.0745.

ENMU-Roswell, ENMU-Portales Partner with Literacy Project
by Donna Gutierrez
ENMU-Roswell

Eastern New Mexico University-Roswell and ENMU have teamed up with the High Plains Writing Project, the Roswell Public Library, NMMI, RISD, Valley Christian Academy, the Roswell Literacy Council, Sertoma, and interested businesses to develop positive literacy experiences for area residents. The One Book, One Community event called 'Roswell Reads Tuesdays With Morrie' will kick off at the Roswell Civic and Convention Center, 912 N. Main, on Tuesday, Feb. 3 at 7 p.m.

The book, "Tuesdays With Morrie," by Mitch Albom, was chosen for its pertinent themes of love, family, and community. From Feb. 3 through March 9, project partners are inviting everyone in Roswell and surrounding communities to read and discuss "Tuesdays With Morrie." Teachers can use the text in the classroom, families and friends can discuss the topics over dinner, and colleagues in professions from carpentry to computers can discuss how topics in the book affect them personally. On six consecutive Tuesdays, the committee will provide opportunities for people from all walks of life to join together to discuss the important issues the book addresses.

On Feb. 3 at the Civic Center, residents can learn more about the programs that will be available throughout the month, hear dramatic readings by students, and see an excerpt of a televised interview with Morrie. Copies of the book will be on sale for $8.50 and a limited number of books will also be available for checkout. In addition, participants can get information on beginning a book club, initiating family discussions, and collecting oral histories. Representatives of several Roswell organizations that promote literacy, like ENMU-Roswell, will set up information tables.

The other "Roswell Reads Tuesdays With Morrie"' activities are:

• Feb. 10 – Public book discussion, 7 p.m., Roswell Civic Center
• Feb. 17 – Panel discussion on medical issues, 7 p.m., Mabee Hall, NMMI
• Feb. 24 – Public discussion, 3:30 p.m., Roswell Public Library, Bondurant Room
• March 2 – Panel discussion on spiritual issues, 7 p.m., Mabee Hall, NMMI
• March 9 – Wrap-up celebration with poetry and art, 7 p.m., Roswell Civic Cente
  

February Issue of 'The Grapevine,' ENMU-Roswell's Newsletter, Hot Off the Cyber Presses

To read, click here.

Special Thank You

Thank you to Dr. Patrice Caldwell, Dr. John Montgomery and Gene Bundy for taking the time to be tour guides for a reporter, Olivier Uyttebrouck, and a photographer, Richard Pipes, from the Albuquerque Journal when they were on campus Friday and Saturday. Many other ENMU folks, too numerous to mention, were also involved – so please don't be offended that we can't mention all of you. Mr. Uyttebrouck and Mr. Pipes were here to visit the Blackwater Draw site, as well as Dr. Jack Williamson. We also thank Mr. Uyttebrouck and Mr. Pipes for making the long drive from Albuquerque. (See related photos in the "Candid Camera" section below.)

If you would like to publicize a special thank you to someone, e-mail information to monday.memo@enmu.edu.

Don't Forget
The Greyhounds play their bitter arch rivals, the Buffaloes of West Texas A&M University, in basketball at 7:30 tonight in Greyhound Arena. The Zias and Greyhounds beat Angelo State University in a doubleheader Friday night in Greyhound Arena. The Zias are off tonight.

Employee Briefs

Dr. John Humphreys, College of Business, and Dr. Walter Einstein, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, have authored an article titled "Leadership and Temperament Congruence: Extending the Expectancy Model of Work Motivation." The article will appear in a forthcoming issue of the Journal of Leadership and Organizational Studies.

Dr. John Humphreys, assistant professor of management, has been selected as the new editor for the Journal of Behavioral and Applied Management.

Dr. Michael F. Shaughnessy has had a paper accepted for publication in the Florida Reading Journal. He recently presented two papers at the New Mexico International Reading Association meeting in Carlsbad, N. M.

Robert Sprague, assistant professor of business administration in the College of Business, has had accepted and recommended for publication by Idea Group, Inc. a proposed book, Cyberlaw for the IT Manager: The IT Manager s Legal Guide in the Internet Age. Professor Sprague recently published a chapter, Liability for System and Data Quality, in the Idea Group publication, Social, Ethical and Policy Implications of Information Systems.

Chris Beaty, assistant professor of music, spent the weekend of Jan. 23-25 guest conducting one of three New Mexico All-State honor jazz bands. He was also invited to perform as a featured soloist with the Albuquerque Jazz Orchestra on the Saturday evening concert while in attendance.

Trio Encantada, featuring Dr. Tracy Carr, oboist; Dr. Jeanie Wozencraft-Ornellas, lyric soprano; and Dr. Mark Dal Porto, pianist and composer, performed three full-length recitals at Blithewold Mansion, Bristol, R.I., Dec. 27, 2003, and at The Breakers Mansion, Newport, R.I., Dec. 28, 2003. (photo provided to Monday Memo by Tracy Carr)

Dr. Jeanie Wozencraft-Ornellas, Dr. Mark Dal Porto, and Dr. Tracy Carr, after five presentations at the Hawaii International Conference on Arts and Humanities, Honolulu, Hawaii, Jan. 8-11, 2004. The three collaborated on a 90-minute panel discussion titled: A University Music School Assessment Strategy: A Comprehensive Approach for Music Majors, and a 60-minute lecture-recital, From Commission to Performance: A Behind the Scenes Look at the Musical & Creative Process, featuring Dr. Dal Porto's Three Nocturnes for Oboe, Voice, and Piano. Dr. Dal Porto also presented The Science of Sound and Music and The Structural Similarities Between Music and Speech, and Dr. Carr presented a lecture-recital on Benjamin Britten's Six Metamorphoses after Ovid for solo oboe.

Dr. Jeanie Wozencraft-Ornellas, professor of voice at ENMU, has been accepted for inclusion in the 2004 Who's Who in America's Teachers. Outstanding teachers are nominated for this honor by their students.


Candid Camera

Mystery Photo Contest

Seventh-Grade Stumper – Here was the mystery photo which stumped most of the faithful who usually enter our contests. When we contacted some after their silence became as deafening as basketballs at an Altrusa convention, they said that not only could they barely see the mystery employee (second from left), they didn't want to be wrong and embarrassed in cyber print. Of course, anyone who knows the sensitivity of our editorial "board" realizes the foundationlessness of this fear. (photo courtesy of Doncella Caywood)

Mystery Twirler Revealed (photo by Jill Butler)

Finally, It Actually Is Betty Crane – After years (at least two) of the Monday Memo's forever-taking-a-shot-in-the-dark readers wrongly guessing that our Mystery Photo Contest subjects were Betty Crane, it finally was her – and only four readers got it right. Even in this photo, as our Registrar draws the winning entry from the four discerning responses, you can see the finely-honed digits of a former twirler. Thos who made the connection with the nimble fingers were Pat Thatcher, Dona Skinner, Nancy Gentry and Elizabeth Galligan. Other guesses of the identity of the mystery woman included Minnie Navarro, Jennifer Poyer, LeNeva Madden and Norma Stroik. To protect from embarrassment, we do not reveal the identity of those guessing wrong.

And the Winner Is... (photo by Jill Butler)

Our Very Own Operator of Reproduction Machines – Dona Mae Skinner. Here, (right) Norma Stroik, administrative coordinator of athletics and the subject of one of the wrongful mystery guesses, presents our winning University Printing employee two choice tickets to tonight's (Monday, Feb. 2) men's basketball game against Eastern's bitter arch rival – the Buffaloes from West Texas A&M University. The game begins at 7:30 p.m. in Greyhound Arena, so come out and help Dona Mae give a boost to the good guys in green.

Scenes from Jessica Andrews Concert (sponsored by Student Activities and Organizations) (photos by Richard Salas and Wendel Sloan)

Visit from the Albuquerque Journal (photos by Wendel Sloan)

To Jack's House – Higher education writer Olivier Uyttebrouck and long-time photographer Richard Pipes from the Albuquerque Journal were on campus Friday and Saturday to visit Dr. Jack Williamson, Eastern's world-reknowned science fiction writer, as well as the Blackwater Draw archaeological site. The articles are expected to run in the Albuquerque Journal in the near future.

Olivier and Gene – Olivier Uyttebrouck, higher education writer for the Albuquerque Journal, was given a tour of the Jack Williamson Science Fiction Library in Eastern's Golden Library by Gene Bundy, the guru of Special Collections. The two had just attended a science fiction class at Dr. Williamson's house on Saturday morning.

President Bush Visits Roswell (photos by Donna Gutierrez)

And ENMU-Roswell Folks Were There

Win a Love(ly) Basket

From AEOP – You can win this Valentine's Basket which AEOP is selling $1 chances for as a part of their fund-raising efforts for scholarships. Tickets can be purchased from any AEOP member. You shouldn't have any trouble finding a member since they're thick as pies around campus. For ordering other Valentine goodies, click here . (courtesy photo)

Please don't forget to read the "Announcements" by clicking on them at the top of this page.

The Monday Memo is published by the Office of Communication Services Editor Wendel Sloan Monday.memo@enmu.edu 505.562.2253 Staff Writers Scarlet Smith Marc Schoder Helena Rodriguez Staff Photographer Richard Salas ENMU-Roswell Contributing Editor Donna Gutierrez ENMU-Ruidoso Contributing Editor Jim Miller Technical Support ENMU Web Team