Letters To The Editor April 27, 2006
Posted by westernconcept in Opinions/Editorials.comments closed
Note: The following letters are opinions of people who are not affiliated with The Western Concept. The Concept does not, in any way, endorse or reject the views. The Concept is also not liable for any of the views expressed.
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ROCK VANDALIZED:
In your piece “DSU Rock Vandalized” you state that “The DSU Rock in front of Klinefelter Hall was vandalized over Friday night by a group of unknown students.” Why “unknown students”? Why “students”? Couldn’t it be anyone?
- Mike Frank
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Editor’s note:
The phrase “unknown students” has been replaced by “unknown people.” Thank you for your input.
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TUITION INCREASE:
Sudden significant tuition increases will always attract attention. Yet for planning purposes, students should be demanding a regular increase that reflects inflationary increases plus a certain percentage for growth. Were such an idea implemented, students could also campaign for tuition and fee rates that were made clear (including anticipated increases) when they first enrolled and function just as the catalogue does for courses. Students could plan accordingly and unless confronted by unforseen circumstances, the university would have the funds it needs for growth.
- David A. Meier
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THEODORE ROOSEVELT HONORS PROGRAM:
I would just like to comment on the TR program’s celebration of its fifth anniversary. According to the article, “The program marked its fifth year of existence in 2006.” My only problem with this celebration is that the program was created in the year 2000, making 2006 its sixth anniversary. The first group of TR’s received their scholarships in the spring of 2000, and came to DSU in the fall. Therefore, one could say the program either began in the spring, when the first group received their award letter; or in the fall, when they started school. Either way, this would mean the program is wrapping up its fifth year, not starting it, as the article implies. I suppose some people may enjoy celebrating anniversaries at the end of the year, but normally people celebrate anniversaries on the actual date, or at least close to the date. What the program is doing is like someone celebrating their 20th birthday as they are about to turn 21.
- A TR Scholar
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CANDIDATE WRITES ABOUT INVESTMENT IN NORTH DAKOTA:
Double-digit tuition increases. $80 per student per semester fees for a ConnectND system that doesn’t work like it was supposed to. Budget cuts to student loan programs. Not enough career opportunities. Is it any wonder North Dakota has an out-migration problem? And why doesn’t anyone seem to be doing anything about it? For too long, North Dakota has neglected to invest in its most important resource – its young people. Fortunately, election year 2006 presents an opportunity to change all that. By getting involved at the grass roots level, and following through at the ballot box, young people can help bring about the positive change that this state so urgently needs. The coming election cycle will present many opportunities for students to make their voices heard, like getting involved with campus political organizations, volunteering as campaign workers, sending letters to the editor, blogging or emailing friends and family in support of particular issues or candidates and, of course, voting on Election Day. With your help, North Dakota can be a better place for young people.Brent Edison
Tax Commissioner Candidate
P.O. Box 1276
Bismarck, ND
58502-1276
701-527-5376
Brent@BrentEdison.com
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I really appreciated Lisa Rask’s fine article about the TR Program marking its fifth year. The anonymous reader is correct, the TR Program is just now completing its sixth year of existence, but the occasion of the article was a five-year program review, which took place after the TR Program had completed its fifth year. So the TR Program is indeed six years old, but the milestone observed just recently was the completion of five years. The important thing, in my opinion, is what a terrific article Lisa wrote, and that she tells the the story of an Honors Leadership Program of which we can all be proud. Dickinson State University has crafted a unique, substantive leadership studies curriculum, putting its own stamp on the common approach to honors education, and has supported it to a degree rarely found in institutions of this size. These are not just my opinions, they’re some of the observations you will find in the final report of the 5-year program review final report. (By the way, the site visit team that conducted that review consisted of two past presidents of the National Collegiate Honors Council.) You’ll be hearing more about that report in coming issues of The Western Concept, and the students, staff and faculty who are shaping the future of the TR Program will use it as a guide to continuous improvement for another five, or six, years!
-Dr. James Tallmon
North Dakota Progressive Coalition Urges State To Remove Education Roadblocks For College Students April 24, 2006
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by Associate Writer
BISMARCK) – As parents and students prepare paperwork for financial aid filings next year, they’re finding it more difficult than ever to pay for higher education in
North Dakota. The North Dakota Board of Higher Education recently approved a 9 percent increase in tuition at campuses across the state. “This creates another roadblock for prospective students,” Ryan Gustafson, communications Director for the North Dakota Progressive Coalition, said. “A good government removes roadblocks – it doesn’t make them worse.” The tuition increase is baffling because the Bank of North Dakota, the only state-owned bank in the country, earned record profits last year, according to Gustafson. The bank administers over $450 million worth of student loans, making it the largest section of their holdings, and much of the profits were derived from student loans. “Our state’s leaders are more interested in making profit than making college affordable,” Gustafson said. “Student loan payments don’t create a strong economy. A well-paid, highly-educated, local workforce does.” Average wages in
North Dakota are the fourth lowest in the country and 25 percent below the national average. A recent survey indicated
North Dakota lost population over the past five years. “We’re driving graduates out of state,” he said. “Raising the tuition rates for another consecutive year doesn’t make sense. We should expect more from our state’s leaders, especially considering the Bank of North Dakota’s record profits.” Students and parents are also hit with the repercussions of the $12.7 billion cut to student loans approved by the U.S. Congress and President Bush in February. “When student loans are cut at the same time $90 billion are given away in tax cuts mostly to the wealthiest, the problem obviously is priorities, not money,” Gustafson said. Gustafson, 22, graduated from
Concordia
College in
Moorhead, Minn., in 2005. The North Dakota Progressive Coalition is a statewide non-profit advocacy group for economic and social justice.
DSU Rock Vandalized April 24, 2006
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by Staff Writer
The DSU Rock in front of Klinefelter Hall was vandalized over Friday night by a group of unknown people. While it was expected that students and sympathizers from and outside Dickinson State would participate in painting the Rock over the weekend, it came as a surprise when someone wrote “Mary Rocks DSU” on the Rock.
The authorities said that such pranks were to be expected. Some students even argued that the group belonged to Dickinson State. The group, the students alleged, painted the anti-DSU slogan in order to create a buzz about the Rock.
To learn more about the DSU Rock, please read our article titled “For Those About To Rock…”
What Immigration? April 21, 2006
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by Sudeep Simkhada
First, there was the gag about Frist. The pundits mobbed in and carped about Frist’s support for the House bill: “Frist, Do No Harm,” they bleated. They denounced the bill and gave us a lecture on morality: Jacob Weisberg wrote in Slate that the bill is “principled, impractical, and gratuitously cruel.” The bill, as passed by the Republican-heavy House, would make it a crime for Americans to help illegal immigrants, erect a 700-mile-long fence along the US-Mexico border, and criminalize illegal immigration by making it an “aggravated” felony. Apparently, the bill is a farce. However, the bill does have a point: the rules have changed. The paranoia is justifiable: America has to spot the terrorists, America has to stop the terrorists, and America has to have the right to strike preemptively. And where else to begin but with the illegal immigrants: the terrorists could infiltrate!
Following the House bill, there was the great Kennedy-McCain bill. Once again, the critics swarmed in and picketed: “No Amnesty,” they cawed. They think that such “amnesty” would only encourage further migration. The bill, if passed, would let the estimated 11 million illegal immigrants ultimately achieve full citizenship and create a program for “guest workers,” a phrase that President Bush is intent on using every time he talks about immigration reform. Apparently, the bill fails to appease the far right. However, the bill is also justifiable: America needs the workers, America needs to welcome similar workers, and America should always stand for Justice and Freedom. And where else to begin but with the illegal immigrants: they are already trained and able to work!
And then there was Specter’s compromise that passed the Senate Judiciary Committee but failed to go anywhere. A prime example of the Hegelian dialectic process, indeed!
According to Fareed Zakaria’s recent article in Newsweek, Europe has been experimenting with “guest worker” programs for quite a while. And, Zakaria maintains, they have all been flops. Meanwhile, the morality squad in America claims that such programs would be “exploitative and un-American.” Amidst all this, major cities across the U.S. were filled with throngs of people rallying for immigration reform. Where will America go now?
Everyone agrees that it is time America came up with a broad plan to deal with the issue. But how broad is broad enough?
Actually, it is time America does away with quasi-reforms that are just capitalist ploys disguised as moral incentives. It should open up its borders, but not just to everybody yet; America should declare itself open to the rich, the energized, and the elite individuals yearning to escape from the harshness of reality. To this end, the administration could provide more tax cuts to the rich who are already here. The Senate could mull over a bill that automatically lets anybody from anywhere with at least a few million dollars worth of corporation hedge funds gain a path to citizenship. The House, in turn, could pass a bill that would make it illegal for anybody to be poor and “yearning to breathe free.” And, they should not stop there. They should also pass a bill that does away with equality: some big shots in Washington will get to be more equal than others. Then, the competent FEMA could take measures to move the millions of poor Americans to Mexico or Canada – only the rich get to stay here. This way, the United States of America could make a smooth transition into becoming the United Free Capitalists of the World where all the nastiest corporations could find a safe harbor. On second thoughts, that has already happened. Probably the only thing left now is to get rid of the poor.
But then, who will mow the Capitalist lawns for dirt money? Who will be the “agricultural workers”? Who gets to do the laborious construction jobs? Who will do the dirty work in restaurants? Who will be nanny?
I bet the “amnesty” will be granted. Eventually.
Nobel Prize For the ‘Ubersexual’ April 20, 2006
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By Natasha Ryzhova, Op-Ed Editor
America, make way for the ‘ubersexuals.’
On April 14, the Nobel Prize Committee published a list of the nominees for the No-bel Peace Prize. Immediately, some “experts” and self-professed Nobel fanatics started blogging and choking on the Internet over whom the reward will go to. The majority of these second guessers championed Bono, a nominee and the lead vocalist of the musical group U2. As it happens, Bono also stands for ‘ubersexuality.’
The term ubersexual was used for the first time in Marian Salzman’s The Future of Men, which was published in September, 2005. It is derived from the German word über, which means over (or, if you insist, above). And it seems America was just about ready for another play at male sexuality.
Not everybody got used to the term metrosexuality; however, the stars of ‘ubersexual-ity’ are already storming the stage. Ubersexuals stand way above the previous stereotypes of what I like to call the “maleness” (or, if you again insist, the “malininity”) in men. Ubersexuals are not macho with women; however, that does not mean they are ineffec-tual weaklings either. They are, according to Salzman, more men than the mean men. Unlike the metrosexuals, the ubersexuals are not concerned with the different types of hairspray.
An historical analogy is possible: ubersexuals and metrosexuals are to the 21st century as the gentlemen and the “dandies” were to the 19th century. There is one difference though: gentlemen could only come from nobility. In this modern age, the ubersexuals hail from everywhere.
Ubersexuals are not afraid to express their feelings. They are always tidy and elegant. But wait; do no mistake their fine fettle for foppish foolishness. Their elegance is but a result of their extensive travels and indiscriminate erudition. They, unlike the metrosexu-als, are not narcissists. The most important thing for ubersexuals isn’t sex; their main concern is improving relations.
At the end of 2005, JMT, an internet gossip magazine, published a list of 10 flagmen of ubersexuality. The list goes: Jon Stewart (#10), Guy Richie (#9), Pierce Brosnan (#8), Ewan McGregor (#7), Barack Obama (#6), Arnold Schwarzenegger (#5), Donald Trump (#4), Bill Clinton (#3), George Clooney (#2), and, of course, Bono as the leading man.
Bono is known not only as a talented musician, but also as a public activist. He at-tends summits, conferences and meetings with leaders of various countries – often more than he attends his own concerts. He discusses Africa’s AIDS issues with President Bush, he meets the Dalai Lama about World Peace, he has dinner with the UN General Secre-tary about poverty in Africa and still, he somehow makes his way home to his family.
So who’s to stop Bono from getting the Nobel Peace Prize? Indeed, the era of the ubersexuals has only just begun.
TR Program Marks Fifth Year April 20, 2006
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by Lisa Rask, Staff Writer
Five years ago, a new program was created at Dickinson State to give outstanding students a venue to demonstrate their leadership skills. It was dubbed the Theodore Roo-sevelt Honors Leadership Program.
Each year, the TR Program accepts twenty new students from a mass of applicants. The application process consists of an essay, two letters of recommendation, a transcript with a minimum of 3.5 GPA, and the program application. The TR program now has one hundred scholars as well as an additional twenty who have special status in the program.
International students have become an increasing force in the TR Program. In fact, new positions have been formed to accommodate those students who cannot fully partici-pate in the program. Some international students are here for a short period of time but still wish to participate in the leadership program. These students are admitted under the title of TR Associates and have special status. Currently, there are fifteen TR associates.
The remaining five participants in the TR program with special status are those who have been provisionally accepted. This means that these students applied for the second semester and are using it to transition into the program. They are invited to attend events and a conference during their transition into the program.
The responsibilities of a Theodore Roosevelt Scholar include taking courses through the University’s Leadership Minor program and attending a few mandatory events. Three additional events, called co-curricular events, must be attended every se-mester as well. Some examples of events that qualify include guest speakers, interna-tional presentations, and leadership seminars. In order to maintain status as a TR Scholar, each student must maintain a 3.25 cumulative GPA and meet all attendance re-quirements.
In return for their work in the program, students have been granted a scholarship of $2000 per year for five years. For the upcoming year, scholarships have been increased for both the incoming students and the current students to $2300.
This year has been exciting for the TR Program. The program marked its fifth year of existence in 2006. Two members from the National Collegiate Honors Council came to Dickinson State to review the program. Dr. James Tallmon, director of the TR pro-gram, said the visit was very successful.
“They were highly complimentary. They considered our program very unique and said that what we’re doing is very commendable,” he said. The result of the program re-view was a report highlighting the best of the program as well as offering suggestions for improvement. “They gave us suggestions for the program that we will be implementing for the next five years,” Dr. Tallmon explained.
The TR program recently sent eleven students to the National Collegiate Honors Conference in New Orleans. These students were competitively selected to compete in the conference, and the TR program paid all expenses for their trip.
Dr. Tallmon told the Western Concept that having eleven students from a 120-student program attend such a prestigious conference is very substantial. He said that the honors program at Kent State University in Ohio has around a thousand students but they only sent seven students to the conference. Moreover, Kent State only paid for airfare and registration fees.
The students in the program are distinguishing themselves both here at Dickinson and in the state as a whole. Mallory Gustin is currently transitioning into the role of stu-dent assistant director. The outgoing student assistant director is Steffie Nenz, who will be graduating. Gustin’s new role will consist of aiding student committees, sending out emails, running the annual Fireside Chat, and doing some advising.
Aparna Subramanian is another student who has recently made news in the TR pro-gram. She has been selected as the North Dakota representative to the Upper Midwest Honors Council.
“I feel really honored to be on the Upper Midwest Honors Council as a state student representative. The way the student reps looked at it this year, the state student reps could have a bit more of an active role during the year, and to take a step in that direction we are trying to get a forum established for students around the region to post their research and discuss research. This would help make the Upper Midwest Honors Conference more than a ‘weekend thing’ and offer ideas and inspiration to students who are new to doing projects. It may also provide us with better connections on the national level, since we may have more submissions and views online,” says Subramanian.
The TR program is looking forward to a big event next year. Dickinson State Uni-versity and the TR program will be hosting the Upper Midwest Honors Conference.
“We’re starting to hit our stride as far as the students and faculty. We’re seeing more flexibility in the curriculum, more student involvement in recruitment, and the fo-cus on leadership has broadened from business to civic leadership, servant leadership, and principle-centered leadership,” noted Dr. Tallmon.
The Theodore Roosevelt Honors Leadership Program is relatively new as far as honors programs are concerned with only five years under its belt. With the review com-pleted, the program will hopefully continue to flourish in the next five years.
Staff at DSU: Mary Duttenhefer April 20, 2006
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by Staff Writer
“I’ve never really had the desire to go out of this place. When you have three kids you really don’t have the time to think about going away,” says Mary Duttenhefer, the supervisor of DSU’s Snack Bar located in the Student Center. Mary has been living in Dickinson for 34 years and has been working in the DSU cafeteria the last 16 years. A woman of remarkable inner strength and a person with exemplary qualities, Mary has been in the food service business all her life. She started her career as a bartender in a small restaurant.
“I enjoy it,” she says about her job, “[because of] all the students that come and go and the friends I make [sic] with them. I still keep in contact with quite a few of them.”
She recalls how DSU cafeteria has undergone many management changes in the years. A company called SAGA used to manage the cafeteria when she first started work-ing. SAGA formed a partnership with Marriott. After some years Sodexho came along and partnered with Marriott. Eventually Sodexho took over the entire business. The com-pany is still the sole contractor for DSU cafeteria.
Mary started working in the cafeteria as a food handler. Over the years she has worked as a retail manager and as a supervisor.
“I gave up catering work when I was working the concession because I was getting burned out. That was more than three years ago. Now I only work as a supervisor,” she says.
With a reflective look, Mary remembers how her graduating class in high school had only eleven students. She graduated from Golden Valley’s high school in 1968. The population of Golden Valley, where she was born and raised, is about 250.
“I see out-migration. A lot of kids move out in search of a better job or to go to col-lege and don’t return,” she says about the declining population of Golden Valley. “But the economy is hard everywhere anyway,” she adds thoughtfully.
Mary is married and has three sons, two daughter-in-laws and five grandchildren. Two of her sons graduated from DSU. The University has indeed been a huge part of her life.
Her duties as the supervisor for the Snack Bar involves taking orders, making daily lunch specials, checking the register and ordering change when needed, supervising and evaluating employees working under her in order to recommend promotions, and fixing things that might go wrong. In other words, Mary runs the place.
Mary has never been to the ocean but she has been to quite a few states, including Nebraska, Colorado and Minnesota.
When asked how she feels about global terrorism and the threat it poses to America, she says that the threat is very real.
“We just don’t know when they’ll strike next. The two biggest sins in the world is [sic] envy and jealousy. They’re jealous of what America is,” she contends of the terror-ists. When asked what she feels about the war in Iraq, Mary is confident that America is doing the right thing.
“I’m sure the Iraqi people are thankful,” she says.
However, during the Presidential elections national economy was of her utmost concern. She would like to see lower taxes and have industries brought to North Dakota. She considers lack of job opportunities to be the main reason why the state’s youth is moving away to bigger places.
“I have seen many changes in DSU. It grew from 800 students to whatever the en-rollment is now. Many students and professors came and left [sic] but I plan to stay since I still have some years before I retire.”
It might befuddle a cynic who might wonder how Mary could stay on top of her ca-reer for so long but the answer is quite simple.
“I love the University and my job,” says Mary quite matter-of-factly.
DSU should be proud and grateful to have an employee like her. She stands for hard work, perseverance, optimism and wisdom – qualities that DSU hopefully instills in its students.
Dr. Susan Hales Leaving Campus April 20, 2006
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by Staff Writer 
Dr. Susan Hales is a familiar face to the international students attending Dickinson State University. As the Director of Multicultural Affairs, she personally deals with 180 students on a regular basis. Enthusiastic and involved, Hales puts in a lot of hours at campus. However, she says, “You can’t look at the job by hours, because it’s based on what’s happening. It’s driven by issues and activities.” She joined DSU October last year.
It was a shock to many, then, when she submitted her resignation to the college, ef-fective at the end of the semester. Rumors abound about her leaving. Is she burned out from working so long and so hard? Has the administration put too much of a workload on her? Did they expect too much from her?
To the contrary, Hales has nothing but good to say about the university as a whole.
“I absolutely love the students,” she declares. She speaks highly of the administrative support she received. She says that she was given the freedom in making choices and tak-ing initiatives. “And you won’t hear anything differently from me when I’m gone,” she adds with a laugh.
Hales offers a unique perspective on the work she has done here in Dickinson.
“I don’t think I’ve accomplished anything by myself,” she says. Instead, she adds, her job is about other people’s effort – international students, host families, and the admini-stration have all contributed to making everything work.
“I’ve had a lot of satisfaction,” she says.
She does not deny that her job has kept her busy. When she first started, the program had 109 students and the position of Director of Multicultural Affairs had just been ex-panded to full-time. With 180 students currently under her direction, as well as the re-cruitment trips, activities, and meetings with international visitors, she pours herself into her work and loves it.
“It would be nice if there were more of me,” she laughs. Even with a full-time secre-tary since December last fall, she keeps herself incredibly active, doing everything she can to find the time and energy to improve the program.
Hales says that it was difficult to decide on leaving Dickinson State.
“You do it because you love it and you care,” she said. However, due to personal rea-sons, she feels that she has to leave. She will be going to Spokane, Washington to be with her husband. In the end, she wants “work and family in one place.”
Dickinson State University’s loss will be gain for another: she is applying for three jobs in Washington, one of which would involve similar work to what she has done here at DSU.
Hales believes that the program will continue to grow and flourish in her absence as well. She says that she has watched American and international students collaborating more. She has seen the community stretch out its collective hand to help the international students adjust. She believes that the good-will efforts and the spirit of true international-ism will continue to grow and thrive. She is optimistic about the direction of the program.
Dr. Hales’ enthusiasm for the job is overwhelming, and she will be leaving behind some big shoes to fill. Thank you for your time, your energy, and your enthusiasm, Dr. Hales – you will be missed.
The New Concept April 20, 2006
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by Ray Wheeler, Guest Columnist
How wonderful it is to have a Western Concept once again! But at the risk of sounding ungrateful, I wish it were being printed on paper. As handsome as the Concept site is, I’m still wed to paper. I like to hold what I’m reading; I want to feel the words– feel them in the bathtub, under the bed, on rocks, on horseback, on a wobbly psychiatric couch, and in church restrooms—problematic places for those slimy laptops and their eye-wrecking screens.
During my three-quarters of a century in higher education, I’ve never heard of a university except DSU that didn’t have a student newspaper. Even that football-crazed cow college down in Fargo has one!
It was an unfortunate time for us when a lot of events intersected, and the Concept quietly disappeared. The blame for its demise was variously attributed to student apathy, a lack of readers and writers, a snobby English Department, a greedy Student Senate, the presence of chartreuse mucus in the universe, and what Nietzsche called “the will to ignorance.” Pay your money and blame whom or what you will.
A virtual Concept is better than no Concept, as long as you have a printer nearby. Only the diehard cognoscenti of high tech gabblefarb want to read a paper (or anything else) on a monitor. Human beings want their print on paper, and they want standard newsprint paper because of the many wonderful uses it has after we’ve read the print.
Nothing shines windows better than newsprint. It makes an incomparable liner for cat boxes and canary cages and knows no equal as kindling for kindling in campfires. One time in Manhattan I even bought a carp fillet from a vendor who wrapped it in the NY Times classifieds, which enhanced the flavor of that fish.
My grandfather kept a considerable stack of newspapers in his outhouse back in Kansas. Right after I graduated from kindergarten a year before the start of World War I, I asked him if you were supposed to read those papers, make airplanes out of them, or something else. You would have thought I had asked him why he was so bone ugly. “If you’re any indication of the future, we’re in deep doo-doo,” he said rancorously. “You talk like a Commie.” He was deeply distrustful of city people like me.
I hope others will be as glad to see the Concept’s return as I am. I especially hope students will want to read and write for it. One of the prime movers for its return comes from a country with no free press. I hope that irony will be lost on none of us.
note: Dr. Ray Wheeler is a Professor of English at Dickinson State University
Russian Visitors Study the Health-Care System of the United States April 20, 2006
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by Natasha Ryzhova, Staff Writer
For the last two weeks, Dickinson State University’s Department of Nursing was hosting two visitors from Krasnoyarsk, Russia. Dr. Larissa Medrova and Dr. Tatiana Kamaeva, both physicians and teaching professors at Krasnoyarsk State Medical Acad-emy, came to DSU to see how the educational programs for nursing work. They were in-terested in examining how the physicians treat nurses and the responsibilities of nurses in America. DSU and KSMA also have a long-term goal of establishing an exchange pro-gram between Russian and American nursing students.
Dr. Medrova and Dr. Kamaeva are both highly qualified physicians. Dr. Medrova is a surgeon, and Dr. Kamaeva is gynecologist. They both have spent many years in medical residence. They are currently working in the department of nursing in their acad-emy.
Both the doctors feel that the nurses in Russia do not get a chance for higher edu-cation in nursing. Their main concern is that doctors regularly fail to perceive the reasons for getting nurses who are also academicians. In Russia, almost all nurses completely de-pend on the doctor’s orders and do not have any input in the decision-making or diagno-sis. The amount of work is unbelievable, and the salaries are extremely low. A regular nurse in Russia works 12-hour shifts, takes care of 25-30 patients each day, and gets $130 a month. Moreover, since the money they get is not enough to keep even the slightest il-lusion of a decent life, many nurses work extra shifts. It is not uncommon for a nurse to work 36-hour shifts.
Another problem Russian nurses face is that the notion of a nurse practitioner is nonexistent. Those people who are entering the newly open higher education institutions of nursing simply do not have jobs available upon their graduation. How can somebody work as a nurse manager if there is no position like this in the hospital? The professors hope that connections with international universities will help Russian nurses in their fight for a chance to pursue higher education and better jobs. They view their role in be-ing the educators of the masses. Dr. Medrova and Dr. Kamaeva are planning to return home and present all the information that they have collected in the form of lectures and make a report to the Krasnoyarsk Region Board of Nurses.
During these two weeks, the doctors attended different nursing classes and visited hospitals, pharmacies and nursing homes. They also made a presentation about Russian public heath system, which was open to general public. The presentation was a major success, and people who were present were very interested in the differences between the systems in the United States and Russia. Both professors also shared the information about the educational system for nurses in Russia. A smaller presentation was made for the nursing faculty and students later during the visit. The level of respect that American nurses usually receive, not to mention the higher salaries, impressed the Russian visitors. They also admired the level and availability of technology in medical and educational institutions.
During the visit, the base for a long and friendly relationship between the two universities was founded. DSU’s Department of Nursing is planning a summer trip to Russia. Hopefully, within the next couple of years, DSU will meet new nursing students coming from Russia. Meanwhile, Krasnoyarsk State Medical Academy will welcome American exchange students.
