Amy Farrah Fowler, Ph.D.
Yes, another one.
This one was part of a litter of semi-feral kittens born near my friends’ home.

Summer & Fall 2013: Research To-Do List
If only I could get motivated.

Revising paper on policy subsystems for submission to the Journal of Policy History | Status: 60 percent completed as of June 1.

Revise paper from last year’s Louisiana Studies Conference for submission to a journal | Status: Currently investigating journal options.

Write paper for 5th Annual Louisiana Studies Conference | Status: Waiting to see if proposal is accepted. –> This project is tied to one of the chapters in the theoretical book.

Write paper for presentation at the 10th International Conference on Environmental, Cultural, Economic and Social Sustainability in Croatia in January 2014 | Status: 20 percent completed as of June 1.

Continued work on book project | Status: Currently at 108 pages double spaced. Would like to have a prospectus ready by September 2013.

NCSS Presentation on the Cuban Missile Crisis Project with The Coach | Status: Ask The Coach

Collect data on the politics of developing a new Mississippi River “compact” | Status: Small chunk to be included in book project; final meeting not until late fall.

Investigate the possibility of a research project related to environmental statements included in State Constitutions | Status: Planning phase.

Develop panel proposal for the 2014 Policy History Conference | Status: Have recruited panel members, proposal due in December 2013.

Outline series of essays on Food Politics | Status: Planning phase; currently collecting background research and thinking about how to organize the essays.

Continue to work on background for New Zealand essay | Status: Data collected; need to find funds and/or time to transcribe archival photos. Another trip to NZ may be necessary to complete this work.

Netherlands, Great Britain, and US Comparative Project | Status: On Hold

Environmentalism and Religion Project | Status: On Hold

Rural Disaster Management Project | Status: On Hold

Dead Zone, Ag Extension, BMP Project | Status: On Hold

This is your summer Honey-Do List
Start at the top & work down …

1. Fix back door
2. Clean your office
3. Fix bathroom door
4. Fix bathroom wall
5. Fix kitchen floor
6. Shutters on front of house | hire handyman?
7. Paint trim on outside of house
8. Paint landing | I will help with this.
9. Build book shelves on landing | and this.
10. Paint living room | and this too.

The real list, sans “real” research which gets its own blog entry, is below the break.

TEACHING

• Summer I | Email students who have not started LMs
• Summer I | Record last audio lecture
• Summer I | Grade court paper
• Summer I | Grade policy paper
• Summer I | Grade final exam bonus essay
• Summer I | Calculate final grades

• Summer II | Independent study with desperate student
• Summer II | Drop Summer I course into new shell
• Summer II | Rework syllabus with new dates & deadlines
• Summer II | Rework calendar with new dates & deadlines
• Summer II | Grade court paper
• Summer II | Grade policy paper
• Summer II | Grade final exam bonus essay
• Summer II | Calculate final grades

• Summer III | Rework syllabus for Grant Writing Class
• Summer III | Write assignment guidelines for GW Class
• Summer III | Review LIBGUIDE
• Summer III | Grade workshop papers
• Summer III | Grade grant proposal
• Summer III | Post final grades

• Fall 2013 | Review study guides from summer and post to BB
• Fall 2013 | Write new syllabus
• Fall 2013 | Write Congress lecture
• Fall 2013 | Rework Presidency lecture
• Fall 2013 | Write Court lecture
• Fall 2013 | Write Foreign Policy lecture
• Fall 2013 | Supplemental instruction?
• Fall 2013 | Find grader?

FACULTY SENATE

• Reserve room for Faculty Senate Retreat
• Plan Faculty Senate Retreat
• Set meeting with Admin Senate, re: Maternity Leave Policy
• Set meeting with HR, re: Maternity Leave Policy
• Edit maternity leave draft
• Set meeting with Library, re: Issues to be represented
• Add newly elected alternates to membership grid
• Set meeting with President, re: University issues for 2013
• See Tom, re: Computer for Student Worker
• Computer specs to Assistant Provost
• Meeting with HR | May 29
• Meeting with Library | June 12 – moved
• Meeting with Provost | June 18
• BOT meeting? | July 11

UNIVERSITY SERVICE

• Write up that peer evaluation | soon!
• Student Research Journal | Bane of my existence
• Academic Integrity Task Force | Ongoing
• Plan CAP workshop
• CAP workshop | May 30
• CAP visit | June 13

COMMUNITY SERVICE

• Master Gardener | Garden Walk Meeting [May 26]
• Environmental Team | Ben Brabson Event [June 2]
• Master Gardener | Garden Walk [June 8]
• Master Gardener | Garden Walk [June 9]
• Master Gardener | SWIMGA Meeting [June 11] – Went to Ohio instead.
• Master Gardener | Zoo Docent Day [June 30]
• Master Gardener | SWIMGA Meeting [July 9]
• Master Gardener | Zoo Docent Day [July 14]
• Master Gardener | Zoo Docent Day [August 11]
• Master Gardener | SWIMGA Meeting [August 13]

DEPARTMENT CHAIR DUTIES

• Write 4 Year Advising Plan
• Write Spring 2014 Schedule
• NUCC Applications
• Meeting with Graduate Director
• Office Hours | May 29
• Creative Chairing | May 29 – Skipped it.
• Office Hours | May 30
• Orientation | May 31
• Orientation | June 1
• Office Hours | June 12 – Cancelled to stay at 20 contract days
• Open Registration | June 14
• Office Hours | June 19
• Orientation | June 21
• Orientation | June 22
• Office Hours | July 3
• Orientation | July 12
• Orientation | July 13
• Office Hours | July 17
• Open Registration | July 19
• Office Hours | August 7
• LAC Chairs Retreat | August 16
• University Chairs Retreat | August 19
• University Meetings | August 20
• Orientation Day | August 21
• Open Registration | August 23

RESEARCH, MINOR TASKS

• Scan in last bucket of dissertation materials — YES!!!
• Travel Form | NCSS Conference
• Travel Form | Sustainability Conference
• Travel Form | Louisiana Studies {TBA}
• CLAFDA Report | Submit to Dean
• Fellowship Report | Submit to Julie
• FRCWA Report | Submit to Emily
• Update and Reformat CV | Yikes!

PERSONAL

• Read friend’s article and give advice
• Finally get around to watching Dr. Who
• Float around in my trashy Walmart pool
• Build the raised beds – Postponed until fall
• Tuesday movie matinees!
• Adoption | Physicals [May 24]
• Adoption | Follow up Physical
• Book Club | June 10 – Went to Ohio instead
• ROMP! | June 28 & 29
• Book Club | July 8
• Neil Gaiman in Nashville | July 10
• Roller Derby | July 20
• Steve Martin in Kettering | July 28
• Dentist Appointment | August 5
• Book Club | August 12
• Visit Family in New York | TBA
• Cave City! | June
• Lake Barkley Getaway | June
• Holiday World! | TBA

Always, always back up your research materials
Fire-Damaged Master’s Thesis Surveys circa 1996

Last week, The Coach pulled the last two ‘research crates’ out of the closet in the spare room and hauled them up to my office at school. One crate is full of the EIS statements I used in my dissertation; the other was a surprising collection of papers from the late 1990s. Not only did I find the copies of the surveys I used to write my master’s thesis, I also found copies of my Ohio taxes, a quote for renter’s insurance (which was almost twice what we currently pay for homeowner’s insurance because no one will insure you after a fire), hand-colored maps for a research project, and my father’s application for Medicaid.

Almost two decades later, the surveys still smell like smoke.

I’m not sure why I’ve been hauling this stuff around for almost 20 years. It certainly wasn’t for sentimental value, I’ll tell you that. Back in the day, The Coach and I were so ungodly poor that we lived in a trailer that we could barely pay for. Thankfully, we had insurance when the fire gutted that place — and I was lucky that the fire only singed the corners of the surveys so I could start over on my thesis.* Not so lucky was our dog Churchill who died from smoke inhalation. I’ve been thinking a lot about those days, mostly because we had to tell our life stories for our adoption home study. I tend to complain (a little, a lot?) about our low salaries here at the University and about the fact that our student loans will probably follow us into retirement, but we are so much better off now than we were then.

As for the crate, almost everything went into the trash — surveys, newspaper articles, umpteen drafts of the thesis. I did keep a couple of government documents in case I ever want to revisit the Wabash River Corridor (20 year retrospective perhaps?) and a few lesson plans because they amused me, but everything else: POOF!

One crate remains.

* Tip: Never store your backup copies in the same building with your computer. I was completely paranoid when I wrote my dissertation, keeping copies in a fire safe, my work office, and the glove compartment of my old car.

1. Do my Master Gardener volunteer hours
2. See lots of good bluegrass music
3. Visit family
4. Finally watch Dr. Who
5. Tuesdays at the Movies
6. Garden
7. Float in my trashy Walmart Pool
8. Adoption/House stuff
9. Grade my DE classes
10. Write a syllabus or two
11. Faculty Senate Stuff
12. Write
13. Do chair stuff – but only as much as required and no more!

On the teaching front, I need to write the final exam review sheet and record one last audio lecture. Once that’s done, my Summer I class will virtually run itself — except for two sets of papers, a reading quiz and a bonus question that I’ll need to grade by hand. It also means that Summer II is prepped because I can (theoretically) roll all of the materials over into a new Blackboard shell. I’ll still need to tweak the information a bit (e.g. change syllabus, change deadlines on quizzes and exams, update the calendar), but that’s pretty minor stuff.  I also need to revamp my syllabus for the independent study course I am administering in Summer III and review the LIBGUIDE for that class.

On the administration front, I need to work on the schedule for Spring 2014. Yeah, can you believe I have to do that already? I’m also dealing with some other personnel issues (that I can talk about here); let’s just say some of the student complaints are both justified and annoying (not the students, but the fact that I have to deal with the same issues over and over again with the same people). I also need to mess with the course applications for the new Core Curriculum. << All of these things are things that I am going to try to do during my required 20 days of service; I’m trying very hard not to let it trickle over into my research and/0r summer fun time.

When it comes to Academic Service, I’m totally screwed. I was asked to serve on a Task Force, not knowing that it was going to meet over the summer. So there’s that. I also have to finish writing that peer evaluation that I’ve been carrying around for the last few weeks. Plus, the student research journal — which has landed on me because the editor has disappeared. Community service are also on my list: monthly environmental team meetings, Master Gardener service at the Zoo, Authority meetings downtown.

At least I managed to get the Adoption paperwork filed out and submitted. Next week, we’ll be doing our home study and our physicals. Then, we’ll wait. TQE tells me I should read The Kid at some point — maybe I will if i can ever get to the library.

Update: Newish stuff has hit my plate as well — more on that later.

All by next Wednesday. I might be screwed here.

I just closed the book on Spring 2013’s grading.
That said, don’t expect much out of me yet;
I’ve gotta’ prep that DE class before next Wednesday.