While food was not the purpose of the study tour, Fees said that it represented an important facet of the Chinese culture. The significance of customs and ingredients was not lost on students, many of whom had never been overseas.

Students and faculty visited nine kindergarden programs in south China.

“Food was artistically presented, a point of pride in that region. We were offered many dishes – up to 21 different ones in a single meal — served in the middle of the table on a Lazy Susan. The meals were leisurely to allow conversation and camaraderie,” she said. “Foods were typical of the two areas we visited –Zhuhai and Guangzhou.”

Guangzhou is known for excellent food and has been called the birthplace of Cantonese cuisine.

“The students learned to eat with chopsticks and tasted all the food served, including the cultural delicacy of chicken feet,” Fees said. “We had the opportunity to observe extensive preparations for the Chinese New Year including decorations and the lion and dragon dances performed by the very young children and teachers.”

The professor said the primary goal of the tour was for students to appreciate and understand the cultural differences, and to respect the process of early childhood education in the Chinese culture.

“Our students will become professional educators, and work very closely with parents to meet the expectations of both parents and programs. Not all of those parents will share the same cultural background,” she said.

“Learning about the cultural differences in how we educated young children and how it occurs in China was an eye opening experience,” observed Reagan Proctor, senior in early childhood education and one of seven students enrolled in the 3-credit hour study.

“There are so many things we can do different, or better, to help our children succeed. The amount of physical activity, their use of recycled materials and their general attitude towards children were all wonderful examples to follow in my future classroom,” he said.

The group visited nine different kindergarten programs, including one international school, government schools and private schools. K-State hosted the directors of these programs in October 2010 as part of an ongoing collaboration with South China Normal University and Dr. Zheng, Fuming, professor of early childhood education.

Guangzhou, also known as Canton, is the third largest city in China.

Enrollments ranged between 300 to more than 1000 children between 2 and 6-years-of-age in one kindergarten program, a stark contrast to a typical early childhood center-based program in the States. Several of the programs offered residential services for the children.

“It was amazing to see children so young be completely silent while working on a piece of art or see a performance done by a group of children as young as 2 and notice how totally focused they were,” said Michelle Stork, senior in early childhood education.

Fees said the students, both graduate and undergraduate in the Colleges of Human Ecology and Education, kept daily journals of their experiences and participated in nightly discussions that clearly showed both personal and professional growth.

Students observed how teachers intensely engaged with the children and how happy the children appeared. They were amazed at the creativity demonstrated by the very young children in their artwork and that several of the programs had a professional artist on staff, Fees reported.

“I was truly inspired by the enthusiastic attitudes the teachers displayed towards teaching and their involvement with every child they instruct,” said Lauren Hower, a junior in early childhood education.

They also noted the extensive use of recycled materials throughout from exercise equipment to creative expression. Children engaged in moderate to vigorous physical activity outside for about two hours each day. Since 2000 the Chinese government has directed a more child-centered approach to education carefully balanced with teacher direction, this includes educational services for children with special needs.

The K-State students also said they felt humbled by their inability to speak more than one language. Many people they met spoke at least two languages, and often several additional dialects. In China children learn English during kindergarten.

At South China Normal University, the K-State students gave presentations to early childhood education students and teachers. When Kansas and Chinese students gathered in small groups “they could have talked for hours,” said Fees, “but the building had to close for the night.”

“The students became aware and appreciative of how other cultures prepare their children to be successful,” Fees said. “Similar to the States, the curriculum in the programs we visited is designed to prepare children for the next step – school – and reflect the hopes and expectations of the culture for their children. The students see that now.”

Anna Wiehe, a graduate student in education, said that visiting the preschools gave her a fresh perspective and some alternate approaches to art education and the fostering of creativity.

“One thing that stuck out to me was how they really value and put forth a lot of effort to create an aesthetically pleasing learning environment for their students,” she added. “I have traveled quite a bit but in none of my travels exceeded my expectations quite as much as China. I was so impressed with the hospitality of our hosts from South China Normal University. They made us feel incredibly welcome.”

Marilyn Kaff, associate professor from the College of Education, was co-sponsor. Also on the tour was Dylan Beck, assistant professor in art who was interested in the creativity-based programs with resident artist teachers. At K-State his creative research deals with land-use practices, urban development and architecture and he wanted to observe how the Chinese society deals with these issues.

The group was hosted by Drs. Zheng, Fuming and Cai, Liman at SCNU, College of Education Sciences. Fees and Zheng collaborate on research examining children’s physical activity as part of the early childhood curriculum.

“Visiting nine programs kept us really busy but it gave me many ideas that I cannot wait to implement when I graduate and have a classroom of my own,” said Neely Michaelis, a junior in early childhood education. “Overall it was a wonderful trip and I would recommend studying abroad to any K-State student.”

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Chef Taji Marie

Chef Taji Marie will showcase the regional diversity of Mexican cuisine on Feb. 23 and 24 at  the annual Culinary Enhancement Workshop on campus. The theme of the workshop is “Authentic Flavors from the Regions of Mexico.”

Marie is the owner and executive chef of Simple Gourmet in Los Angeles, Calif., and has worked as a resort chef throughout the Caribbean.

The Thursday, Feb. 23, workshop is open to professionals and K-State alumni. The registration fee is $100, and is a fundraiser to help students in the Department of Hospitality Management and Dietetics (HMD) take part in the Friday, Feb. 24, student workshop for only $10. A $5,000 grant from the McCune Foundation also helped make it possible for the workshop to be offered to students at such a low rate.

Both workshops start at 10 a.m. in the Gold Room at Derby Dining Center.

Melissa Schrader, a dietitian with housing and dining services and HMD instructor, said that the workshop will broaden students’ perspectives and prepare them for the diverse job market they will enter after graduation.

“I think people have a misconception about Mexican cuisine,” she said. “There’s so much more to it than tacos and burritos.”

The Culinary Enhancement Workshop is in its eighth year at the university, and has been especially popular in the last several years — even selling out last year. It is co-sponsored by HMD in the College of Human Ecology.

“It took a while for the word to really get out, but after about the fifth year it just really took off,” Schrader said. “Students who have taken part in past workshops have been great ambassadors for the program and really helped it grow.”

The two workshops will each feature demonstrations by Marie, followed by optional hands-on sessions. Samples of demonstrated recipes, lunch and beverages are included in the registration fee.

For more information on both workshops or to register, go to http://www.found.ksu.edu/culinary or contact Schrader at 785-532-6438.

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Gage Milota, Tyler Lough and Jessica Spencer made calls.

Students, faculty and staff pitched in to pull in $108,274 during this year’s Telefund. Students – at least 233 of them – called alumni and wrote cards to those they couldn’t reach by phone. Nearly 40 faculty and staff showed up to assist and support the students. Last year’s effort raised just over $100,000. The Telefund was staged in the K-State Foundation building Jan. 29 – Feb. 1.

...plus a dose of reality.

Sandra Stith, a professor of marriage and family therapy, has Valentine’s Day advice for couples contemplating commitments and engagement rings: Mix romance with a generous portion of reality.

The reality is that relationship problems — drinking, anger, the need to control, hitting — don’t evaporate when couples become engaged or marry, according to Stith, who has spent more than 15 years developing effective solution-focused therapy methods for high-conflict couples.

“We know that most people in violent relationships had warning signs early in the relationship, but they ignored them,” said the professor  in the School of Family Studies and Human Services.

Her research has found that 50 to 70 percent of couples who seek counseling have experienced some form of violence in their relationship.

“They wouldn’t consider their relationships violent,” Stith said, “but abuse can be physical, mental, sexual, psychological and/or verbal.”

She suggested specific questions to ask before considering marriage:

• Does he or she have the need to control both you and the relationship?
• Does he or she anger easily? For example, how does he or she react when getting cut off by another driver in traffic?

“Most problems with anger focused on other people will eventually be focused on you,” she said.

• How does he or she talk to or about parents and family members? Is he or she insulting or hostile to them? The way someone treats his or her parents may provide a glimpse into the way his or her partner will be treated in the future.
• Does he or she seem too aggressive and too quick to resort to violence or intimidation?

Partners may think things will get better over time, but they probably won’t unless help is sought, Stith said.

Drinking is a huge issue in predicting the future of a relationship, she said.

“If there is a problem that exacerbates a drinking or other substance abuse problem, it will grow with the stress of marriage and children. Life gets more stressful, not less,” Stith said. “Don’t hesitate to say, ‘Before we get to marriage, you need to address your substance abuse problems. If you can’t cut back, we can’t be together.’”

Stith had other suggestions for high-conflict couples who want to establish long-term relationships:

• Don’t rush into marriage. Spend time getting to know each other.
• Participate in premarital counseling or other form of relationship counseling before finalizing wedding plans. It’s difficult to call off a wedding after the date is set and the dress is purchased.
• Learn how to address conflict without allowing it to escalate to name calling or violence.
• Learn to call timeout before a discussion gets heated. “Negotiate this ahead of time,” Stith said. Plan a calming activity like watching television. Working out with a punching bag and driving away are both bad ideas during a timeout.

If a partner recognizes that a relationship is becoming destructive, he or she should seek help early.

“I’m optimistic. I’ve seen people who had ugliness in the marriage for 30 years, and they learned how to have conflicts that weren’t blaming or insulting. It’s never too late or too early,” Stith said.

College of Human Ecology offers a master’s and a doctoral program in marriage and family therapy.

 Prepared by Human Ecology communications

Two designs are from Sherry Haar's From the Garden series.

Sherry Haar, associate professor in the Department of Apparel, Textiles and Interior Design, and two students displayed their design work in the juried 2011 Exhibition of the International Textile and Apparel Association this winter in Philadelphia.

Haar showed three wearable art forms from her From the Garden series. She also received the Sandra Hutton Award for Achievement in Fiber Arts. Her designs are an outcome of exploration of methods to create imagery, prints and pattern on fabric with garden plants that she harvests. Garments feature bundling and hammering techniques.

Lushan (Sarina) Sun, a graduate student, had two fiber arts pieces accepted. She also won the Award for Sustainable Design from the Educators for Socially Responsible Apparel Business.

Also selected to exhibit was an original design – a 1950s Berry Dress — by Margaret Campbell, a May 2011 graduate in apparel and textiles.

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Brian Lindshield

Brian Lindshield, assistant professor of human nutrition, is helping men make more informed diet decisions by studying foods and dietary supplements that may reduce the risk of prostate cancer. Prostate cancer is one of the most common forms of cancer among men in the United States.

“I’m interested in researching ways to prevent prostate cancer rather than how to treat it after a person has been diagnosed with cancer,” Lindshield said.

The goal of Lindshield’s research is twofold: He is performing basic studies that examine specific drugs as well as dietary supplements. His research has been supported by grants from the university’s Johnson Cancer Research Center and from the National Institute of Health Center of Biomedical Research Excellence, or COBRE, for epithelial function in health and disease.

One project focuses specifically on two drugs — finasteride and dutasteride — that are used to treat benign prostatic hyperplasia, or BPH, which is an enlargement of the prostate. Both drugs inhibit enzymes that convert the male hormone testosterone to a more potent form, called dihydrotestosterone, or DHT. Finasteride inhibits one of these enzymes, while dutasteride inhibits both of these enzymes.

Because these drugs inhibit DHT production, they may also prevent the development of prostate cancer. Several clinical trials have shown that both drugs decrease prostate cancer incidence, but at a cost.

“Among the men who took these drugs and still got prostate cancer, more of them had a high-grade or more aggressive prostate cancer,” Lindshield said. “It’s kind of a double-edged sword. These drugs can lower the risk of developing prostate cancer, but they also might lead to worse outcomes for men who do develop the disease.”

That’s where Lindshield’s research fits in: He is comparing finasteride and dutasteride to see if one is better than the other.

“Our hypothesis is that dutasteride is a better option because it inhibits both enzymes while finasteride only inhibits one,” Lindshield said.

For a second project, Lindshield is studying different dietary supplements that affect prostate cancer risk. He is focusing on extract from saw palmetto, a type of shrub that looks similar to a palm tree. Many men take saw palmetto extract because it is believed to benefit prostatic health and inhibit the same enzymes as finasteride and dutasteride. But a lack of regulation and research surrounding saw palmetto has not provided clear insight into whether taking the extract is beneficial.

“The supplement market is kind of the wild world of whatever goes,” Lindshield said. “It is not regulated in the United States, so many different kinds of saw palmetto extracts exist.”

Lindshield wants to determine the composition of different saw palmetto extracts and determine which ones may be most effective. So far the researchers have collected various saw palmetto extracts — from small liquids to capsules. They are beginning to measure the active components of each of the extracts and then will look at different extracts to see if they are effective in decreasing prostate cancer.

“We want to look at how they affect growth of prostate cancer cells and inhibit the enzymes that produce DHT,” Lindshield said.

While both projects are in the early stages, Lindshield hopes that they can provide insight into ways that men can reduce their risk of prostate cancer.

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The journal primarily publishes clinical research that examines the empirical link between personal financial knowledge, attitudes and behaviors and personal and family well-being. It is published by the New Prairie Press, which was founded in 2007 by the Kansas State University Libraries.

The newest issue features works by several faculty members and graduate students from Kansas State University’s School of Family Studies and Human Services, which offers programs in marriage and family therapy and personal financial planning.

Contributions include:

• An editorial written by the journal’s editors, Kristy Archuleta, assistant professor and co-director of the university’s Financial Planning Clinic, and John Grable, Vera Mowery McAninch professor and director of the university’s Institute of Personal Financial Planning.
• Archuleta and several graduate students co-authored “An Initial Membership Profile of the Financial Therapy Association,” which describes the association’s membership diversity. Student co-authors included Anita K. Dale, doctoral student in personal financial planning; Dan Danford, doctoral student in personal financial planning; Erika Rasure, doctoral student in personal financial planning; Kelley Williams, doctoral student in personal financial planning; Emily Burr, master’s student in marriage and family therapy; Kurt Schindler, doctoral student in personal financial planning; and Brett Coffman, doctoral student in personal financial planning, Fort Mill, S.C.
• Rasure also wrote a book review on “Money and the Pursuit of Happiness: In Good Times and Bad” by Richard Trachtman.
• Megan Ford, a December 2010 master’s graduate in marriage and family therapy and now the ASPIRE Clinical Director at the University of Georgia in Athens, joined with Archuleta and Joyce Baptist, assistant professor, to co-author “A Theoretical Approach to Financial Therapy: The Development of the Ford Financial Empowerment Model.”
• Bradley Klontz, adjunct associate professor, and colleagues, wrote “The Effectiveness of an Interactive Multimedia Psychoeducational Approach to Improve Financial Competence in At-Risk Youth: A Pilot Study.”

(From K-State Today)

That’s what Kelly Whitehair found while researching food disposed by students at Kansas State University’s Van Zile Dining Center. She is an assistant director at the dining center and a December 2011 doctoral graduate in hospitality management and dietetics.

After posters reminded students about food waste during meal services, students threw out 15 percent less food. Posters read: “Eat what you take. Don’t waste food.”

Kelly Whitehair

The finding reveals that simple print campaigns may be an affordable option for food service managers to reduce food waste, Whitehair said.

“All it took to change behavior was a trigger that made students think twice about the topic of food waste before they started eating,” she said. “These were just posters I made at home on a word processor. This was not a fancy marketing campaign.”

Americans throw away more than 34 million tons of food annually, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, making up nearly 14 percent of the municipal solid waste stream. Less than 3 percent of that is recovered and recycled.

Whitehair is doing her part with research that could help university dining centers waste less food and implement more sustainable practices.

During the study, Whitehair and students enrolled in an environmental issues in hospitality course scraped food waste — everything from ketchup and ranch dressing to buns and vegetables — off of more than 11,000 food trays at Van Zile. They scraped trays five days a week during lunch and dinner.

Whitehair analyzed trays individually. An average of 2 ounces of food was left on each tray, totaling nearly 2 tons of food thrown out during the six-week study. Some students threw out as much as 35 ounces of food scraps, while a third of students threw out nothing.

Whitehair also found that general demographics and beliefs toward sustainability had little impact on the student waste behaviors.

In another part of the study, Whitehair interviewed dining facility managers from universities that no longer use trays. She investigated best practices and student reaction at those dining centers, and she is writing guidelines for schools that are considering not using trays.

Food service managers reported benefits of not using trays, including decreased waste; reduced chemical, water, energy and food costs; and improved student satisfaction.

“They found in customer service satisfaction surveys that people would have much shorter wait times in line because people take less food and make conscious decisions about their food choices beforehand,” she said.

Whitehair worked with housing and dining services staff, some of whom teach courses in the department of hospitality management and dietetics.

“We’re extremely lucky that housing and dining services works so closely with the College of Human Ecology,” she said. “The partnership provides opportunities for students to conduct research at major facilities.”

Food waste from Kansas State University’s dining centers are composted with other organic waste such as leaves, tree limbs and grains at the university’s student farm. University researchers use some of the compost from the North Farm, managed by College of Agriculture students, for erosion, field and greenhouse experiments.

Carol Shanklin, dean of the Graduate School, served as Whitehair’s academic adviser. Whitehair earned both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees at K-State.

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She hopes to work in adoption and foster care after graduation.

“This scholarship has provided a great opportunity for me to go to Africa where I will be able to grow in knowledge, cultural awareness and self-awareness,” she said. “It’s so important in today’s world to explore other cultures.”

Also receiving a Gilman Scholarship is Justine Gruen, an interdisciplinary social sciences and international studies major with minors in Spanish and nonprofit leadership. She will study in Turkey.

The Gilman Scholarship Program is congressionally funded and is sponsored by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State. It was established by the International Academic Opportunity Act, and since 2001 has been offering grants to U.S. citizen undergraduate students to pursue academic studies abroad in hopes of preparing students to assume significant roles in a global economy. Award recipients are chosen through a competitive selection process.

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The group will develop and field test novel, extruded, high-protein, sorghum-based micronutrient-fortified blended foods that can be used for nutritional aid programs in Tanzania. Principal investigators for the 3-year $3 million pilot are: Edgar Chambers IV, Sandy Procter and Brian Linshield, in human nutrition, plus Sajid Alavi in grain science and industry and Nina Lilja, director of international agricultural programs.

“These products will be pre-cooked sorghum-soybean and sorghum-cowpea blends or ‘porridge mixes’ that can be used for supplemental feeding and nutrition programs for infants and children below the age of 5 years. These blends require much lower energy/fuel to prepare into gruels compared to fortified blended foods currently used in feeding programs,” according to Alavi who will direct the project.

From BBC News

“In addition, these products enhance the use of U.S. sorghum, soybeans and cowpea for value-added food applications. This can lead to greater demand for these drought-tolerant crops in Africa and reduce the current dependence on corn that is a cause of food insecurity in cereal deficient countries.” The products are developed in the United States using domestically grown commodities.

The USDA program is funded by the McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition (McGovern-Dole) Program, and recipients will focus their efforts over in Cambodia, Guatemala, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Mozambique and Tanzania.

“Our efforts to support global food security are important to the many people around the world who do not have access to nutritious and safe food. Fresh approaches to food assistance are also critically important to the sustainable economic growth of these nations and the economic prosperity and national security of our own country,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack.

Currently, 37 food aid agreements are being funded with 16 cooperating sponsors in 30 countries, assisting more than five million beneficiaries.

The McGovern-Dole Program is named in honor of Ambassador and former Senator George McGovern and former Senator Robert Dole for their tireless efforts to encourage a global commitment to school feeding and child nutrition.

The Micronutrient-Fortified Food Aid Products Pilot Program and the McGovern-Dole Program are administered by USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service. The food aid programs contribute to the goals of President Obama’s global hunger and food security initiative, Feed the Future. Feed the Future is part of a multilateral effort launched at the L’Aquila World Summit on Food Security in 2009 to accelerate progress toward the Millennium Development Goal of halving the proportion of people living in extreme poverty and suffering from hunger by 2015.

Prepared by Human Ecology communications and U.S. Department of Agriculture