Dr. Jacob Ausderan, assistant professor of political science, has returned from a four-day trip to North Korea, including the capital of Pyongyang, and two days in China. His trip was organized by Young Pioneer Tours, a China-based company that specializes in getting Westerners into North Korea, the most totalitarian country in the world. The group was accompanied by North Korean government "minders."  A specialist in international relations, Ausderan says the trip has already proven beneficial in the classes he teaches.  Read the full story.

At least 10 faculty members from various departments will be making presentations Wednesday at the Health Disparities Conference, sponsored by the Department of Social Work.  Conference details are in a news release.

Dr. Marceline Hayes, associate professor and chair of the Department of Communication, is co-author of a case study published in Research in Action, which offers students examples of how to do research.  In “Selecting, Scraping and Sampling Big Data Sets from the Internet: Fan Blogs as an Exemplar," she and her co-authors analyzed fan blogs to get at their perspectives and experiences based on their favorite show.  The study illustrates how to sample and select data for analysis and how to analyze it.

On this Veterans Day, we offer a heartfelt thanks to the A-State faculty and staff who are current and former members of our country's military branches.  We appreciate your service to our country.  A-State supports our students who are veterans, also, as noted by the "Best for Vets" designation.

Congratulations to Dr. Susan Hanrahan upon her election to the City Water and Light Board of Directors, where she will serve the remaining portion of an unexpired term.  CWL provides municipal water and electrical services for Jonesboro.  She will be up for re-election early next year.  When she is not doing public service work in the community and across the state, she is A-State's dean of the College of Nursing and Health Professions and interim dean of the College of Education and Behavioral Science.

Executive Director of Marketing and Communications Dr. Bill Smith presented "Facebook Faux Pas" for the Lafayette, La., chapter of Public Relations Association of Louisiana on Tuesday, Oct. 21.  Covering best practices for professionals on social media and crisis communication, Smith was invited by the UL-Lafayette Alumni Association to speak to the local public relations group prior to the Louisiana-Lafayette vs. A-State football game.