Key Takeaways

• AI tools can be powerful, but they also raise real security and privacy concerns when sensitive data is involved.
• The safest approach is to understand how tools handle information, then set clear boundaries for what should never be entered or shared
• Building “AI literacy” helps teams use these tools responsibly, so innovation does not outpace risk management.

This week, we’re pleased to feature the first in a series of guest posts from Information Technology Academic Director Cathie Wilson. Wilson is a longtime leader in the IT and database technology fields and has also worked as an IT educator for 15 years. (). She has led University College’s IT program since 2021. ��

In the cybersecurity space, it’s well known that the biggest security vulnerability in any organization is an end-user that unintentionally allows malicious access. The same is true for AI.

Unless AI end-users and employees are well educated on appropriate AI use, it’s increasingly likely that AI-driven vulnerabilities will be exposed. These vulnerabilities include sharing company data and exposing customer data.

This means that the responsibility of protecting company and customer data does not just fall on the cybersecurity team, but also every business professional by arming themselves with the knowledge required to be a responsible AI user.

The Responsible AI Institute recently published a guide on “,” and just last week released a great blog post titled “.”

I believe that knowledge of AI and the opportunities and risks it presents will be essential knowledge for all professionals. At the College of Professional Studies at University of Denver, we are leaning into AI education with a new master’s or certificate in AI Strategy and Application in IT to ensure that IT professionals are prepared to be informed leaders in organizational AI strategies, with a focus on responsible AI practices.

With comprehensive education and thoughtful application, AI can become a powerful (and secure) addition to our technology toolbelt.

This is the first of a series of periodic blog posts from IT Academic Director Cathie Wilson. Watch this blog to learn more about responsible AI use in business, or find out more about how the AI Strategy and Application in IT master’s degree and graduate certificate can equip you to use the power of AI to achieve business goals.

Frequently Asked Questions

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Key Takeaways

• Supply chains play a critical role in both contributing to and addressing climate change, making it essential to design sustainable systems that reduce environmental harm.
• The new book by DU instructor Jim Tompkins explores how climate resilience and responsible supply chain leadership can protect the planet while ensuring business continuity.
• Integrating sustainability into logistics and procurement decisions is becoming a strategic priority for companies responding to ecological and regulatory pressures.
• Higher education programs are preparing professionals to lead green transformation efforts by combining real-world case studies with systems thinking.

A new book from a University College leader tackles the immense problem of climate change with some innovative thinking.

Jack Buffington is a longtime executive in the supply chain industry and is now the Director of the Supply Chain Management program at University College. In his new book, Environmental Innovation: An Action Plan for Saving the Economy and the Planet by 2050, he argues that the solution to this global issue will have to come at a more localized and practical scale.

“We’ve had all these international initiatives and UN proclamations that try to address climate change, but that’s not how humans solve problems,” he says. “The innovation is going to happen at a community and individual level.”

Buffington developed expertise in packaging material science, sustainability, and recycling after working as an executive at MillerCoors and seeing the boom in single-use (disposable) materials. He has written several previous books, including Reinventing the Supply Chain, Peak Plastic: The Rise or Fall of our Synthetic World, and Frictionless Markets: A 21st Century Supply Chain. His research led him to advocate for more interdisciplinary approaches that bridge policy, science, economics, and logistics.

“That’s where I think the answers lie,” says Buffington. “The technologies are in place. It’s the human systems that are lacking.”

In his new book, Buffington outlines an action plan to meet climate goals by 2050 without sacrificing economic growth. He zeroes in on strategies in all sectors, from energy to food to materials. For example, energy utilities in the U.S. are currently highly centralized and entrenched in fossil fuel-based infrastructure. Buffington advocates for a hub-and-spoke model closer to China’s system, in which communities and households generate their own renewable energy across the grid.

“The moral of the story is: we know what the solutions are, but in certain parts of the world, including where we live, we don’t have the incentives to make this happen,” he says.

“You can’t make this about the environment or the economy. You have to solve both.”

Buffington thinks a lot about incentives. He believes that most regular consumers aren’t focused on environmental issues because they’re more concerned with their day-to-day expenses and responsibilities. “So you can’t make this about the environment or the economy. You have to solve both.”

Teaching Upcoming Supply Chain Problem-Solvers

Buffington’s deep interest in both the environment and supply chain problems means that professionals looking for a degree or certificate in sustainable supply chain systems can find exactly that at DU’s University College. As the program’s director, he focuses on teaching students how to think more holistically and use data to solve big problems.

“It’s not about memorizing facts,” he says. “In today’s world, everybody has Google, so content is irrelevant. The real magic of our program is learning to ask good questions and process the content into decisions.”

This emphasis on critical thinking means that graduates of the program are in high demand for supply chain positions.

“In supply chain and logistics, we engage in structured problem solving to figure out these problems. We don’t have the answers. We have the questions,” he says.

Buffington meets personally with every student pursuing a master’s in Supply Chain Management and helps them create a professional development plan.

“It’s cliché to say we don’t teach students what to think, we teach them how to think. But it’s true,” he says. “It’s our job to challenge people and teach them to solve big problems.”

See more on DU’s master’s degree in Supply Chain Management and the graduate certificate in Supply Chain Management.

Frequently Asked Questions

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Nanette Lockwood is a serious figure in the world of global environmental advocacy, influencing the formation and continuation of the Paris Accord and Montreal Protocol climate initiatives. Now, as an instructor in University College’s Environmental Policy and Management program, she wants to give professionals a fast-track to impact the climate in their future careers.

“Teaching is an opportunity to work with students who are passionate about the topic and help them move more quickly into this arena,” Lockwood says. “If we’re going to make a difference in the climate, then we need to get people up to speed as fast as possible.”

Making an impact along the way

Lockwood began her career in engineering, working in the cleanup of contaminants in the ground and water, but quickly decided that cleanup wasn’t enough. She wanted to tackle the root causes of environmental problems. She earned her master’s in environmental engineering, a law degree, and another master’s in environmental law, all while working full-time.

Working for consulting firms and large multinational corporations trying to influence the regulatory system, Lockwood rose to advocacy positions in more influential arenas. She interacted with the energy, architectural, and automotive sectors in her work to make environmental regulations more effective.

Most recently, she worked for Trane Technologies, where she oversaw climate policy and advocacy on a global basis, leading the company’s US and United Nations advocacy engagement at climate weeks and at the Montreal Protocol and Paris Agreement annual meetings.

Giving back through University College

Lockwood stresses that environmental issues cannot be combatted incrementally—the changes must be “transformational.” Her diverse portfolio of experience provides exceptional opportunities for students to get firsthand insight into all facets of environmental law and policy.

“DU’s Environmental Policy and Management program provides a unique opportunity to learn from people in the field and to learn functional skills that will allow them to take action and truly make a difference,” she said.

Lockwood believes this real-world understanding of how best to engage in the regulatory process is vital. “You can come in [to my course] and learn a lot about the legal side of things, which you need to know if you are going to make any changes without having to go to law school,” she said.

After a long and impactful career, Lockwood is focused on developing thoughtful and essential practices in her students so that her fight for positive change can not only endure, but progress.

“Everything I have always worked on has filtered into addressing the climate situation,” Lockwood says. By teaching the next generation, Lockwood wants “to be able to make a difference in something I have strong feelings about, and I want to make the world a better place.”

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Key Takeaways

• Communication management skills are essential for leadership and organizational success

• Programs focus on strategic communication, not just basic messaging skills

• Strong communication abilities support career advancement across industries

With some 300 students, Communication Management is one of the biggest graduate programs at University College. As the program’s academic director, Dr. Cindy Cragg keeps her finger on the pulse of the communications field in order to ensure that program curriculum stays cutting-edge and relevant to professionals in the industry.

Constantly on top of new developments, Cragg recorded a recent podcast with marketing strategist Lisa Haas about the dramatic , where AI tools can now be used for content generation, personalization, measurement, optimization and more.

We asked Cragg some questions about what makes the University College Communication Management programs distinctive.

Q: For someone interested in a communication management master’s or certificate, what’s your 30-second introduction to this program?

A: Communication Management at DU’s University College offers master’s degrees and graduate certificates for adults wanting to give their career a boost or transition into a field that interests them. We have a very broad menu of concentrations; you can specialize in anything from public relations to organizational communications, to marketing, to user experience strategy or learning and development. And you can customize your study by taking elective courses from other concentrations to create a learning journey that perfectly meets your career goals.

Q: Many universities have a graduate communications program. What’s unique or different about University College’s programs?

A: University College was built to serve working professionals, so we are relentlessly practical. It’s not just that our courses are flexible and online – that should be a given in the 2020s – but that our courses teach skills and knowledge that can be applied immediately on the job. We update our course content often to align with the latest industry trends, so you learn information and techniques that can position you for success. Our recent , featuring adjunct instructor Lisa Haas, is just one way we’re staying on top of new advancements that our students will be using in their future careers.

Q: Relevant job skills can be a moving target, especially in quickly evolving fields like communications. How can a prospective student be confident they’ll learn up-to-date content in University College’s communication management programs?

A: We have systems built to ensure students learn what’s relevant now, not fifteen or even five years ago.

1. We consult with an advisory board of industry leaders frequently, and we review job descriptions for communications positions across a range of industries to ensure our curriculum aligns with in-demand knowledge and skills.
2. DU’s College of Professional Studies employs a team of learning experience professionals whose full-time job is to work with me and our faculty to continuously revise course content to reflect changes in the field. Learn more.
3. Our adjunct faculty are industry leaders and experts in communications, and they offer students valuable insights into current practices and emerging technologies.

Q: Can you give an example of those emerging tools and techniques being taught in Communication Management courses?

A: One example is the recent relaunch of our Digital Campaign Management course. Digital marketing campaigns are far more complex and dynamic than traditional marketing methods, something that can’t really be taught in a fully hypothetical learning environment. To give our students the most realistic and applied experience, we incorporated a new simulation platform that allows students to conduct a course-long interactive simulation where they plan, execute, and refine a digital marketing campaign.

Q: Do workers actually need a graduate certificate or master’s program to learn those skills? Couldn’t someone teach themselves online or learn on the job?

A: At the College of Professional Studies students get a full education in their area of choice, learning from experts in the field how best to apply these tools and techniques. Anyone can get an online template for a communications plan, for example, but our program will teaches when, why, and how to craft a customized plan to reach your strategic goals, plus important considerations students you may never have thought of, and how to communicate those priorities across your organization.

There’s so much value a student gets from a University College master’s or certificate. Yes, they will get a world-class credential and a very thorough education. But the student will also build a digital portfolio while receiving mentorship from some truly impressive leaders. They’ll get a chance to try new skills and receive valuable feedback. They will get individual guidance from an advisor about their chosen pathway. And they will get instant community with an impressive group of peers in their field.

Q: What’s the best way for a student to get started in the Communication Management program, or to figure out which concentration is right for them?

A: Students at University College enjoy a very personalized learner experience, and that personalized approach begins prior to enrollment. Our enrollment managers are extremely knowledgeable about our programs, the communications field, and career paths within the field. They are tremendous resources for our prospective students and can help align students’ career and professional goals with the program that is the best match. Connect here.

Frequently Asked Questions

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Key Takeaways

• Cybersecurity demand keeps growing because every organization depends on systems and data that need protection.
• The field is not only technical, it also values communication, risk thinking, and the ability to explain threats clearly to non-experts
• Education and mentorship can help learners enter the field with more confidence, structure, and practical understanding.

You might be excused for thinking that instructor Richard Staynings never sleeps, so constant is his writing on the topic of cybersecurity. Staynings is continually sounding the alarm bells about the vulnerabilities in our digital infrastructure.

“We in the U.S. are more reliant on technology than any other society, and yet we don’t have the people that are capable of securing that technology,” he says.

Staynings has been in the cybersecurity industry for 30 years, in C-suite positions at major companies and as a sought-after consultant to governments, executives, and working groups. He has worked for Amgen, Cisco, Intermountain Healthcare, PeaceHealth, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Intel, Microsoft, and Zurich Financial. Now he also teaches cybersecurity-focused courses at DU’s College of Professional Studies.

Learning to protect and defend

Staynings focuses on cybersecurity in healthcare, where systems are much more complex – and involve graver consequences – than sectors like retail. He’s seen healthcare organizations become a top target for cyber-attacks over the past 10 years. Ransomware attacks, denial-of-service attacks, and breaches exposing personal, financial, and health information have been in the news.

“Health information is extremely valuable – to identity thieves, to prescription thieves, to medical insurance fraudsters, and to extortionists,” he says.

In Staynings’ cybersecurity-focused courses at DU’s College of Professional Studies, students learn how to anticipate and , how to adhere to security regulations, and how to respond to any security breaches.

“The cybersecurity-focused coursework at DU is very up-to-date, not just abstract ideas for the sake of it,” he says. “It’s about real-world scenarios, real-world cyber-attacks, and real-world risks that these students are going to face in their role when they graduate.”

Healthcare industry risks

Staynings is currently Chief Security Strategist for Cylera, a cybersecurity company specializing in securing the Internet of Things (IoT) in medicine. He gets animated when pointing out the risks present in devices that are increasingly internet-connected – items like glucose monitors, surgical robots, MRI machines and lab temperature monitors.

“They now account for about 75% of connected endpoints at hospitals, and they are generally not managed by hospital IT, meaning they’re not patched or updated regularly, and don’t have antivirus software on them,” he says. “They are the open back door to cybersecurity in healthcare right now.”

Staynings imagines a scenario in which it may even be possible to alter an individual’s medical records. “Say I go in for surgery next week and just before my operation my medical record is hacked and my blood type is altered and my list of medication allergies is removed. Before you know it, I’m coding on the table,” Staynings posits. Luckily, there’s little incentive to alter a single person’s medical record, but the security vulnerabilities are alarming.

The demand for workers

The need for cybersecurity professionals to address such vulnerabilities is acute. A Congressional hearing this year found a critical lack of cybersecurity workers. There are about 660,000 cybersecurity job openings, and only enough workers for about two-thirds of them. Demand is outpacing supply, one Congressional witness said, and many companies are seeking applicants that have college degrees.

“Anyone who’s considering their career options right now would be well advised to consider cybersecurity,” Staynings says. “It’s no longer a pure technology discipline as it was 15-20 years ago. You don’t need to be a programmer.”

Staynings says those with backgrounds in communications, policy, logistics, and education all can leverage their talents in the cybersecurity field with a bit of upskilling.

“If you develop a career in cybersecurity, you’ll have a job for life,” he says. Perhaps then, Staynings, and the rest of us, can get some rest.

DU is recognized as an NSA Center for Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense (CAE). To see all of DU’s cybersecurity offerings, visit .

Frequently Asked Questions

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Dr. Tolu Oyewumi says there are two sides to her personality: one that she cultivated for a long time, and another that is just finding its voice.

The first is the analytical, scientific side that led her to an M.D. and MPH (Master of Public Health), and the other is the creative and entrepreneurial side that led her to contribute to a recent book called “Hold My Crown: Women of Grit Share Stories of Resilience.”

“My story is about learning to love myself. Learning to give myself the love that wasn’t given to me as a child and helping other people to heal through my story,” Oyewumi says.

Oyewumi grew up in Nigeria, in what she calls a dysfunctional family system enduring significant abuse. Under intense pressure from her father, she derived all her worth from her academic performance and pursuing the next accomplishment, only to find out that she never felt ‘enough.’ After earning her M.D. and practicing medicine in Nigeria, she sought to study public health in the U.S.

“I care about preventing disease, and I wanted to impact people on a population level,” she says. “Treating people at the individual level, there’s only so much you can do.”

Oyewumi came to the U.S. and earned her MPH with a concentration in epidemiology at the University of Colorado at Denver’s Colorado School of Public Health. She was selected as her class’s commencement speaker and also established the first campus group for international students as its founder and president.

“Deep in my heart I did not even value that, because I was always on to the next mountain to climb. Nothing I did made me feel that I was worthy or valuable,” she says. “I got to the point in life where I realized this is insanity. I am worthy just because I exist. It has nothing to do with my degrees or accomplishments.”

Since then, Oyewumi has worked at the intersection of medical practice, clinical trials, health innovation, and technology. During COVID, she directed infection control at a multi-center nursing home facility and ran a COVID-related clinical trial with a tertiary institution. She has worked on projects with hospitals, startups, and government agencies such as the Colorado Department of Public Health and The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Her diverse experience aligns perfectly with a masters of healthcare management to continue leading innovative healthcare solutions.

At DU’s University College, she helps educate the next generation of healthcare leaders. As an adjunct faculty member, Oyewumi teaches digital health, regulatory affairs, and global healthcare management. She takes pride in offering plenty of support to her students.

“I didn’t know a single soul when I came to the U.S.,” she says. “Remembering how things were for me helps me to be the kind of instructor I wish I had.”

Through her growth as a professional, the support of her husband, and her new embrace of her creative side, Oyewumi has found the balance she found elusive for so long.

“My story is about defining a new life for yourself and letting that situation make you wiser, stronger and more successful. We were born worthy.”

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Key Takeaways

• Instructor-led exploration of complex topics helps develop critical thinking and analytical skills

• Interdisciplinary approaches provide deeper understanding of historical and psychological subjects

• Faculty expertise enhances the academic experience by connecting theory to real-world context

By Tamara Chapman, Senior Managing Editor, University of Denver

This article is a reprint from the fall 2021 issue of the University of��Denver Magazine. Please visit the����for additional content.

After 15 years teaching in the creative writing program at Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon, Annie Dawid (PhD ’89) left her full-time job to become a full-time writer. The poet, novelist and essayist lives in Westcliffe, Colorado, and teaches creative writing — including a course on the personal essay — for the master’s program in writing at DU’s��University College.

In her��, “Put Off My Sackcloth: Essays” (The Humble Essayist Press, 2021), Dawid examines her past and explores her longstanding fascination with the 1978 mass murder/suicide at Jonestown. Her��, posted at the Alternative Considerations of Jonestown and Peoples Temple website, which is sponsored by San Diego State University’s Special Collections of Library and Information Access, includes many of her commentaries on the topic.

Dawid joined the����for an email discussion about her essays and the experiences and reflections that shaped them. The conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

The pieces in this collection cover decades, from 1976 to 2020. What inspired you to weave them into a whole?��

While the dates on the essays begin in the 1970s and end last year, I wrote all of them within the last 15 years, chronicling important moments in my life, hoping to cover diverse milestones. The Westcliffe pieces were local color columns I had written for the Cañon Beat, a weekly out of Cañon City, over two years. I wanted to communicate the beauty of this landscape, and some of the funny moments of a former city person grappling with life off the grid at 9,100 feet, like having to melt snow after the pipes froze and discovering that a Dutch oven heaping with snow reduces to an inch of water.

Some of your essays grapple with troubling life experiences, including your own thoughts of suicide and struggles with severe depression. How did writing about these experiences help you put off your sackcloth and deal with sorrow and despair?����

The opening essay, “All Thy Waves,” which deals with a major turning point of my life, the third venture off my meds coinciding with my sole pregnancy, came about when a psychiatrist issued a call for essays written by sufferers of depression for his forthcoming book describing that condition to MDs who did not know anything about depression. I worked with him as editor before his book deal fell through. Since then, the piece won a couple of prizes for essay writing, but “Put Off My Sackcloth” is its first full-length appearance in print. I hope to transplant the reader into my skin during some of the worst moments of despair. Those who do not know depression cannot fathom how this illness can make an apparently ordinary person want to die.��From reader responses, I believe the essay succeeds in that work. Medication, therapy, and the love of my child moved me toward the shedding of my sackcloth. Around my 40th year, with the birth of my son, I made the switch from Depressed Person to someone who could enjoy my days, including all their vicissitudes.

Your presentation of essays is interspersed with several pieces reflecting on the 1978 mass murder/suicide at Jonestown. Why does the Jonestown tragedy loom so large in your—and the public’s—imagination?

After years of research on the Jonestown tragedy — meeting survivors and immersing myself in the story of the rise and fall of Peoples Temple — I came to see that story as emblematic of the American quest for utopia, a paradigm that began prior to 1776, in which immigrants came to these shores imagining they could create a perfect society. Before I learned the story of Jonestown, I was fascinated by the communes of the 1970s and planned to write a book called “Hippie Ruins,”��about two extant communes in Colorado’s Huérfano Valley. But when I was giving a reading at the University of North Dakota in 2004 and simply mentioned the word Jonestown, evoking tears in a listener who knew Jonestown survivors, I decided the story of the downfall of Jim Jones’s followers was imperative to tell immediately, and the Colorado communes could wait. The tale of followers of charismatic leaders has great relevance today. The 19 Al Qaida members who flew planes into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon are extreme examples of those who sacrifice rational thought to a cause and a man. The Trump phenomenon is today’s example. I became convinced that 21st century Americans need to understand Jonestown — the truths, not the myths. People born after 1978 don’t know anything about it. Or they sum up the story as “Madman Kills Zombie Followers” in a South American jungle, when the reality is so much more complicated and heartbreaking. Nine hundred twenty-four people died that day in November 1978, and the headline version is always about Jim Jones, who is not a major character in my novel, “Paradise Undone.”

The essay——is enjoying a revival, with younger readers awakening to its power and pleasure. What makes the essay so intriguing to read and so challenging to write?��

I’ve been writing essays all my life. In creative writing programs back in the 1980s, I saw myself as a fiction writer. I didn’t want to be limited to “reality” but rather create realities in my fiction, though always based on the real world. Later, as I grew more interested in historical situations, I was drawn to stories where research was required to present verisimilitude for my characters in other eras. The essay is an exploratory, experimental form, allowing writers a freedom they may not experience in other genres. Cynthia Ozick, a great fiction writer, and essayist, has shown me how it is possible to write both fiction and nonfiction in exemplary ways.

Please read more on the, or visit the for more!

Frequently Asked Questions

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Key Takeaways

• Joseph Hutchison, former Colorado Poet Laureate (2014–2019), released his 20th poetry collection, Under ��������’s New Moon: Rescued Poems 1970–1990.
• The book “rescues” earlier, unfinished poems and showcases how decades of craft can transform drafts into mature, meaningful work.
• Hutchison’s dual role as award-winning poet and academic director highlights the depth of creative expertise available to students in DU’s Professional Creative Writing programs.

Celebrated poet and academic director of University College’s Professional Creative Writing and Arts and Culture Management programs, Joseph Hutchison, has again graced us with another compilation of his works in his recently published Under ��������’s New Moon: Rescued Poems 1970-1990.

Joseph’s poetry has gained fans worldwide, and he served as the Colorado Poet Laureate from 2014-2019. This work is his 20^th collection of poetry, and it focuses on a range of unfinished poems from his past that he revisited and released into their true form.

“The road a poet travels is often littered with unrealized fragments, half-realized drafts, and unfinished poems that found their ways into a magazine but never earned their way into a book. If a poet is lucky, a few of such left-behinds might be “rescued,” released into their true form thanks to abilities that have ripened over many years of practice. In��Under ��������’s New Moon,��Joseph Hutchison (Colorado Poet Laureate, 2014-2019) offers a range of such poems, all rescued from twenty years of writing between 1970-1990.” ��

NYQ Books, publisher

The collection has already received high praise from those in the literary world.

“These ‘rescued’ poems by Joseph Hutchison bear a lyrical and ‘difficult witness’ to the outer and the inner world as we know it. Fueled by keen observation, ‘restless shadows,’ compassion, wonder, and a ‘cadence that rocks us,’ this is a collection both expansive and intimate. Here we have a poet’s honest and memorable voyage into the ‘endless entanglement of the bitter and the sweet,’” said Wendy Videlock, author of Nevertheless.

We asked Joseph about his poetry, the inspiration to rework his past poems, and how he chose the works he included in the publication.

Tell us about the significance of the book’s title: Under ��������’s New Moon: Rescued Poems?

The “rescued” aspect is easiest to talk about. In my first years writing poetry (I began in high school but have succeeded in expunging most of that dreck from the record), I wrote almost every day, sometimes launching into multiple poems a day. Most of them went nowhere, of course. Some went somewhere and stalled out along the way.

Others got finished and/or found their way into print, but when I was putting together my first full-length book, The Undersides of Leaves, they did not make the cut. So, the “rescued poems” in this book consist, in part, of revised poems published in magazines. The rest are poems that I’ve gone back to off and on over the years without being able to discover their authentic form.

As for the title, well … a new moon marks the beginning of a lunar cycle, in which the new moon waxes to full and then wanes back to new. So, the new moon is pure potential. ��������’s new moon points to the Unconscious as the source of this potential. In most folk traditions, the moon governs the realms of emotion and intuitive thinking, which is what poetry is all about. The moon is also the ruler of my astrological sign, Cancer—a water sign, which may be why there is so much wateriness in these poems.

What prompted you to begin this compilation?

I started in on these revisions in the wake of a death in our family that simply unhinged us. I’d been at work on a series of new poems, but during the mourning period and for a long time after, I simply couldn’t focus enough to continue with that work.

At the same time, certain old, unfinished poems started to nag at me again, and I figured, why not go back and rescue in words what I couldn’t rescue in life? The more I worked on old poems, the more old poems turned up asking for help.

I had just pulled together the first full manuscript of these when our family suffered a second blow, another death, and a month or so later, the virus surfaced. I discovered that polishing the revised poems was helping to keep me sane—or at least busy—and I worked on them almost every day until the manuscript went to the publisher. Even then I couldn’t let them alone. I’m lucky in having an accommodating publisher.

How did you choose which poems to include in the collection? ��

These are all poems that have nagged me off and on over the years. They had never let go of me, unlike the many, many others that offered nothing promising at all and so will continue to exist only in my notebooks. Thank the gods!

“A poet who tries to rescue an early poem is like a lifeguard who’s dragged a moribund swimmer out of the surf. The job is simply to coax the wretch back to life: no pushing to make it join one’s political party, no trying to inspire its conversion to one’s latest religion. Enough to help it cough up some cloudy water and successfully catch its breath; enough to bring some color back into the poem’s cheeks, and woo a bit of light back into its eyes, and help it sway to its feet—then send it on its way without passing judgment on its figure or fitness for society. Society after all must be a bit disorienting for the poem, which was born far away and in a different age. For the poet, the poem will always have a whiff of the stranger about it, even as its recovery affirms the choice not to let the ocean gobble it down. There is always the possibility, of course, that the poet’s heroism is merely egotism wearing a shiny silver whistle. For the reader’s sake, this poet hopes it isn’t so.”

Joseph Hutchison, Author’s Note

Is there an overarching theme to the poems included in the collection?

What holds the book together is the struggle to create a positive relationship between the inner life and the outer life. Every poem in the book arises from that struggle.

You can read more about and learn where to purchase Under ��������’s New Moon: Rescued Poems 1970-1990 on the . The collection is also available via and .

Frequently Asked Questions

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University College is excited to announce that Dr. Joseph J. Kerski, GIS program adjunct instructor, has been selected as the University Consortium for Geographic Information Science (UCGIS) 2021 Lifetime Achievement in GIScience Education Award!

“Dr. Kerski’s decades’ worth of contributions to GIScience education and his support of GIS and geography students and educators is legendary,” said the .

Dr. Kerski, education manager at Esri, is internationally recognized as one of the most influential, enthusiastic, and effective proponents of education involving geographic information science and its related technologies in the world today. UCGIS is recognizing his career-long dedication to staying abreast of the latest technologies and conceptual thinking in GIS education and unparalleled energy to produce and provision others with resources in a myriad of media and with diverse delivery methods.

“Having worked in four major sectors of society (academia, non-profit, private industry, and government, as a Geographer and Cartographer with NOAA, US Census Bureau, and USGS), he brings experienced perspectives about GIScience, GIS, and geospatial technologies to every conversation he has,” said UCGIS.

Dr. Kerski believes in transforming teaching and learning via geotechnologies by writing and speaking extensively, something that has been invaluable to his many students at University College, as well as the GIS industry alike. He has authored or co-authored eight books and over 100 peer-reviewed chapters and articles, but his reach into educational audiences is most profound via his production of open access resources: instructional videos (over 5,000), blog essays (over 1,500), and lessons and other curricular items (over 2,000). He has made educationally focused presentations at about 350 schools and 150 universities, at 150 major conferences, in 16 countries, and on five continents. Each year, he teaches dozens of workshops and presents at numerous conferences, nationally and internationally.

A lifelong learner himself, Dr. Kerski has worked tirelessly to bring GIScience and spatial learning to all members of the profession, to his students and the educational community, and to the general public.

“Every key issue of our 21^st Century world, including energy, water, supply chain, health, equity, natural hazards, is spatial in nature,” Dr. Kerski said. “They are complex, geographic, and increasingly affect our everyday lives. Understanding them and solving them is the ultimate goal of using GIS. People using GIS are building a healthier, more resilient, more sustainable future, and that’s why I never tire of telling students, faculty, and administrators about these tools, data sets, and perspectives.”

Dr. Kerski’s efforts have never gone unnoticed. According to UCGIS, his supporters noted, “Joseph has to be one of the most broadly curious and supportive colleagues I know and surely the most generous to the whole educational community with his ideas and knowledge,” and “Joseph is a born educator with a drive to teach as well as to learn that is almost miraculous. I have known many industrious educators in my 45 years of teaching, but none with the energy and drive he brings to his craft.”

UCGIS will honor Dr. Kerski and other award recipients during its , online in June 2021.

“Receiving an award from one’s own peers is always the most meaningful. And what makes this especially wonderful is that the UCGIS community is one I have long-lasting and deep respect for. They are truly the world leaders in the Geographic Information Sciences. I have known many inspiring people using GIS in many sectors of society and therefore receiving this award is humbling, but I’m thankful to be a part of a wider community making a positive difference in the world and in people’s lives,” Dr. Kerski said about the honor.

Congratulations, Dr. Kerski! Read more about his well-deserved honor on the .

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