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Spencer Museum’s annual Backyard Bash features student installations in Marvin Grove
LAWRENCE — The Spencer Museum of Art at the University of Kansas announces its sixth annual Backyard Bash, which opens Oct. 21 and remains on view in Marvin Grove through Nov. 12. Part exhibition, part festival, the Backyard Bash celebrates the interplay of nature, culture and the character of community in Marvin Grove.
School of Business honors KC business leaders with Distinguished Alumni Award
LAWRENCE — The University of Kansas School of Business will honor business leaders Peter and Veronica Mallouk with its Distinguished Alumni Award this year. The Mallouks will receive the award for their dedication to business excellence, community service and commitment to KU on Oct. 21 during a private reception.
ATLAS creates opportunities for students with disabilities
LAWRENCE — Staff with Accessible Teaching, Learning, and Assessment Systems (ATLAS), a part of the Achievement & Assessment Institute at the University of Kansas, work with educators in more than 20 states to provide assessments for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities. A study published in October 2020, conducted to meet U.S. Department of Education requirements, showed that students who meet academic expectations on DLM assessments have the skills necessary to pursue competitive and integrated employment after high school.
Full stories below.
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Contact: Elizabeth Kanost, Spencer Museum of Art, 785-864-0142, [email protected], @SpencerMuseum
Spencer Museum’s annual Backyard Bash features student installations in Marvin Grove
LAWRENCE — The Spencer Museum of Art at the University of Kansas announces its sixth annual Backyard Bash, which opens Oct. 21 and remains on view in Marvin Grove through Nov. 12. Part exhibition, part festival, the Backyard Bash celebrates the interplay of nature, culture and the character of community in Marvin Grove.
The monthlong event is anchored by “Understories,” a series of 12 outdoor installations by KU and Haskell Indian Nations University students that reveal stories untold and explore ideas of place. Student projects range from multimedia installations and sculptures to interactive games and performances. Visitors are invited to explore “Understories” at their leisure using a map and guide that is downloadable and available at the museum.
The Backyard Bash kicks off this week with the Spencer Museum’s Open House / Open Grove event from 5 to 7 p.m. Oct. 21 and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Oct. 22. This two-day celebration features a number of events including tours of “Understories” and the Spencer’s new exhibition, “Debut,” art-making and science activities and a chance to win a hard hat tour of the ongoing museum renovations. A full schedule of events is available on the museum’s website. Additional events and activities for the Backyard Bash will occur throughout its monthlong run.
The Backyard Bash is generously supported by KU Student Senate, Friends of the Art Museum, Steve Sears & John Lavryssen and the Judith M. Cooke Native American Art Fund. Programming partners include the KU Natural History Museum, KU Painting Club, field ecology students, museum public education students and architecture and design foundations students.
Related Programming
Friday, Oct. 22, 2-3 p.m.
Understories Tour
Meet the student artists behind “Understories” during this special tour, which is part of the museum’s two-day “Open House / Open Grove” event. You might spy Baby Jay, too.
Friday, Oct. 22, 5-7 p.m. and Saturday, Oct. 23, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
Art in Place: Indigenous Games for Understanding
Meet artist Robert Hicks Jr. “Nokwsi” and learn to play Hand Games, a high-energy hiding and guessing game of “sticks and bones,” immersive song and strategic hand signals.
Fridays Oct. 22, 29 and Nov. 5, 4-6 p.m.
KU Painting Club Open Sessions
Enjoy plein air painting as a spectator or bring supplies to sketch or paint with the club.
Saturday, Oct. 30, 2-4 p.m.
Halloweekend in the Woods
Trick-or-treat among the trees with KU’s two museums and enjoy art and science activities and take-home kits while supplies last. Decorate a pumpkin and make the sidewalk your runway to debut your Halloween costume. Costumed canines welcome, too.
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Contact: Lauren Cunningham, School of Business, 785-864-9540, [email protected], @KUbschool
School of Business honors KC business leaders with Distinguished Alumni Award
LAWRENCE — The University of Kansas School of Business will honor business leaders Peter and Veronica Mallouk with its Distinguished Alumni Award this year.
The Mallouks will receive the award for their dedication to business excellence, community service and commitment to KU on Oct. 21 during a private reception.
Peter Mallouk is the president of Creative Planning and affiliated companies. Creative Planning provides wealth management services to high-net-worth clients, managing more than $90 billion for clients in all 50 states and abroad. The company has been featured by Barron’s, CNBC and The New York Times, among other media outlets.
Peter Mallouk graduated from KU in 1993 with four majors, including degrees in business administration and in economics. He earned his law degree and MBA from KU in 1996 and has also earned certified financial planner designation. He has been recognized by Barron’s as one of the “Top 100 Independent Financial Advisors in America” for three consecutive years, and he has been named among Worth magazine’s “Power 100,” which features powerful men and women working in global finance. In 2017, he was named a recipient of the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award.
Additionally, Peter Mallouk is a founder, executive board member and former chairman of the Kansas City Children’s Assistance Network (KC CAN!), an organization dedicated to improving the quality of life of children in Kansas City. He also is the founder and an executive board member of Pathway Financial Education, which provides teenagers, adults and business owners in under-resourced communities with actionable financial education. He has served on the boards of Pathway to Hope, the American Stroke Foundation, St. Michael’s Finance Council and Kansas City Hospice.
Veronica Mallouk works on the finance team of Creative Planning and served as chief financial officer from 2015 to 2020. She graduated from KU with a degree in business administration in 1995, earning highest distinction. She worked as a project manager for a large professional services company before joining Creative Planning.
Veronica Mallouk also is active in the Kansas City community, volunteering in her church and in schools, as well as with her son’s fraternity. She is a member of the National Charity League and, along with her husband, is a founder and board member of KC CAN!. Veronica Mallouk has served as the honorary chairperson for Forks and Corks, a Harvesters food bank fundraising event, as well as for charities Variety KC and Giving the Basics. She and her husband were chairs of the 2020 Divine Winefest event benefiting KU’s St. Lawrence Catholic Center.
Peter and Veronica Mallouk have received the Giving the Basics Human Dignity Award for their contributions toward helping struggling adults and children meet basic needs as well as the Variety Presidential Citation Award for their work supporting children with developmental disabilities.
The School of Business established the Distinguished Alumni Award in 1998 to honor outstanding graduates. To date, 63 alumni have been recognized with the award. Previous recipients include businessman and investor David Booth, entrepreneur Tim Barton, recent Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas president and CEO Rob Kaplan, and Cerner Corp. co-founder Cliff Illig.
Award recipients are chosen from the nominations of other alumni and the Dean’s Advisory Board. Candidates are selected on the basis of their business success and service to their communities and to KU.
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Contact: Jackie Hosey, Accessible Teaching, Learning, and Assessment Systems, [email protected], @atlas4learning
ATLAS creates opportunities for students with disabilities
LAWRENCE — Special education teacher Cary Rogers was not surprised when she saw her students working on and solving complex algebraic equations. Rogers has high expectations.
Rogers, now an education program consultant at the Kansas State Department of Education, and her students in Parsons used the Dynamic Learning Maps (DLM) alternate assessment administered by Accessible Teaching, Learning, and Assessment Systems (ATLAS), a part of the Achievement & Assessment Institute at the University of Kansas.
ATLAS works with educators in more than 20 states to provide assessments for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities. DLM assessments are computer-based and accessible to students for whom general state assessments are not appropriate, even with accommodations.
The educator expert panel identified a range of postsecondary opportunities for students who meet the DLM achievement standards, including employment with wages and benefits similar to those without disabilities who perform the same work. Specific career examples include veterinary assistant, stock clerk, hospital guide, automotive detailer and many more. Students also have the skills necessary to pursue vocational training, community or continuing education classes and university-based programs for students with disabilities. A study published in October 2020, conducted to meet U.S. Department of Education requirements, showed that students who meet academic expectations on DLM assessments have the skills necessary to pursue competitive and integrated employment after high school.
“In the past, we spent so much time focusing on functional skills. With DLM, we’re required to link those to the general education curriculum and really have high expectations for our students,” Rogers said. “My high school students worked on solving algebraic equations, and that was something that they probably would not have been exposed to otherwise. And I had students who showed that they could do that.”
ATLAS Director Meagan Karvonen said Rogers’ experience reflects a core belief of ATLAS that all students, including those with the most significant cognitive disabilities, can demonstrate knowledge and skills and make progress relative to academic expectations of their grade level. The map-based system allows students to build strong foundational skills and build on those skills over time.
The ideas and methods at the core of the DLM Alternate Assessment System are universal to learning, regardless of the specific content or level, Karvonen said. With high expectations, access to content and opportunities to demonstrate progress, all students can meet or exceed their academic targets and pursue meaningful work, education and community involvement beyond high school.
“No matter where any student is in their learning, there is always a next step to take,” Karvonen said.
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