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From the Dept. of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA. Dr. Wiechers is currently affiliated with the Yale School of Medicine, Dept. of Psychiatry, and the VA Connecticut Healthcare System. Dr. Viron is with the Massachusetts Mental Health Center. Dr. Stoklosa is with McLean Hospital.
Send correspondence to Dr. Wiechers; firstname.lastname@example.com (e-mail).
Received September 29, 2010; Revised January 25, 2011; Accepted March 22, 2011.
Objective: Although it is widely acknowledged that second-generation antipsychotics are associated with cardiometabolic side effects, rates of metabolic screening have remained low. The authors created a quality-improvement (QI) intervention in an academic medical center outpatient psychiatry resident clinic with the aim of improving rates of screening for metabolic syndrome in patients being prescribed antipsychotic medications.
Methods: The core components of the QI intervention included resident education and creation of a metabolic screening bundle for the electronic medical record. Quarterly audits of individual patient electronic medical records assessed whether a patient was currently prescribed antipsychotics and whether metabolic-syndrome screening had been documented at any time in the preceding 12 months.
Results: In each audit period, from 131 to 156 patients (30%–36% of total clinic sample) were prescribed antipsychotic medication. After the intervention, rates of documentation of the components of the metabolic screening bundle increased between 3.5- and 10-fold (final rates: 39% for blood pressure, 44% for BMI, and 55% for glucose and lipid panel). Rates of documenting the full bundle increased nearly 30-fold (final rate: 31%).
Conclusion: Provider-education combined with introduction of a documentation bundle in the electronic medical record increased rates of documented metabolic screening in patients being prescribed antipsychotic medications by psychiatry residents.
Second-generation antipsychotics (SGAs) are commonly associated with metabolic side effects (i.e., weight gain, dyslipidemia, glucose intolerance) (1), which can develop into metabolic syndrome, a cluster of findings (including hypertension, insulin resistance, abdominal obesity, and atherogenic dyslipedemia) associated with increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease (2). In recognition of the urgent need to reduce iatrogenic morbidity and improve the physical health monitoring of patients who are receiving SGAs, several guidelines have been proposed (3–5). Despite psychiatrists' awareness of the metabolic adverse effects of antipsychotic medications (6), widespread adoption of the guidelines has been lacking, and only a minority of patients prescribed antipsychotics are screened according to best-practice recommendations (7–9).
We created a quality improvement (QI) intervention in an academic hospital psychiatry resident outpatient clinic with the aim of increasing documented screening for metabolic abnormalities in patients being prescribed antipsychotic medications. We hypothesized that baseline rates of documented screening would be low (less than 20%), in keeping with previously published evidence (7–9) and that rates of documented screening would increase after the intervention.
Institutional review board (IRB) approval and waiver of informed consent was obtained from the Partners Health Care IRB. The study period was October 1, 2008 to October 1, 2009.
The core components of our QI intervention included input from resident focus groups, resident education, and the creation of a Metabolic Screening Bundle template (a standardized, provider-populated form embedded in the psychiatry progress-note section of the electronic medical record [EMR]). Three 1-hour educational sessions for residents were conducted (by authors IRW, OF, and APW) to review antipsychotic medication-associated metabolic abnormalities, and residents and their supervisors were provided with literature on the current standards-and-practice guidelines (3–5). The first education session (October 2008) was directed at all residents seeing patients in outpatient clinic (Post-Graduate Year [PGY] 2, PGY3, PGY4); the second (March 2009) targeted residents beginning their clinic experience (PGY2), and was repeated for incoming PGY2 clinic residents (July 2009). Approximately 45 residents took part in the education sessions.
The standard we recommended in our clinic was at least annual metabolic screening of all patients prescribed any dose of any antipsychotic medication. We recommended screening with any dose, given that there are limited data available on dose-response of metabolic side effects, and published guidelines make no dose-specific recommendations. We included all antipsychotic medications, given the association with weight gain and first-generation antipsychotics, especially low-potency agents. Consistent with guidelines (4), residents were taught to monitor more frequently upon first initiating antipsychotic medications; however, for the purposes of this study, we viewed annual screening as an easily-measured and important first step.
We developed a standardized template for documenting the four components of the "Metabolic Screening Bundle," (including body mass index [BMI]; blood pressure [BP]; fasting glucose; and fasting lipid panel, including total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein, and triglycerides), which was integrated into psychiatry progress-note templates in the EMR. "Bundling," the process of performing together interventions to improve clinical outcomes, has been successfully used in other areas of medicine, such as ventilator care (10). Also, we implemented a fasting laboratory test instruction sheet to be distributed to patients. Residents participated in a focus group mid-way through the intervention to help identify ongoing barriers to implementation. As a result of the resident feedback, we displayed a BMI table near the main clinic scale to facilitate point-of-care calculation of BMI.
The study population was identified by individual clinic rosters maintained by each resident at baseline (10/01/2008) and each quarterly audit period thereafter (1/01/2009, 4/01/2009, 7/01/2009, 10/01/2009). All patients age 18 and over who received psychopharmacology management by psychiatry residents and were prescribed any antipsychotic medication during the study period were included in the study. Given the fluid nature of the outpatient clinic (i.e., new patient intakes, termination, or loss to follow-up), the population at each audit period was slightly different. Individual provider information was not tracked because of resident provider transitions at the change in academic year.
Audits of the EMR were completed at baseline and each quarter for the following year (by authors IRW, MJV, and JBS). Audits assessed whether a patient was currently being prescribed antipsychotics and whether individual elements of the Metabolic Screening Bundle had been documented at any point in the 12 months before the audit date, as determined by review of psychiatry progress notes in the EMR. Elements of the bundle were counted as being completed if a value or a reference to a value was documented in a psychiatry progress-note (e.g., "Fasting lipids completed and found to be normal."). Data gathered at the time of patient entry into the study included: age, race, gender, primary-care provider, and diagnoses according to criteria from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR). Data collected from progress-notes for each audit period included names and dosage of all standing and prn antipsychotic medications and components of the Metabolic Screening Bundle.
Data were analyzed with Microsoft Excel and SPSS 17.0. Frequencies were used to determine rates of screening at baseline and each quarterly audit. Further statistical analysis, using McNemar's test, compared frequencies at baseline and Quarter 4 for patients who were persistent users of antipsychotic medications (i.e., throughout the entire study period).
At study baseline, 140 patients of 390 total patients in the clinic met inclusion criteria; at Quarter 1, 154 of 419; at Quarter 2, 146 of 425; at Quarter 3, 138 of 437; and at Quarter 4, 131 of 436 (representing 30%–36% of the total clinic sample). In sum, 206 adult patients were prescribed an antipsychotic medication for at least one audit during the entire study period, thus meeting inclusion criteria. A total of 39 different psychiatry residents provided care for these patients throughout the study period.
Among these 206 patients, the mean age was 41 years (SD: 1 year), and 51% were women. Race was predominantly white (83%), with a small proportion of black (7%), Hispanic (5%), and Asian (4%) patients. Patients' insurance coverage was two-thirds public insurance (e.g., Medicare, state Medicaid) and one-third private insurance. All patients had an identified primary-care provider (PCP), with two-thirds having a PCP affiliated with the same academic medical center as the psychiatry clinic. The most prevalent diagnoses were affective disorders (e.g., major depressive disorder [32%], bipolar disorder [23%], mood disorder not otherwise specified [17%]), anxiety disorders (e.g., anxiety disorder not otherwise specified [19%], posttraumatic stress disorder [12%], obsessive-compulsive disorder [11%], generalized anxiety disorder [10%]), and psychotic disorders (e.g., psychosis not otherwise specified [12%], schizophrenia [11%]).
Rates of resident documentation of the component parts of the Metabolic Screening Bundle in the preceding 12 months increased from baseline audit through the Quarter 4 audit. Documentation increased from 5% at baseline to 44% at Quarter 4 for BMI; 4% to 39% for BP; 15% to 55% for fasting glucose; and 14% to 55% for fasting lipid panel.
Additional subgroup analysis was conducted on the 90 patients who were continuing users of antipsychotic medications (i.e., met inclusion criteria from the baseline audit through Quarter 4). Documentation increased from 7% at baseline to 49% at Quarter 4 for BMI; 4% to 43% for BP; 17% to 59% for fasting glucose; 18% to 62% for fasting lipid panel; and 1% to 31% for the full Metabolic Screening Bundle. All changes were statistically significant (p<0.0001).
The QI project interventions were successful in increasing rates of documented metabolic screening in an outpatient population prescribed antipsychotic medications by psychiatry residents. The low rates of glucose and lipid screening at the start of this intervention were similar to screening rates following the American Diabetes Association and American Psychiatric Association Consensus Statement observed in recent studies of large commercial managed-care and Medicaid administrative claims databases, which showed rates of lipid screening around 10% and glucose screening from 20% to 30% (8, 9). Improvement in documentation rates were similarly observed by Barnes et al. in their 2008 study of a quality-improvement program that included a provider-education component in an effort to improve screening for the metabolic syndrome in a sample of psychiatric outpatients cared for by assertive outreach teams in the United Kingdom (7).
Although significant gains in screening rates were observed, from 45% to 65% of patients remained unscreened for various components of the Metabolic Screening Bundle. Of the components of the bundle, blood pressure was the least documented at both beginning and end of the study. The low documentation rate of blood pressure may be related to several barriers to implementation, including the lack of appropriately-sized cuffs for larger patients, the limited availability of blood-pressure cuffs, and provider discomfort with physical contact with patients. Automatic blood-pressure cuffs with wide availability in the clinic may help overcome these barriers.
Several additional barriers to monitoring were noted by residents in their focus-group session, including: problems with the physical plant of the clinic; workflow and time constraints; information-technology limitations; and communication challenges, because one-third of our clinic population had non-affiliated primary-care providers. The addition of individualized feedback about monitoring rates to providers, as seen in the Barnes study, may assist with further increasing rates of monitoring.
Study strengths included the ability to look at individual patient and provider interactions regarding implementation of screening guidelines and determining whether screening data were documented by psychiatric providers, thus signifying provider awareness of the data.
This study has several limitations. Mainly, this intervention was implemented without a control group; thus, it is difficult to know what changes in rates of screening may have occurred naturally regardless of our QI project interventions. Limitations of the chart audit include inability to capture undocumented results or results documented places other than psychiatry notes that may have been reviewed by the resident but not remarked on in the progress-note. Thus, documentation rates may underrepresent the actual metabolic monitoring that has been considered. It is also unclear whether the gains made with this intervention and this cohort of residents can be sustained without a dedicated group of residents championing change.
No financial support was received for this study.
Dr. Henderson: research grant support from Takeda Pharmaceuticals and Johnson and Johnson/Ortho McNeil, honoraria for CME lectures from Pfizer and Reed Medical Education, honorarium for Advisory board from Merck; consultant for Novartis, Alkermes, and NuPathe; Dr. Freudenreich: research grant support from Pfizer, consultant for Beacon Health Strategies, honoraria for CME lectures from Reed Medical Education. The remaining authors have no competing interests to disclose.
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Alright, seeing how this item is literally in every single game since it actually is really good item I was wondering if it may be too good on some heroes. One of them I have in mind is Keeper Of the Forest.
Since he can farm in jungle basically risk free and non stop people usually get this item rather early to push lanes. So why should this item, which is meant to be bought as a "team item" be so good on heroes like Kotf?
So my suggestion would be to make it charge based, seeing how S2 likes charges so much. Here´s the explanation:
You get charges based on how many allied or enemy heroes are in the radius of the item. Maximum of 3 charges. The item itself starts at +2/-2. With 3 ally/enemy heroes you get 3 charges, each charge giving +1/-1.
It may sound rather rough since jungling heroes would benefit so much less than they do now but since it is a team item it should be used as one.
What do you think?
Would be too huge nerf to the item?
E: Changed the amount of charges given by each nearby hero from +1/-1 to +2/-2 maximum of 3. As suggested by [DRD]Repugnance
E2: Changed it again a bit.
Last edited by Tippa; 03-06-2012 at 09:55 AM.
love the idea, it is already an op item which lets people like kotf solo push towers. this item promotes individual play and by a much lower prices reduces armour just like shieldbreaker which costs much more.
your idea of making it charged based on how many heroes are around is magnificent love it
+/- 1 is a bit too low per hero, imo, though
it should be +2 per hero, with a max of 5
that way you get the full benefit out of it from at least 3 heroes without it being totally useless
Well it can be tweaked ofcourse but the main idea of the item effectinevess depending on nearby enemy/allied heroes would still stay the same.
So this item would be useless to carries and/or gankers. This is a big nerf for the item.
I think the idea of having it give +/-2 armour per hero would balance it out a bit more for gankers as they would only have to have 3 other heroes there to get the maximum benefit. with 2 heroes there it still makes a lot of difference and unless you are someone like , who don't need the effect, you will be ganking with someone else thus getting almost the full benefit.
Waaaaaay too much of a nerf. I'm not sure what all these people in this thread are talking about saying "This item is already OP" because it has already been nerfed in the recipe cost (700>900) and the armor aura (5>4) and I think it's fine as it is. If your changes are made there will be literally no point in picking up the item apart from having it as a component to complete Daemonic.
It is a nice suggestion, but when you are alone, this 2000-Gold-Item will give you nothing more than a 550-Gold-Ringmail, right ?
I highly recommend that the Passive Armour should increase as Aura Armour decreases. The total given Armour is still a constant 10 for the balance.
Feeling Dangerous ?
I really do LOVE this suggestion. Haven't thought of it myself, but it sounds really great with those changes.
On the number side I would like it to be +/- 2 armor per charge (mentioned before) and with the suggestion #17 came up with about the armor on the user being the same no matter what.
+1 here!
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Register here to submit a proposal through the ASA's 2013 submission site. (Closed)
Access your ASA membership account at JHU Press including online access to American Quarterly and the Encyclopedia of American Studies Online. Forgot your membership account passwordCreate an account to join an ASA community. Only current ASA members may contribute to the community blogs. Registration is not required to submit display or text ads or news and events or to view many pages. We will refuse posts that are not of professional interest to ASA members.
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Jan. 26 | CFP 2014 Annual Meeting
Click here. The submission site will automatically shut down at 11:59 PM (Pacific) on January 26, 2014.
Mar. 1 | 2014 Franklin Prize
Nominations for 2014 John Hope Franklin Publication Prize for the best-published book in American Studies due
Mar. 1 | 2014 Romero Prize
Nominations for 2013 Lora Romero Publication Prize for the best-published first book in American Studies due
Mar. 1 | 2014 Community Partnership Grants
Applications for the 2014 Community Partnership Grants Program to assist American Studies collaborative, interdisciplinary community projects due
Mar. 1 | 2014 Regional Chapter Grants
Applications for the 2014 grants program to assist regional American Studies conferences and projects due
The Minority Scholars' Committee of the American Studies Association invites nominations for the 2013 Richard A. Yarborough Mentoring Award. The prize was established in 2012, and will honor a scholar who, like Richard Yarborough, demonstrates dedication to and excellence in mentoring. The winner will be announced at the Mentoring Breakfast of the Minority Scholars' Committee during the annual meeting of the association to be held November 21-24, 2013, in Washington, DC.
Nominations for the 2013 Richard A. Yarborough Mentoring Award
Nomination materials should include:
1. A letter of nomination (no longer than 5 single-spaced pages) describing the nominee's achievements in mentoring underrepresented students and faculty. This statement should include his or her contributions locally (at their home institution), nationally, and internationally. This statement might also address the nominee's scholarly contributions, as well as the impact of the nominee's research on the careers of underserved and underrepresented publics.
2. Supporting letters from collaborators, colleagues, postdoctoral fellows, undergraduate and graduate students mentored. Although these letters can be individually authored, nominators are urged to solicit a smaller set of collectively authored letters with multiple signatories.
3. URLs for any relevant websites.
Published on February 22, 2013 by John F Stephens.
This website provides scholars with a one-stop shop for the latest research published in American studies journals throughout the world. Organized by the International Initiative of the American Studies Association and funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, this site is the outcome of a collaboration between numerous journal editors around the world.
Published on March 12, 2013 by John F Stephens.
The voting in the ASA Election is now completed. The following members have been elected to three-year terms that shall last from July 1, 2013, to June 30, 2016.
Lisa Duggan, New York University
Ann Cvetkovich, University of Texas, Austin
J. Kehaulani Kauanui, Wesleyan University
Sunaina Maira, University of California, Davis
Martin Manalansan, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
Juana Rodriguez, University of California, Berkeley
Student Councilor:
Marisol Lebron, New York University
Nominating Committee:
Siobhan Somerville, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
Judy Wu, Ohio State University
The Council extends its appreciation to all those who agreed to run for office, congratulates the new leaders of the Association, and wishes them success in their undertakings over the next three years.
The Council also extends its gratitude to those who are completing their term of service. The councilors whose terms expire on June 30, 2013 include:
Evelyn Alsultany, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
Jennifer Doyle, University of California, Riverside
Robert Lee, Brown University
Sarah Melton, student councilor, Emory University
Nayan Shah, University of California, San Diego
Priscilla Wald, immediate past president, Duke University
Cynthia Young, Boston College
The Nominating Committee members whose terms expire on June 30, 2013 are:
Jasbir Puar, Rutgers University, New Brunswick
Meredith Raimondo , Oberlin College
Published in News on March 13, 2013 by ASASTAFF.
The San Juan ASA Conference represented an important moment to continue thinking deeply about the conceptual and methodological demands of a truly transnational American Studies. The location of the conference was itself a powerful call for reflection—reflection on indigeneity and dispossession; reflection on the course of US empire; reflection on rich histories of resistance; reflection on American Studies as a set of interpretive and pedagogical practices in that zone where Indigenous Studies, Atlantic World, Caribbean Studies, Diaspora Studies, and Pacific Rim all come together. From the outset the Program Committee felt an awesome responsibility to organize sessions and events that would do justice to the significance of this Caribbean locale and its (anti-) colonial history.
The ASA membership responded to the call and the challenges of the conference with terrific energy, innovation, insight, commitment, and with a spirit of true collaboration and intellectual generosity. This was one of the best-attended and most vibrant ASA meetings in recent memory. The program was expanded in order to accommodate as many of the very fine submissions as possible; the final program comprised over 400 panels, round tables, caucus meetings, screenings, readings, lightening rounds, and installations, involving the participation of over 1500 scholars, writers, artists, and activists from 25 countries in North and Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific, the Middle East, and Europe. Sessions represented a vast and ingenious array of methods, approaches, and orientations, as well as scholarly and politically committed conversations that ambitiously crossed disciplines, geographic regions, and historical periods. A brief sampling of the interpretive modalities and the intellectual concerns running through the program includes comparative empires, US regions/cities in the context of empire, the Puerto Rican diaspora, empire and migration, political economy, activism and public scholarship, liberalism (in both its broad and narrower meanings), legal structures and juridical discourses, public pedagogy, transnational activism, the carceral state, neoliberalism, militarism and state violence, biopolitics, hegemonic and alternative archives, tourism, commodity chains, settler colonialism, borderlands, cartography, indigeneity and anti-imperialist strategies, digital humanities, consumption and the commercial cultures of empire, religion as oppression and as resistance, oral history, missionaries and explorers, feminist internationalism, environmental justice, sexuality and imperial power, global health, hemispheric solidarities, the politics of water, the global South and the "resource curse," radical poetics, human rights discourse, photography as a technology of empire, modernities and modernisms, museums and curation, sonic landscapes, narco-empire, graphic novels and animation, race and real estate, and trauma.
This was a tremendously rich, varied, and productive program. Among the most meaningful of the many conversations enabled at the meeting were those between colleagues from different parts of the world, between Puerto Rican scholars and activists and their colleagues from the US, between scholars in the humanities and in the social sciences, and between early Americanists and their colleagues who work on later periods. The program committee worked especially hard to raise the profile of early America in the conference and to invigorate the conversations across the temporal spectrum from the seventeenth century to the twenty-first.
The committee likewise assembled a slate of extracurricular exhibits, screenings, and events meant to augment and anchor the anti-imperialist spirit of the conference agenda and to provide routes into San Juan and its history quite distinct from those laid out by the normal circuitry of tourism. These included tours of the Hacienda La Esperanza Nature Reserve, one of the largest sugar plantations in Puerto Rico in the latter half of the nineteenth century; historical tours of Viejo San Juan, led by Edwin Quiles Rodríguez, author of San Juan Tras la Fachada: Una Mirada Desde Sus Espacios Ocultos (1580-1900); and a tour of the ENLACE Caño Martín Peña Project, whose residents seek to overcome poverty and attain social and environmental justice. Special events also included a reading by Puerto Rican poet and writer Giannina Braschi, whose work explores themes of US-Caribbean relations, the politics of empire and independence, and the migrant's experience of marginality and liberation; and installations by two artists-in-residence: Nao Bustamante presented her multimedia project, Personal Protection, which activates the tactile and tactical histories of women in wa; and Adál Maldonado presented his multi-media project, Blueprints for a Nation: Construction of an Imaginary State, weaving diverse perspectives on the Puerto Rican Diaspora, the significance of creative expression in fostering new political imaginations, and the subversive tropicalization of new environments. All of these events were heavily attended and enthusiastically received.
Finally, an in-house Anti-Imperialist Film Festival provided continuous screenings of important documentary films. These included Roberto Clemente, followed by a discussion with director Bernardo Ruiz; Aquel Rebaño Azul [The Blue Herd], a historical account of police brutality in Puerto Rico, sponsored by Puerto Rico's Civil Rights Commission; Más de 800 Razones, on the 2010-2011 University of Puerto Rico student strikes; and a number of films provided by the feminist collective, Women Make Movies. The festival culminated in a screening and director's discussion of John Sayle's Amigo, on a Philippine baryo in the crossfire of empire and resistance, and a ragtag but lethal detachment of U.S. soldiers who find themselves halfway around the world walking point for their country's new imperialist policy in 1899.
The strength, vitality, and rich programming regarding Puerto Rico and Puerto Ricans, the Caribbean, and the Americas created a larger space from which to theorize, reflect upon, and produce knowledge that advances our understanding of the consequences of empire. The inclusion of local scholars from the Island, the participation of former Puerto Rican political prisoners, and the performances of Bustamante and Maldonado were particularly important. ASA members came away from San Juan having taken serious stock of the voluminous and electrifying interdisciplinary work that has recently been produced on empire, but also with a new, deeper charge to expand on conversations that cross disciplines, national boundaries, and period-specific specializations. Most agreed that this was an energizing and important set of meetings.
Published in News on March 15, 2013 by ASASTAFF.
Introduction. By Simon J. Bronner (Pennsylvania State University, Harrisburg)
1. Being an American. By Isabelle Culpepper (The Lovett School, Atlanta, GA)
2. Learning American Studies: An Education Anyone Can Use. By Molly Fay (La Salle University, Philadelphia)
3. Learning What It Means to Be an American. By Brant Ellsworth (Pennsylvania State University, Harrisburg)
Although teaching is a component of learning, there is much more discussion on instructional pedagogy than on how students, particularly those in integrated and interdisciplinary studies such as American Studies with goals of "connected learning," process and apply knowledge. In the theory behind connected learning is a counter-disciplinary premise that presented with problems, students should be taught to find patterns across subjects. In other words, they thematize knowledge and find correspondences in an assortment of evidence to arrive at conclusions, or rather, interpretations taken from different vantages. For American Studies there is also an implication of relevance to contemporary issues apparent in references within learning objectives and goals of many courses to interpret American culture and society, both past and present. The EAS Forum previous to this one (no. 3) was devoted to "Teaching American Studies" and with its professorial contributors, it contained suggestions from the instructor's side of the classroom that such a thematic or cognitive style constituted a distinction of American Studies pedagogy. But if professors or curators encode knowledge in this style, do their audiences decode it as the teachers intend? The question remains as to how and what people learn, or perceive they have gained, when presented with an "American Studies approach," whether in the lecture hall, exhibition, seminar, essay, or public program. Another aspect of this inquiry are the institutional settings in which learning occurs and the difference across the life course. In the three essays here, representatives speak to these questions from their seats in high school, undergraduate, and graduate school classrooms. My hope is that this inquiry can be expanded to other venues as American Studies scholars contemplate not only what they know but how they know.
Published on June 6, 2013 by John F Stephens.
I met Bob Berkhofer in September 1983. He was then at the height of his distinguished career, just five years past the publication of his path-breaking book, The White Man's Indian: Images of the American Indian from Columbus to the Present. I was a new and profoundly ill-at-ease graduate student, who had been assigned as one of six teaching assistants for his US history survey course. A few days before classes were to begin we gathered in his office for an organizational meeting, Professor Berkhofer on one side of the table, me on the other, more than a little intimidated.
We were probably there an hour or so. What I remember, though, was a single moment. In his lectures he'd be presenting a particular interpretation, Berkhofer said. But it was his interpretation, not ours. And we should feel completely free - in fact encouraged - to tell our discussion sections that we disagreed with it. It was such an empowering thing for a grad student in my position to hear: that a scholar of Robert Berkhofer's standing valued our analyses of the American past; that he thought they ought to stand alongside his; that he welcomed us into the classroom, into the discipline as equals. It was also a reflection of his commitment to understanding the practice of history - and his willingness to put that commitment to the test
Robert F. Berkhofer, Jr., professor emeritus of history at the University of Michigan and the University of California-Santa Cruz and past president of the American Studies Association, died in Davis, California on June 25, 2012. He was eighty years old.
Robert F. Berkhofer, Jr., president of the American Studies Association, 1980-1981
Berkhofer was born in Teaneck, New Jersey on November 20, 1931. He earned his BA from the State University of New York, Albany in 1953, his Ph.D. from Cornell in 1960. He began his academic career at Ohio State University in the autumn of 1959. In 1960 he joined the faculty at the University of Minnesota, where he taught until 1969. He spent the next four years at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, then eighteen years, from 1973 to 1991, at the University of Michigan, before moving to University of California-Santa Cruz, from which he retired in 1997. He excelled at each institution, receiving the University of Minnesota's Distinguished Teaching Award, the University of Michigan's Distinguished Faculty Recognition Award, and UC-Santa Cruz's Presidential Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Research. He also received a number of major external prizes, among them a National Endowment for the Humanities Senior Fellowship and a Guggenheim.
Berkhofer's imposing scholarship focused on cultural history and historical theory. He wrote two highly-regarded studies of whites' interaction with and conceptions of Native Americans: Salvation and the Savage: An Analysis of Protestant Missions and American Indian Response, 1787-1962 (University Press of Kentucky, 1965) and The White Man's Indian (Alfred Knopf, 1978), the latter a "spare, controlled yet deeply affecting book," as Leo Marx said in his New York Times review. Alongside that work Berkhofer set three penetrating explorations of philosophical and methodological issues: A Behavioral Approach to Historical Analysis (Free Press, 1969), Beyond the Great Story: History as Text and Discourse (Harvard University Press, 1995), and Fashioning History: Current Practices and Principles (Palgrave Macmillan, 2008).
As he worked through his ideas on the nature of historical understanding, Berkhofer moved across the intellectual landscape, exploring the promise of high modernism - he was a founding member of the Social Science History Association - and the post-modern challenge, winding his way through cliometrics and the linguistic turn, art and film, monographs and museum labels. But he insisted that his thinking revolved around a central core. "... all my books have stressed the constructed nature of history," he wrote in 1998. "Whether such consciousness stemmed from class background, interdisciplinary interest, physical disability, or another ascribable reason, I know that such awareness existed long before my professors warned me as a graduate student that studying Native Americans would diminish or even eliminate my chances of teaching 'regular' history in college." It was that same awareness that led him to believe that the undergraduates in his survey course would be well served by having their professor contradicted: our own small version of the Great Story disrupted, the narrative strained and maybe even broken. Theory put into practice, principles made real: an act of intellectual courage and of abiding generosity.
Bob Berkhofer was predeceased by his wife, Genevieve Zito, who died in 2007. He is survived by his son, Robert F. Berkhofer III and daughter-in-law Sally Hadden, both distinguished historians in their own right; his brother Donald; and a number of nieces.
Kevin Boyle
Department of History
Northwestern University
Published on June 22, 2013 by John F Stephens.
The American Studies Association publishes an online registry of American Studies and American Ethnic Studies doctoral dissertation abstracts. American Studies and American Ethnic Studies graduate programs and their recent Ph.D.s may submit entries. These abstracts are added to the ASA website on a continuing basis. This list is now comprised of abstracts of doctoral dissertations written in the United States since 1986. Click here to access the abstracts, sorted by author's last name, or click here to submit your abstract using our online form.
Each year, the ASA conducts a survey of recent Ph.D. recipients' immediate employment and career plans. Doctoral degree recipients are invited to participate in the survey as well as submit abstracts of their dissertations. This survey has been recorded since 1996-1997, and encompasses sources of funding received, time taken to completion, short-term and long-term employment and career plans. For past survey reports, please visit the following web page, or click here to submit your survey response using our online form.
Published on July 10, 2013 by John F Stephens.
The Nominating Committee is preparing a ballot for the 2014 annual ASA elections. Members of the American Studies Association are invited to submit recommendations for elected positions. Letters suggesting or recommending a candidate should relate the member's experience to the association's work and his or her vitae. All candidates must be current members of the American Studies Association.
The following positions will appear on the 2014 election ballot: president-elect, councilor (4 positions), K-12 member of council (1 position), international member of council (1 position), student councilor (1 position), and nominating committee member (2 positions).
Please submit your recommendations no later than September 1, 2013, to the Nominating Committee:
The final slate must provide representation of the diversity of the Association's membership. Those nominated must be current members of ASA in order to serve. All persons elected serve three-year terms and will take office on July 1, 2014.
Nominations may also be made by petitions carrying in each case the signatures of at least twenty-five members of the association in good standing and indicating in each case the particular vacancy for which the nomination is intended. The Chair of the Nominating Committee must receive nominations by petition no later than October 1st. The Chair shall ascertain that all candidates nominated by the committee or by petition have consented to stand for election.
Published on August 25, 2013 by John F Stephens.
Submit a speaker request | Community Partnership Grant Program
The American Studies Association is pleased to announce the scholars participating in its Distinguished Speaker's Bureau. Speaking on a wide range of topics, the Distinguished Speakers' Bureau brings leading scholars to your institution.
Speakers listed here are willing to give at least one lecture in the academic year on behalf of the ASA. Speakers donate their time to the ASA in order to participate. Host institutions pay a $1,000 speaker's fee directly to the ASA, in addition to the speaker's travel and lodging expenses.
All speakers' fees are deposited into the ASA's Community Partnership Fund. The Community Partnership Fund supports a competitive grants program open to members of the American Studies Association. The Fund encourages projects developed in collaboration with community-based organizations, school districts, public libraries, local historical societies, community museums, and other non-profit entities.
Published on October 1, 2013 by John F Stephens.
Prepared by the Graduate Education Committee, ASA
November 2012
Download Grad Ed FAQs.pdf
Statement on Standards in Graduate Education
How should I prepare for graduate work in American Studies?
An undergraduate degree in American Studies is probably the best preparation for graduate study since it builds the foundation for the interdisciplinary research and analysis required to complete a Master's or Ph.D. degree. But many undergraduates don't have the opportunity to major in American Studies and others discover an interdisciplinary approach only later in their undergraduate studies. Students who major in more traditional disciplines—literature, history, the social sciences, even the natural sciences—often have the opportunity to take courses outside their major as electives which can improve their interdisciplinary range and strengthen their application to American Studies graduate programs. Students who come to American Studies from the social or natural sciences, or from a humanities field with a non-Americanist focus, can bring fresh perspectives and useful skills. These students find it useful to gain a background in U.S. history on their own (or as a part-time student in a graduate program where they can take one course) before starting graduate-level work in American Studies.
What is the best American Studies graduate program for me?
You should weigh factors such as faculty, professional goals, quality of program, funding opportunities, and geography in choosing where to apply. Applicants should first research American Studies programs to determine which programs have faculty who work specifically in the areas of research that most interest them. In the course of this research, an applicant should try to contact faculty members who share his/her research interests to find out if they currently advise graduate students and to ask more specific questions about their department. Applicants need to find programs that best suit their intellectual interests and this is best determined through direct communication with faculty. While it is crucial to enter a program where you have identified a mentor with whom to work, you shouldn't plan your entire course of graduate study around one faculty member, as faculty do not always stay at one university throughout their career. Therefore, students should find a program in which there are several faculty members with whom they could potentially study. If applicants are geographically restricted in where they can apply, they will need to determine which programs in their area have faculty available to mentor their work, communicating with faculty to see how flexible they can be in advising students outside their specific research areas. Many department websites have lists of current students and their research interests. Contacting students who are currently enrolled, or recent graduates, is an excellent way to gauge the suitability of the program for your individual interests. Faculty and departmental representatives will be able to provide you with contact information.
Applicants should also consider which programs best suit their professional goals. For example, some American Studies programs are strong in placing their graduate students in jobs in public history or archival work, while other programs are known for helping students find tenure-track teaching jobs and/or others focus on an activist, engaged scholarship. Some programs have special strength in African American studies, whereas others have a concentration of specialists on the Asia-Pacific region and so forth.
The amount and types of funding available for graduate students has a major impact on the time to completion of the degree as well as to the range of teaching and research experiences one will gain while in graduate school. It is important to find out what kind of funding (e.g. teaching assistantships, research assistantships, fellowships, tuition waivers) are available in the program of one's interest. We think teaching experience is important preparation for all graduate students, no matter their career plans, but too much teaching takes time away from research and writing.
Most graduate programs designate one faculty member to advise graduate students and/or speak with prospective students. You can find this person's contact information on the website or by phoning or emailing the department office. You should be in touch with this faculty member as well to insure that your interests can be served by the program, to receive suggestions on your application, and to understand the available financial aid and how to apply for it.
Do I need a Masters degree in American Studies before applying to a doctoral program?
Many applicants apply to doctoral study directly from undergraduate work—especially if they have already earned a B.A. degree in American Studies. Nevertheless, if a student applies without much previous background in interdisciplinary study, it can be useful to start with a Master's program to explore the field of American Studies before making the commitment to doctoral study. Earning an M.A. in American Studies may also be useful to enhance one's application for, and acceptance into, doctoral programs.
What makes an effective personal statement?
Applicants should describe the academic and other relevant backgrounds that have prepared them for graduate-level work in American Studies. A strong personal statement in an American Studies application offers a concise description of the applicants' research interests and goals with a particular emphasis on why the interdisciplinary approach of American Studies is the most effective way to pursue those interests and goals. In addition, applicants should make a clear case for why the particular program they are applying to best suits their goals. You should avoid digressions into personal biography, unless there is an appropriate intellectual reason to do so. For instance, a formative experience might be a helpful introduction to your interests, but anecdotal material must have a clear purpose such as helping explain one's intellectual development. Applicants to doctoral programs need not have a dissertation topic drafted for a personal statement, but they should be able to lucidly describe their general interests and specific fields/subfields, theoretical frameworks, methodologies, scholars, or books that have influenced their intellectual development and interest in American Studies.
What kind of writing sample should I submit?
An effective writing sample for American Studies would be a research paper (15-20 pages in length) that had both a clear argument and provided evidence of the applicant's ability to do primary and secondary research. Papers that incorporate an interdisciplinary approach to research would also be helpful, but are not required. Depending on the work you have done, and want to do, a shorter piece of writing aimed at a more general audience might also be appropriate.
Who should write my letters of recommendation?
Recommendations from faculty with whom you have taken a class and who know you personally are most helpful. In general, letters from employers or friends are not as effective because they often don't adequately assess an applicant's abilities as a researcher or writer.
How important are the GRE scores?
Many programs require applicants to submit their GRE scores and how the scores are weighed in the overall application varies from program to program. Higher scores are certainly better than lower scores; however, in general American Studies programs do not see the GRE scores as the most important factor in the application package. The personal statement, writing sample, recommendation letters, and previous academic records read together can go a long way in making up for lower GRE scores.
For international students, many programs see TOEFL scores as a replacement for GRE scores. Good TOEFL scores not only increase the chances of admission but the language ability they measure is also necessary for actually doing graduate work in American Studies.
What kind of jobs do graduate students in American Studies get after graduation?
Graduate students in American Studies can go into a variety of fields, but most are interested in teaching jobs or museum work. They can also be competitive for jobs at historical societies, archives, state and federal humanities and cultural resource agencies as well as community cultural development organizations.
Published on October 18, 2013 by John F Stephens.
The American Studies Association is proud to recognize the continuing high level of scholarship examining our American cultures. We ask all members of the Association to join in congratulating their fellow members honored at this year's award ceremony, to be held on Friday, November 22, 2013, at the ASA convention.
The 2013 Constance Rourke Prize
Chair: Franny Nudelman, Carleton University
Rick Baldoz, Oberlin College
Kathleen Donegan, University of California, Berkeley
The Constance Rourke Prize has been awarded annually since 1987 for the best article published in American Quarterly. The winner of this year's prize is Jana Lipman for her article " 'Give us a Ship': The Vietnamese Repatriate Movement on Guam, 1975," 64:1 (March 2012).
The 2013 Ralph Henry Gabriel Dissertation Prize
Chair: Maria Cotera, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
Theresa Runstedtler, American University
Gayle Wald, George Washington University
The Ralph Henry Gabriel Dissertation Prize, established in 1974, has been awarded annually since 1987 by the Association for the best dissertation in American Studies.
The winner of this year's prize is Maile Arvin (University of California, San Diego - Ethnic Studies) for "Pacifically Possessed: Scientific Production and Native Hawaiian Critique of the "Almost White" Polynesian Race."
Finalist mention goes to Dara Orenstein (Yale University- American Studies) for her dissertation: "Offshore Onshore: A History of the Free Zone on US Soil."
The 2013 Gene Wise - Warren Susman Prize
Chair: Magdalena Zaborowska, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
Beth Piatote, University of California, Berkeley
Carlo Rotella, Boston College
The Gene Wise - Warren Susman Prize is awarded each year for the best paper to be presented by a graduate student at the annual meeting. The winning paper may deal with any aspect of American history, literature, or culture, but should reflect the breadth, the critical imagination, the intellectual boldness, and the cross-disciplinary perspective so strongly a part of the scholarship of both Gene Wise and Warren Susman.
The 2013 prizewinner is Rabia Belt (University of Michigan, Ann Arbor), "What Does Citizenship Mean for People with Mental Disabilities?"
Finalist mention goes to: Chloe Taft (Yale University), "The Postindustrial Factory: Seeking Continuity in Casino Work at a Former Steel Plant."
The 2013 Yasuo Sakakibara Prize
Chair: Catherine Ceniza Choy, University of California, Berkeley
Christina Klein, Boston College
Jean Pfaelzer, University of Delaware
The Yasuo Sakakibara Prize is awarded annually for the best paper to be presented by an international scholar at the annual meeting. The winning paper may deal with any aspect of American history, culture, or society.
The 2013 prizewinner is Ethan Blue, University of Western Australia, "The Deportation Special: Mobile Carceral Space and the Emergence of Mass Deportation."
The 2013 Lora Romero First Book Publication Prize
Chair: Edward Blum, San Diego State University
Adriane Lentz-Smith, Duke University
Jeffrey Melnick, University of Massachusetts, Boston
The Lora Romero First Book Publication Prize was established in 2002 and is awarded annually for the best-published first book in American Studies that highlights the intersections of race with gender, class, sexuality and/or nation.
The 2013 winner is Kyla Wazana Tompkins, Racial Indigestion: Eating Bodies in the Nineteenth Century (New York University Press)
Finalist mention goes to:
Adria L Imada, Aloha America: Hula Circuits through the American Empire (Duke University Press)
Brigit Brander Rasmussen, Queequeg's Coffin: Indigenous Literacies and Early American Literature (Oxford University Press)
Cynthia Wu, Chang and Eng Reconnected: The Original Siamese Twins in American Culture (Temple University Press)
The 2013 John Hope Franklin Publication Prize
Chair: Alex Weheliye, Northwestern University
Margot Canaday, Princeton University
Helen Jun, University of Illinois, Chicago
The John Hope Franklin Publication Prize was established in 1986 and has been awarded annually for the best book published in American Studies.
The 2013 prizewinner is Lisa Marie Cacho, Social Death: Racialized Rightlessness and the Criminalization of the Unprotected (New York University Press)
Finalist mention goes to:
Kornel S. Chang, Pacific Connections: The Making of the U.S.-Canadian Borderlands (University of California Press)
Mabel O. Wilson, Negro Building: Black Americans in the World of Fairs and Museums (University of California Press)
The 2013 Angela Davis Prize
Chair: Mary Helen Washington, University of Maryland, College Park
Michelle Mitchell, New York University
David Roediger, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
Sonia Saldivar-Hull, University of Texas, San Antonio
The Angela Davis Award for Public Scholarship recognizes scholars who have applied or used their scholarship for the "public good." This includes work that explicitly aims to educate the lay public, influence policies, or in other ways seeks to address inequalities in imaginative, practical, and applicable forms.
The 2013 prizewinner is George Lipsitz, University of California, Santa Barbara.
The 2013 Mary C. Turpie Award
Chair: Eva Cherniavsky, University of Washington
Gary Holcomb, Ohio University
Lois Rudnick, University of Massachusetts, Boston
Annually, the American Studies Association gives the Mary C. Turpie Award, established in 1993, to a person who has demonstrated outstanding abilities and achievement in American Studies teaching, advising, and program development at the local or regional level.
The 2013 prizewinner is Joy Kasson, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
The 2013 Carl Bode-Norman Holmes Pearson Prize
Chair: Miles Orvell, Temple University
Irene Ramalho Santos, University of Wisconsin, Madison
Cecelia Tichi, Vanderbilt University
The Carl Bode-Norman Holmes Pearson Prize honors lifetime achievement in and contribution to the field of American Studies. Each year's prize committee is instructed to consider afresh the meaning of a "lifetime contribution to American Studies." The definitions of terms like "contribution" and even of "American Studies" remain open, healthily contested, and thus renewed.
The 2013 prizewinner is Alfred Hornung, University of Mainz, Germany.
Published on October 22, 2013 by John F Stephens.
Published on December 1, 2013 by John F Stephens.
One year ago, the Academic and Community Activism Caucus of the American Studies Association (ASA) asked the Executive Committee (EC) to consider a resolution to honor the call from Palestinian civil society to support the academic boycott of Israel. The EC forwarded the resolution to the National Council. Following the deliberative procedures detailed below, the Council unanimously decided to issue a revised version of the resolution, which we now recommend to members of the ASA. Please follow this link to read the resolution.
The Council voted for an academic boycott of Israeli institutions as an ethical stance, a form of material and symbolic action. It represents a principle of solidarity with scholars and students deprived of their academic freedom and an aspiration to enlarge that freedom for all, including Palestinians.
We believe that the ASA's endorsement of a boycott is warranted given U.S. military and other support for Israel; Israel's violation of international law and UN resolutions; the documented impact of the Israeli occupation on Palestinian scholars and students; the extent to which Israeli institutions of higher education are a party to state policies that violate human rights; and the support of such a resolution by many members of the ASA.
Our resolution understands boycott as limited to a refusal on the part of the Association in its official capacities to enter into formal collaborations with Israeli academic institutions, or with scholars who are expressly serving as representatives or ambassadors of those institutions, or on behalf of the Israeli government, until Israel ceases to violate human rights and international law.
The resolution does not apply to individual Israeli scholars engaged in ordinary forms of academic exchange, including conference presentations, public lectures at campuses, or collaboration on research and publication. The Council also recognizes that individual members will act according to their convictions on these complex matters.
The ASA is a large organization that represents divergent opinions. Anticipating strong and potentially divided feelings on this question, the Council unanimously decided to ask ASA members to endorse the resolution by a vote.
What Does the Academic Boycott Mean for the ASA
Background on the Resolution
The resolution is the culmination of a long history of discussion and debate in the ASA. In 2006, in response to Israel's attacks on Lebanon and Gaza, the ASA International Committee (IC), including a former ASA President, discussed the possibility of endorsing a boycott. In 2009, in the wake of Israel's military assault on Gaza and in response to requests from ASA members, several bodies in the Association again took up the question of a boycott: the IC, the Program Committee for the 2009 convention, and the Executive Committee, which included the current ASA President. The consensus then was that members needed more opportunities to learn about and discuss the issues and so the Program Committee organized two featured panels: "Palestine in Crisis" and "Academic Freedom and the Right to Education: The Question of Palestine." Scheduled in prime times on Friday and Saturday of the convention, the panels addressed the plight of Palestinian universities and academics and the profound pressures on teaching and research contexts in the U.S. and Palestine where education and intellectual freedom were under attack. The second panel focused in particular on the boycott movement.
In the wake of such discussions, the Academic and Community Activism Caucus (ACAC) met at the 2012 ASA convention to consider a resolution and gather signatures. This resolution was then submitted to the Executive Committee and, in December, posted on the Caucus' page on the ASA web site. Information about the resolution was also included in the December 2012 ASA Newsletter distributed to all ASA members.
In March of 2013, the Program Committee for the 2013 ASA convention met and discussed ways to create opportunities at the meeting to discuss issues related to calls for boycott. The resulting program included 8 sessions on "Middle East American Studies," with four focused specifically on United States/Israel/Palestine. At the same time the Ethnic Studies Committee organized two panels about settler colonialism that discussed the Israeli occupation of Palestine, while the ACAC organized a panel called "Boycott as a Non-Violent Strategy of Collective Dissent."
In May 2013 the Executive Committee met and discussed the proposed resolution submitted by the ACAC at great length. It agreed that it would be in the best interest of the organization to solicit from the membership as many perspectives as possible on the proposed resolution to aid the National Council in its discussions and decision-making. With the past President and a prominent, senior member of the Association serving as moderators, it held an open session during the November National Convention at which the National Council was present to hear directly from the membership. Members were notified of the open discussion well in advance of the convention and it was highlighted as a featured event in both online and print versions of the program. Additionally, members who could not attend the session or the convention were encouraged to contact the EC directly via email, and many did so.
The Saturday November 23rd open discussion was attended by approximately 745 ASA members. Members distributed information about the boycott in advance, and the hall was filled with leaflets representing different views. The moderators carefully and clearly articulated the different actions that could be taken and the process for deliberation. To guarantee an orderly and fair discussion members who wished to speak put their name in a box from which speakers were randomly selected. Speakers were limited to 2 minutes, providing the opportunity to hear from forty-four different speakers during the time allotted for the special session. The discussion was passionate but respectful. Speakers included students, faculty, past Presidents, former members of the National Council, former and current members of the AQ editorial staff, American Studies department chairs, and an ASA member also representing the organization Jewish Voice for Peace. While different opinions were articulated, the overwhelming majority spoke in support of the ASA endorsing an academic boycott.
Remaining in session over the course of 8 days after the open session, Council members spoke and wrote from different perspectives, debated different possibilities, and critically yet generously engaged each other. The resulting resolution reflects, we think, the history and present state of conversations within the ASA, offering a principled position for the Association's participation in the academic boycott of Israeli academic institutions while respecting the unique conditions and diverse positions of our membership on this issue.
In the last several decades, the ASA has welcomed scholarship that critically analyzes the U.S. state, its role domestically and abroad, and that reaches out beyond U.S. borders. Our commitment to cutting-edge and transnational scholarship has been accompanied by the comparative study of borders, migration, and citizenship. The ASA also has a history of critical engagement with the field of Native American and Indigenous studies that has increasingly come to shape and influence the field and the Association, and the Council acknowledged the force of Israeli and U.S. settler colonialism throughout our deliberations. Finally, the resolution is in keeping with the ASA's continuing commitment to ethical research and the right of scholars to dissent and to take public positions.
The Council believes that the resolution is of particular significance to scholars of American Studies. Together, we endorse it, and recommend that ASA members endorse it as well.
Please follow this link to cast your vote.
The ASA National Council
Jennifer Devere Brody, Stanford University
Ann Cvetkovich, University of Texas, Austin
Jeremy Dean. University of Texas, Austin
Lisa Duggan, New York University
Avery Gordon, University of California, Santa Barbara
Matthew Frye Jacobson, Yale University
E. Patrick Johnson, Northwestern University
J. Kehaulani Kauanui, Wesleyan University
Marisol LeBrón, New York University
Karen Leong, Arizona State University
Sunaina Maira, University of California, Davis
Martin F. Manalansan IV, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
Curtis Marez, University of California, San Diego
Roya Rastegar, Bryn Mawr College
Chandan Reddy, University of Washington, Seattle
Juana María Rodríguez, University of California, Berkeley
María Josefina Saldaña-Portillo, New York University
Nikhil Pal Singh, New York University
Due to a family emergency, Juri Abe, Rikkyo University, Tokyo, Japan, was not present for the National Council meeting where the resolution was passed.
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Published on December 4, 2013 by ASASTAFF.
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American Quarterly [official journal site]
American Quarterly [editorial site]
Encyclopedia of American Studies
Encyclopedia of American Studies [editorial site]


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Threatening note prompts evacuation of Bondurant-Farrar High School
- Dec. 4, 2013
The discovery of a threatening note at Bondurant-Farrar High School prompted the evacuation of hundreds of students Wednesday afternoon.
Boka, Isley vie for final seat on Altoona council
- Nov. 26, 2013
Looking Back: Two D.M. boys die in blast near Pleasant Hill in 1983
- Nov. 26, 2013
Country Roads: Who needs luck on Friday the 13th? Nov. 26, 2013
Local business spotlight: Firm remains small, personal Nov. 26, 2013
Pleasant Hill City Council adjusts meeting dates Nov. 26, 2013
Altoona fireman helps Brazilian officials prepare of Olympics Nov. 26, 2013
Iowa celebrates centenarians with luncheon Nov. 26, 2013
Mitchellville Lions to sponsor holiday decorating contest Nov. 26, 2013
S.E. Polk's Roush tapped as Pleasant Hill council liaison Nov. 26, 2013
SportsSEE MORE Sports
SEP Wrestling: Rams return 5 who qualified for state meet
- Nov. 26, 2013
The Southeast Polk wrestling team returns five state qualifiers from last season's record-setting squad, but it will need underclassmen to fill the
- Southeast Polk Bowling: Girls' bowling squad will rebuild
- Junior leads Central to record finish
- SEP Girls' Basketball: Rams prepare to make run at another title
- SEP Boys' Basketball: Six starters return to the court for the Rams
- Big day for Southeast Polk Rams; 3 sign letters of intent
- Rams win at Jamboree games
Nation/World from USA TODAY and Associated Press
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- Gunman dies after shootout with police
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- Sorenson case might focus on two provisions of campaign-related law
- Gunfire stuns south-side residents; more details emerge
- Munson: Register's old globe spins into new east-side site
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29 Mar 2011
Healthy Wines
Guest blog post by Nan Gibbons
As a female fitness trainer, I am often asked for advice about foods and drinks which are beneficial to your health. In this day and age, when health insurance is more important than ever, my clients count on me to offer sound advice for healthy living. Many of my clients are surprised to hear me say that certain red wines, in moderate amounts, can be very good for your body. Compounds found in red wine, called antioxidants, are very healthy for your heart. They raise your good cholesterol and help prevent clogging of the arteries. Certain red wines are beneficial to heart health due to flavonoids and a compound called resveratrol which is found in high quantities in darker red wines. Antioxidants in red wine, named polyphenols, help safeguard the artery lining in your heart. A certain polyphenol known as resveratrol is getting a lot of attention for having healthy benefits.
Resveratrol is a very important ingredient in red wine. It protects blood vessels from damage, lowers "bad" cholesterol and protects against blood clots. It also reduces inflammation and helps prevent heart disease, one of the leading causes of death today. In my travels, helping my clients to become more healthy and fit is top priority. Here's the most important fact I tell all of my fitness clients. The antioxidants, especially resveratrol, are found primarily in the skin of the grape. Darker wines, such as Cabernet and Merlots, have been exposed to the grape skins longer. So what does all this mean, you ask? Darker wines are healthier than lighter ones. They contain much more of these wonderful, healthy components. The darker the wine, the healthier it is. Blush wines are only briefly in contact with the grape skins, and therefore are not as healthy.
So which wines should you buy? The world's healthiest red wines have the greatest amounts of potent heart healthy polyphenol antioxidants, especially resveratrol. The healthiest wines are imported from the region of France. Studies show that the population in Southwest France has an extraordinary lifespan. Wine from this part of the world is significantly higher in polyphenol antioxidants. As a matter of fact it has over 10 times more. The type of grapes and traditional wine-making skills of the French southwest winemakers creates a higher level of antioxidants, especially compared to contemporary, light, everyday drinking red wines.
Mayo Clinic article regarding wine & health - http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/red-wine/HB00089
Studies regarding wine & heart health: http://www.winesummit.com/documents/frenchparadox.pdf
About the Author
Nan Gibbons is a fitness expert and advisor. She spends her time traveling, cooking, and running the beach with her lab mix Cody. If you can keep up, follow her on twitter: @healthnut2011
21 Mar 2011
Five Wine Tasting Tips For Wine Newbies
Guest blog from wine slinger Ben Hilzinger
Anyone from the smelly shmuck sitting beside you on the bus to the overworked soccer mom behind you in line at the shopping mall would agree that in order to taste wine, you must drink it first. Not everyone, however, understands that drinking doesn't necessarily mean tasting. For those who do know the difference, wine tasting, as an event, can be very intimidating. Ever since a banished, suicidal harem to the King of Persia drank a bottle of spoiled grapes labeled "poison" only finding the effects changing her mood completely, winemakers have allowed customers to sample and/or taste their wines. Many young people, including myself at one point, find the whole ordeal to be comedic, pretentious and aimed towards high-class folk with a dictionary full of terms and references to pull out their bums proving they know a thing or five. Don't believe this! If one has the ability to enjoy drinking wine, one has the equal ability to enjoy wine tasting. Here are a few helpful hints to those anxious first-time tasters that will hopefully make the experience more enjoyable and allow you to get the most of out every minute!
1. Check business hours!
There's little more embarrassing than setting time aside to go to the tasting room of your choice only to be greeted with a locked door and the inevitable "@$#!" moment. You've already made the first step; don't dampen your spirits by feeling more out-of-place by messing up the hours. Most wineries are open 12-5 on weekends with many open on weekdays as well.
2. Buddy system
This is the Boy Scout in me talking, but don't go alone! Wine tasting should be an occasion shared with a friend, and who better to compare verbal notes with than someone you know. No one behind the counter should ever tell you what you WILL taste (I find it to be condescending), but talking with a friend about what you DO taste will make you more confident and willing to make more judgments for yourself. Did I mention it is one of the best afternoon date ideas?
Throw any preconceived notions about the wine out the window because high or low expectations will ruin everything. Don't expect to be blown away, but don't always rely on what you think you already know; the experts tend to do this from time to time reinforcing the popularity of blind tastings among the elite. A great deal of passion and hard work is put into every wine you'll taste so taking the time to listen to what the employee has to say (whether it be history, knowledge about the varietal, and/or reasons the winemaker chose the grapes he did) will make the experience uber times more satisfying.
4. Know the five S's of wine tasting
- See-inspect the wine for color, legs, viscosity…this will make you look cool, I promise.
- Swirl-oh yes, the swirl that every outsider sees as useless and, perhaps, the most pretentious part about wine-tasting. It coats the inside of the glass causing more surface area for the wine to flirt with the air and, ultimately, allowing the aroma to smack you in the face.
- Sniff-Don't sip yet!!!! Whew, did I catch you? The nose will tell you more about the wine than ANYTHING ELSE. Trust me; take a good 15 seconds just smelling the wine before you ever let it touch your palate. Most tastes are going to spill their beans in the nose.
- Sip-Ok, now drink! Let it coat your entire tongue and suck in some oxygen ever so softly. Mimicking gum-chewing works best for me to bring out the most flavors.
- Savor-Close your eyes and enjoy. This, of course, is the plot of the entire movie! Now to spit or swallow is another question for another day. Keep those minds clean!
5. Don't EVER….and I repeat EVER be too scared to ask questions
The worker pouring the wine is there for a reason, so bombard them with questions and if they give you lip just tell them I said it was ok. Most, if not all people involved in the wine industry are there because they love everything that IS wine. I've never met a wine worker who rolls there eyes at any sort of inquiry. The more you ask the more you'll know (thanks ma!).
All in all, no expert can tell you what you will or won't like because only YOU can truly make that decision. In the same token, no one should ever make you feel like you don't belong at a tasting. Recently, I walked into a local winery with some tattered jeans and shirt I bought from Value Village only to be written off as just another frat boy looking for a mid-afternoon buzz. I knew my place, however, and within minutes of asking enough of the right questions about the wine (and using the five S's), the man changed his tone completely. You were born to be wine-lover! Support you local wine scene and taste at every single place you can!
Ben Hilzinger is a wine slinger at Nectar Tasting Room and at the Arbor Crest Winery. During the day he masquerades at Lindeman's bistro and coffee shop on Spokane's South Hill. In the evening Ben dons his rock star cape as a drummer for a local band. Ben hopes to share the love of wine with his generation and has aspirations to be a wine maker.
08 Mar 2011
Wine An Open Letter to the Millennial Generation
Guest blog post from Ben Hilzinger
While rummaging through some papers in my desk the other day, I found a letter from a great friend of mine. I thought some of my fellow young readers might find it interesting.
Hey Ben,
I'm really not doing so hot…perhaps a little insecure if you will. I feel underappreciated and underestimated by a lot of the younger generation. What gives? I mean, am I wrong in thinking that wine has its place with the kiddos too – with which the 'legally-aged challenged' title does not apply? I'm gonna ramble now Ben, but tell me if I don't have a good argument.
Save from my corky carbonated buddies in the sparkling and champagne family, I don't have the bubbly that makes your tummbly go rummbly associated with other drinks (don't worry beer, I still have your phone number…I'll text you!) For those weight watchers, I'm inherently low-cal and my alcohol actually helps you burn calories! Ever heard of the Fountain of Youth? Well recent studies prove that it would be full of me and who knows, perhaps I'd be fun to play in during a hot summers day. I'm also the Dupont of social lubricants. Just the thought of me screams refined romance or stifling sexuality, both of which are welcomed on first dates those youngins find themselves on all too often. Knowing a thing or five about me is certainly an attractive quality and most women will agree. Dropping lines like "ahem…waiter? Yes, now does your Chianti come in a fiasco?" or "hmmm, well this Sauvignon Blanc is certainly isn't acidic enough to cut through this alfredo sauce" will surely get a second date if not more, right? Of course, knowing what a fiasco is would undoubtedly keep the conversation going as well. These go-to phrases must, of course, be used with discretion. There's a fine line between politic and pretentious.
Did I mention I'm one of the best ways to celebrate any occasion? I consider myself the one constant at anycongratulatory event and who doesn't ring in every New Year with a belly full of my big, bold (most often sparkly) self? I bring people together, whether its friends, family, or enemies. Can't say I bring frat boys together, but who says I want them anyways! Busch Light sales keep this economy on its feet and it leaves the appreciation of yours truly to the crowd most fitting.
All in all Benny, if you don't mind me calling you that, I have so much to offer and appreciating the wonderful world that is wine says a lot about the person one plans to be as he or she grows older and walks through this crazy catastrophe we call life. It shows patience, attention to details, a romantic imagination, and a more relaxed attitude. Sometimes I wish, with all this stress, I could pour myself a nice glass of, well, myself. I just want the young ones to age with me. Tell your mom I said hi.
Ben Hilzinger is a wine slinger at Nectar Tasting Room and at the Arbor Crest Winery. During the day he masquerades at Lindeman's bistro and coffee shop on Spokane's South Hill. In the evening Ben dons his rock star cape as a drummer for a local band. Ben hopes to share the love of wine with his generation and has aspirations to be a wine maker.
18 Nov 2010
When Pork and Bourbon Make Love
Depending on your culinary outlook, that either sounds vile and repulsive or intriguing and potentially even romantic. I definitely fall into the latter category, particularly when we're talking about the chemical marriage of bacon flavor and bourbon. Of late I've had this growing addiction, and I figured it was time to come out of the closet, as it were, and share what I've learned.
*This post is from guest blogger and long time friend, Dustin Cann @dustincann
But before we get to the "how" let's talk about the "why".
Let me start by saying that if you hate bourbon in its natural state, or if you're kosher or vegetarian/vegan, bacon bourbon is probably not going to be your bag. For the rest of us, combining the deep, sometimes smooth/sometimes fiery nose and throat of bourbon with the comforting, smoky and savory warm embrace of bacon can produce a borderline manic giddiness (at least for me). The first time I tried it in a meticulously mixed Manhattan, I actually giggled. Giggled. In public. In a posh San Francisco cocktail lounge. And nobody looked at me funny. Because they knew.
If you've made it this far down the post, you're probably on team bacon, so I'll wrap the pleasantries and get to the good stuff.
Fat washing is a process where alcohol strips the flavor, nay the very essence, of a fatty food and then allows you to easily remove any remaining physical animal product from said alcohol. This leaves just the alcohol you started with, plus that essence.
And it's shockingly easy.
Buy some bourbon, some bacon, and a container. Since I've been experimenting, I didn't go ridiculously expensive, though it stands to reason that better bourbon will make better bacon bourbon. I've used Makers twice, and now that I know what I'm doing I'll probably try something new next time. But Makers is up to the job. I also used some thick sliced maple smoked bacon from a local producer. Again, the better the bacon, the better the bacon bourbon. Finally, a container. After scouring the city of Memphis, I've found that the best fit for a 750ml bottle of booze are the little quart mixing tubs you get in the paint section at Home Depot or Lowes like this:
Step 2.
Make some bacon. Five slices of thick sliced bacon gives me the flavor I'm looking for with a 750ml bottle of hooch, but play around with this. I'd suggest trying it this way once and making a call. Remember, the objective is to collect the essence of bacon, not to make your bourbon taste like bacon grease. Resist the urge get ridiculous. And there will be an urge.
Do. Not. Burn. The. Bacon. Or even overcook it. We're not making bourbon and bitters in one fell swoop here. You'll also have to find a way to dispose of the cooked bacon itself, since it doesn't play a part. I've got a few suggestions for that, but I'm fairly confident you'll figure it out.
Let the bacon fat cool to the point where you can dip a finger in without crying. It needs to be hot enough to still be fluid but cool enough to keep the booze boozy (nothing would be more disappointing than cooked, nonalcoholic bacon bourbon, eh?). Pour the bourbon and the cooled bacon fat into your (CLEANED) container, give it a little stir, seal it up and set it on the counter for four or five hours. Don't worry if a few bacon bits make their way in, they can only help the process so long as they aren't burned. Resist the urge to open it up and see what's doin'- all you can do is mess it up. It doesn't need to be stirred, shaken, or molested in any way. Just let it hang tight. The alcohol is doing its job and stripping all those glorious flavors from the fat and bits of flesh floating about. This is the magic. Four or five hours at room temperature will do the trick.
Step 4.
Put it in the freezer overnight. This is doing nothing for the infusion, but it's going to make getting the fat and flesh out a piece of cake.
Yawn and stretch. Have your morning cup of coffee and a bagel. Then go see what chemistry has done for you overnight:
Looks a little nasty, but who wants to drink fat? Okay, I won't answer that for fear of making you throw up a little (because I could imagine a scenario where I'd try it). But overnight the cold has separated the fat from the bourbon and given you a nice little fat cap that can be cut off and discarded in your method of choice. At which point you can now strain the bourbon back into the bottle it came in (or something decorative, if you prefer).
Step 6.
Enjoy. A lot. In any way you see fit. My favorite so far is a bacon old fashioned. 2oz of bacon bourbon, a couple dashes of Angostura bitters (or a VERY SMALL bit of orange peel tincture if you're feeling particularly chemtastic), a bit of maple syrup (in lieu of traditional simple syrup or sugar), a splash of water and a cherry. Stir it gently and pour over a couple of ice cubes in a rocks glass. On first taste it will be very much like every other old fashioned, but when you exhale you'll get the nose.
And then you'll giggle. A least just a little bit.
Related Posts:
- The Fine Art of the Manhattan (Dustin Cann)
- Moscow Mule and Memories (Dustin Cann)
- A Mojito Kind of Night
Dustin Cann is a traveling business consultant (39 trips in the 52 weeks of 2009) who loves his work, but would rather be a rock star. He's a foodie and an appreciator of both haute cuisine and pub food. When he's home, he plays around in recording studios and relaxes on the lake with a blind pug called Honey. He lives in Memphis, Tennessee with his partner of eight years and almost surely needs to drink fewer Manhattans.
03 Nov 2010
10 Reasons Bubbly Makes Everything Better
What was your first experience with sparkling wine or champagne? Do you recall moments of wild debauchery? Yep, I do because before I understood the nuances of bubbly I drank it like a sprite, quickly got drunk and you know the rest of the story…Since then I have of course realized how to sip bubbly and have even taken quite a liking to it – in its many forms. So, here goes my list (not in any kind of order) of what I love about sparkling wine.
From Guest Author Coryn Briggs of Black Star Farms Winery
1. Bubbly is always refreshing
You know that "aww" sensation the 7UP and Sprite commercials tout so much, well yeah, that's it for me with bubbly. One sip and you plus your mouth are awake. It tingles, teases, and refreshes, what's not to like about that?
2. Mimosas
A classic Sunday morning treat and what would a Sunday brunch be without them? We have started a Christmas morning Mimosa tradition in our house that includes crème brulee French toast and mimosas. So good!
3. What doesn't go with sparkling wine?
The old adage would say that sparkling wine is best served with caviar as an aperitif, with seafood for dinner, or eggs for brunch. Being one to bend the rules I happen to think that sparkling wine tastes good with anything! "Did you ever dunk a potato chip in champagne? It's really crazy. Here isn't that crazy? "Yeah," says Richard," pretty crazy." (from The Seven Year Itch)
4. Makes family movie night that much better
As I mention above bubbly tastes good with everything even popcorn! Before having children my husband and I had a Sunday night movie ritual that involved a bottle of bubbly, popcorn, and a movie. Five years and two kids later we have incorporated our tradition into a family centered event where we still enjoy our bubbly and the kids get a special soda while we all get to enjoy a movie and a big buttery bowl of popcorn.
5. There's always an affordable bottle of a Spanish Cava
Sparkling wine or champagne doesn't have to break the bank. There are so many great ones out there in the $10-15 range. Spanish Cavas are almost always a good bargain and they are wonderful. My favorite is Cristalino Brut Rosé Cava.
6. It can make an ordinary day feel special
I don't think I can say this any better than Josh already did his recent post Let's Get it Poppin' specifically quoted: "Why do we wait for the "special occasions" to break out a bottle of bubbly? Isn't every day a miracle and an excuse to celebrate?" I agree 100%!
7. It's always a stylish choice
Like a classic set of pearls or a cashmere sweater a bottle of bubbly is always a good go to choice when hosting or attending a party. It will always be the right size and never the wrong color.
8. Pure and simple,
There comes a time in every woman's life when the only thing that helps is a glass of champagne. Bette Davis (from the movie Old Acquaintance)
9. The sexual and romantic element
There is no way I could leave this out of my top ten. Not being one to jump on the band wagon of "sex sells" I was reluctant to include this in my top ten. However, it would be foolish of me to deny that a bottle of bubbly on many occasions has lead to one hedonistic act or another…
10. Michigan makes great sparkling wines
Perhaps this is a shameless plug for the wine region I live in and represent but our cool climate is suited for growing the traditional champagne grapes of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir so it really is a natural fit for us. If you are curious about some of our sparkling wines please join us on Twitter (@bstar2009) on November 16 at 7:30 pm as we taste our 2009 Be Dazzled and our newly released 2010 Bubbly Nouveau.
About the Author:
Coryn Briggs moved to Traverse City 6 years ago and quickly immersed herself into the Michigan wine industry. She is currently the Winery Promotions Coordinator for Black Star Farms. In this role she manages the many pieces of the marketing mix including, off-site events, website content, advertising, social media, as well as graphic design. Coryn enjoys local food, wine and the downtown Traverse City area where she lives with her husband and two young daughters.
Black Star Farms is a unique agricultural entity that features two winery production facilities, their adjacent tasting rooms, a distillery, Inn, and equestrian facility. The winery just celebrated its 10 year anniversary and is proud to represent the viticultural diversity of the Northwest Michigan region, and its proximity to the 45th parallel – the same parallel that runs through so many of the great wine regions of the world.
- Twitter handle: @bstar2009
- Facebook vanity url: http://www.facebook.com/blackstarfarms
- Web: www.blackstarfarms.com
- You Tube: http://www.youtube.com/user/corynbriggs1


text:
42 CFR 455.14 - Preliminary investigation.
§ 455.14
Preliminary investigation.
If the agency receives a complaint of Medicaid fraud or abuse from any source or identifies any questionable practices, it must conduct a preliminary investigation to determine whether there is sufficient basis to warrant a full investigation.
[48 FR 3756, Jan. 27, 1983]
Title 42 published on 2012-10-01
no entries appear in the Federal Register after this date.
This is a list of United States Code sections, Statutes at Large, Public Laws, and Presidential Documents, which provide rulemaking authority for this CFR Part.
This list is taken from the Parallel Table of Authorities and Rules provided by GPO [Government Printing Office].
It is not guaranteed to be accurate or up-to-date, though we do refresh the database weekly. More limitations on accuracy are described at the GPO site.


text:
This garden has herbaceous borders backed by soft sandstone walls and beech hedges. It is a small enclosed garden with raised beds. There is also a maturing water garden and walks through maturing woodland.
Please note that the proceeds raised from the admission price of this garden are distributed to charities chosen by the garden owner and Scotland's Garden Scheme.
For Accommodation and information, please call:
0845 859 1006
Monday to Friday 9am - 5pm
Saturday and Sunday - closed
*Calls may be recorded


text:
My husband and I had a lovely night at Cape House B&B this summer. We had the room on the main floor, and the decor was nice. Phyllis & John made a wonderful breakfast, and were able to accommodate my gluten intolerance. They even had gluten-free brownies for me, which my husband said tasted better than the regular ones. Phyllis... More
- Official Description (provided by the hotel):
- Cape House is a beautiful and romantic Cape Cod style home, decorated with casual elegance and situated directly on the wine route in Old Town Niagara-on-the-Lake. ... more less
- Reservation Options:
- TripAdvisor is proud to partner with Booking.com and Priceline so you can book your Cape House B&B reservations with confidence. We help millions of travellers each month to find the perfect hotel for both holiday and business trips, always with the best discounts and special offers.


text:
Jon is the morning meteorologist on WNWO Today and an avid outdoorsman.
Saturday mild, Sunday - Brrrrr.....
Not a bad kick-off to the weekend today as we'll see partly sunny skies with highs in the low and mid 30's.
The weekend will offer a wild ride and a nasty finish. We start out with some powerful winds building overnight and ushering in some mild temps for Saturday. We'll see plenty of sunshine Saturday morning, with increasing clouds by mid-afternoon. Winds will howl by mid-day and gust up to 35 MPH during the afternoon as highs climb into the mid 40's.
Shortly after midnight and into early Sunday morning the Arctic cold front that we've been talking about all week arrives with a venegence. Winds will be gusting to 40 MPH by daybreak Sunday morning and the mercury will begin to fall - through the twenties and into the teens by evening. Windchills will fall into the single digits. In addition to the cold we will likely see enough snow showers to blanket the ground in many places.
The first half of next week will offer dangerous cold and bitter windchills. Frostbite will be a concern through Wednesday with single digit feels-like temps even during the afternoons! Actual highs will be in the teens Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday with overnight lows in the single digits.
Sunday night we may want to begin keeping those cabinet doors that lead to pipes against exterior walls open to prevent them from freezing. You're also not going to want to leave Rover of Kitty outside for very long.
Have a terrific weekend and get ready for the Deep Freeze!


text:
Spring is definitely in full bloom here. Actually it practically feels like summer in our area. We here at Plaid are based right outside of Atlanta, and with the arrival of spring, summer temperatures seemed to have appeared at the same time. I actually hope the temperatures do cool down a little more to reflect spring temperatures. If you are looking for a way to welcome the spring season, try this Spring Sign designed by Cathie & Steve. This is a beginner level craft project that would definitely make for a fun group project to create. To create this sign you will need mainly Mod Podge, and FolkArt paints. I like this sign, and suggest you use this as inspiration to create signs for every season throughout the year.
PLAID Supplies
· FolkArt ® Extreme Glitter™ - Peridot, 5 oz.
· FolkArt ® Extreme Glitter™ - Hologram, 5 oz.
· FolkArt ® Extreme Glitter™ - Gold, 2 oz.
· FolkArt ® Metallics - Rose, 2 oz.
· FolkArt ® Acrylic Colors - Fresh Foliage, 2 oz.
· Mod Podge ® Gloss, 4 oz.
Other Supplies
Paper Mache letters that spell SPRING Scrapbook paper – pink and green prints Foam brushes Ribbon – various colors Silk flower petals pink – large and small Silk flower petals yellow Crocheted flower trim Rhinestones Hot glue gun Scissors Pencil
1. Paint each letter with 2 coats of either Fresh Foliage or Rose Paint. Paint the Fresh Foliage letters with 2 coats of Extreme Glitter Peridot and the Rose letters with Extreme Glitter Hologram. Allow for dry time in between coats.
2. Using a pencil, trace the letters onto the back of the scrapbook paper. Cut out the letters. Apply Mod Podge to the back of the paper letters. Center paper on the painted letters, press in place. Use your fingers to press out any air bubbles; top coat with Mod Podge. Smooth your brush strokes.
3. Hot glue ribbon around the letters. Hot glue the letters on top of each other in a layered design.
4. Paint the large pink petals with Extreme Glitter Gold. Allow to dry. Using hot glue, layer the petals, flower trim and rhinestones around the letters. Glue rhinestones to the letters in a random pattern.
To enter this giveaway, all you have to do is leave a comment below telling us what you would use these products to create? For extra entries (leave a separate comment for each):
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