Former director of graduate studies impact still felt through Fleckles fund

Published in the CSUF Daily Titan newspaper Feb. 7.

On May 2, 2005, Cal State Fullerton lost an integral limb from its academic body.

Less than a year later, the college experienced a punch to the stomach.

Ovarian cancer claimed the life of 60-year-old Gladys Fleckles on April 22, 2006.

The impact the former director of graduate studies made at CSUF before her retirement in 2005 solidified in Titan history.

Giles T. Brown, Dean of Graduate Studies, Emeritus, created the Fleckles fund and launched it during the 2003 and 2004 academic year to honor her 24 years of excellence and academic fervor at CSUF.

The fund is awarded once a year to a select number of graduate students who have prepared, or previously completed, a presentation for a professional conference anywhere in the world.

With a maximum budget of $7,000, the fund offers approved graduate students traveling within the U.S. $500. Any graduate students traveling internationally will receive $800.

"One of the outstanding qualities about Gladys was that she was passionate about friendships and I will always remember that about her," graduate studies specialist Pam Migliore said. "She was a long-standing member of Mariners Church, with a heart for missions; she traveled on missionary trips to Papua New Guinea and Egypt."

The fund usually elicits 15 to 30 applicants a year.

The application requests a brief summary regarding the project intended for presentation, a letter of acceptance or proof the student has presented previously, a faculty sponsor signature and a faculty evaluation form, which must be signed and sealed in an envelope.

"The fund advocates students getting involved in research. As long as they're graduate students, any program applies," graduate studies administrative support assistant Erinn Banks said.

The Graduate Education Committee reviews the packets and the winners are contacted by e-mail or phone within two or three weeks following the deadline.

The deadline for the 2007-2008 academic year is Friday, Feb. 8.

"We receive a variety of applications," Banks said. "Certain fields here lends itself to research. Psychology is a big one. Basically a lot of sciences."

Committee member and associate professor of elementary and bilingual education Pat Keig enjoys the variety of topics received, but admits that choosing or excluding candidates is a challenge.

"The author of the application should present the study in a direct and clear manner so that individuals without specialized knowledge of that field can comprehend it," Keig said. "The best applications we see reflect quality in the research."

The Fleckles fund expands beyond simply receiving travel money.

"Conferences, I think, both humanize the research process and contribute to our appreciation of the sometimes monumental individual efforts made in building our knowledge base," Keig said. "A university education is not just knowledge delivery, it's also professional socialization."

Christian von Pohle, a graduate psychology student is a candidate for this year's Fleckles fund.

"I heard about the Fleckles fund in an e-mail sent out by the psychology department to psychology graduate students after intercession break," von Pohle said. "After being informed of the [fund], I began writing a brief proposal explaining the principle components of our investigation."

Titled "Resemblance and Relatedness in Families with Twins: Implications for Human Cloning," von Pohle's presentation is geared toward inflating the scientific debate of individualism with additional perspective.

"I chose this project because monozygotic twins are natural clones," the 23-year-old said. "In studying [monozygotic] twins, we hope to bring a more scientific perspective into the debate of what establishes our individuality and influences our perceptions of uniqueness."

As a graduate assistant, von Pohle is aiding in collecting data for Professor Nancy Segal, the developmental psychology and director of the Twin Studies Center.

"If chosen, I would express my gratitude for her philanthropic spirit and the manner in which she has supported investigative students like myself, to share their findings with others. Opportunities such as this forever create a positive experience for the recipient," von Pohle would say if he had the chance to speak to Fleckles.

Fleckles may not be at CSUF anymore, but she continues to serve the campus community through her graduate studies fund.