Posted on Mar 15, 1996

Martin Benjamin, professor of visual arts, has an exhibit of photographs on display at the Albany Center Galleries through April 19. The gallery is located at the corner of Chapel and Monroe streets in downtown Albany.

Benjamin, who is exhibiting jointly with photographer Mark McCarty, is displaying works representing his 25-year career in photography.

He has had solo exhibitions in Illinois, Massachusetts, New York City, Maine and the People's Republic of China. His work is in collections ranging from the Houston Museum of
Fine Arts, Nanjing Normal University, the People's Republic of China, Bill Hunt Collection, Center for Creative Imaging in Camden, Maine, the International Polaroid Corp. and the Center for Contemporary Photography in Chicago.

Among his awards, he received a bronze medal in the Nikon International Photography Competition in 1993, a fellowship from the NYS Creative Artists Program, and support from
the Polaroid Artists' Grant.

“Photography has been my vehicle into other worlds and other lives,” he said. “It has enabled me to experience things more richly and it has been my education.”

There will be a Sunday brunch with Benjamin and McCarty on March 31 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., during which the artists will be interviewed by gallery director Leslie Urbach. Cost is $7. For information and reservations, call 462-4775.

Posted on Mar 15, 1996

Pilar Moyano, associate professor of Spanish presented a paper “Poesía y crítica literaria de la mujer centroamericana: otras representaciones de lo femino/otros modelos teóricos” recently at the fourth International Conference
on Central American literature at the Universidad Tecnológica de San Salvador, El Salvador.

Pat Adams, acquisitions and periodicals librarian in Schaffer Library, recently spoke at a conference of the Association of College and Research Libraries, Eastern New
York Chapter, on mentoring student interns. She was a member of a panel which discussed “Internships — Enriching Library Education and Library Services.”

Posted on Mar 15, 1996

Union students who volunteer on the Rotterdam Ambulance squad were profiled in a March 8 article in the Daily Gazette.

The mostly-volunteer ambulance corps relies on 10 Union students, most of whom belong to the 30-member campus club known as UMED, which provides emergency medical support for
campus events.

Union students who volunteer with Rotterdam Ambulance are David Moresi '97, president of UMED; Meg Furman '96, treasurer; Seth Camhi '97, vice president; Katie Bartok '98; Adam
Glauberg '97; Sibu Janardhanan '99; Eric Seplowitz '96; Assaf Yosha '99; Charles Howarth '96; and Manuel Cunanan '97.

Posted on Mar 15, 1996

Gambling and Native American Indians “is not a how-to course on gambling or how to beat the system,” said James Schaefer, research professor of anthropology,
describing the course he is offering this summer.

Rather, it is an exploration of the impacts of lucrative Native American gambling operations on both Native and non-Native communities, he said.

The Federal Gaming Act of 1988, which allowed tribes to enter into negotiation over gambling rights with state and Federal authorities, has caused an unprecedented explosion
in legalized gambling across New York state and the nation, Schaefer said. In Minnesota, where Schaefer has done extensive research on gambling, Native communities have built more than a dozen casinos since 1989, he said.

Schaefer said there are basically two models for distributing wealth from gambling within the Indian nations. Some have distributed the wealth on a per-capita basis while others have directed revenue into a central fund for infrastructure or education. At least one Indian nation has designated gambling proceeds for a college fund; any high school graduate can attend college entirely on Native funds provided they return to the community
for at least five years after college graduation.

Through field trips and interviews, students will learn about the struggles often associated with gambling: how Indian nations have tried to balance traditional values with visions of unimaginable wealth; the impact of gambling revenue on Native institutions,
infrastructures and values; and the socio-economic impacts in nearby non-Native businesses and communities.

The course will examine the dynamics of increasing compulsive gambling problems including responses of state governments in providing model programs for intervention, counseling, treatment and prevention, Schaefer said.

Students will hear contrasting views from the Oneida and Mohawk Nations of New York, and do a short field experience in a local legalized gambling activity or gambling recovery program.

The course also includes a field trip to the Oneida Nation's quot;Turning Stone” casino and meetings with proponents of Indian gambling and non-gambling “traditionalists.”

Schaefer has published a number of articles on the impacts of gambling, and a book on “pull tab” gambling. He was recently named to head a five-state study on the effectiveness of legislation aimed at curbing DWI.

Students interested in the course, which begins in June, may contact the Anthropology department.

Posted on Mar 15, 1996

Members of the President's Advisory Committee on Safety and Security confirmed at least one thing on their annual Safety Walkabout on Feb. 28: it sure gets cold around
here on winter evenings.

Committee members walked the campus, not to assess temperature and wind chill, but to review lighting and safety access, according to Eric Noll, assistant director of personnel
and chair of the committee.

Committee members identified about 30 items — ranging from additional lighting to more security phones — that will be reviewed with staff from Campus Safety and Campus Operations, Noll added.

Safety Walkabouts, held regularly for the past five years, have resulted in a number of new lights and safety improvements on campus, Noll said.

Also on the Walkabout were Steve Potenza, president of Psi Upsilon; Mark Winograd, Psi Upsilon; Edgar Letriz, assistant dean of students; Chris Rinaldi, R.A. and Gatekeeper;
Dennis Popeo, Jennifer Balsam and Michael Nelson, members of Safe Space (a confidential support group for victims of rape and sexual assault); Diane Meyers, campus operations;
Elaine Shull, human relations committee; Matthew Seekamp, R.A.; John Skumurski, finance; and Robert Tomeck, campus safety.