Posted on Oct 11, 1996

What do high school students do on Columbus Day? Visit Union, of course. The College's Admissions Office is expecting more than 650 campus visitors on Monday, Oct. 14. The schedule includes class visits, faculty-led tours and panels on academic and
extracurricular programs. Faculty and staff are asked to keep on-campus parking spaces free for visiting families.

Posted on Oct 11, 1996

“Gertrude Stein Reads JAMA,” a new essay by Brenda Wineapple, Washington Irving Professor of Modern Literary and Historical Studies, has appeared in the
Oct. 9 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association. Having unearthed a heretofore unknown manuscript by Gertrude Stein, written circa 1902, Wineapple discusses JAMA's turn-of-the-century medical (and moral) attitudes toward childbirth, attitudes that inspired the neophyte writer and former medical student, Gertrude Stein, to her own surprising response. The manuscript is included in Wineapple's
new biography, Sister Brother Gertrude and Leo Stein (G.P. Putnam's), which is being translated into German for publication by Archie Verlag.

Posted on Oct 11, 1996

The admissions minority recruitment effort is getting a boost in the College's own backyard thanks to a group of Union students who love music and free food.

“All I had to do was tell the students there would be music and food, and we had 25 signed up,” said Elissa Gonzalez '98, who coordinated the students' participation in the recent Latino Festival in the city. The event — a block party of sorts — was
sponsored by the Latin Coalition and the Center for Progression.

Gonzalez, president of CELA (Circulo Estudiant¡l Latino Americano) and a minority recruitment assistant who works closely with Assistant Dean of Admissions Darryl
Tiggle, assistant dean in the Office of Admissions, said she learned of the event from
Assistant Dean of Students Edgar Letriz. “I thought, 'We strive for more diversity on
this campus, and no place is more diverse than Schenectady.'”

CELA, with support from various College offices, also provided a tent in case of rain;
the event had been postponed a week earlier due to weather, Gonzalez said.

“When all those Union students arrived in two vans, everyone's jaws just
dropped,” recalled Gonzalez. “These are people who thought Union was out of
reach, and now some of them are thinking, 'Wow, I can go to Union.'”

“It was obvious that these people didn't think that Union was an option or that
there were people like them at Union,” said Tiggle, who also attended.

Last weekend, members of CELA and ALAS (African and Latino Alliance of Students)
recruited more prospective students when they attended a conference on jobs, housing and
business sponsored by the Schenectady chapter of the NAACP and other organizations at the
Martin Luther King School.

Gonzalez says CELA members are planning to host prospective students from Schenectady
for overnight stays in conjunction with open houses this fall.

Gonzalez, of Rotterdam, is pursuing an interdepartmental major in psychology and
sociology with a minor in Spanish.

Posted on Oct 11, 1996

The Robison-Thurber Greenhouse, a new 864-square foot facility for research, teaching and plant propagation for Jackson's Garden, was dedicated on Oct. 2 before a crowd of donors, students, faculty and staff.

The new greenhouse, located just north of the Campus Operations center, replaces the Melius Conservatory, which was dismantled to allow for the construction of the Yulman Theater.

The research lab, designed for use by up to 4 researchers, comprises about half the
building. It features a cutting bench, fluorescent and arc lighting, acrylic walls with
aluminum framing, thermostatically controlled venting and heating/cooling and a sealed
partition and doorway to the teaching area. The teaching lab, the same size and similarly
equipped, is designed to accommodate 15 students and an instructor.

The greenhouse also will be used by Campus Operations for the propagation of plants for
Robison Herb Garden and the Levine Wildflower Garden.

The greenhouse was made possible by gifts from the following donors: the Ellis H.
Robison Fund, James Robison, Elissa Prout, Richard Robison, Dr. and Mrs. Walter A. Thurber
'33, Mr. and Mrs. William Bachtel '70, Faddegon's Nursery, Edward R. Smith '44, Pedrick's
Glass Gardens, Mark Ruscitto and Peter Ruscitto.

Posted on Oct 11, 1996

With less than $600,000 left in fundraising toward the $17.6 million project, the College this month is accepting bids for the renovation and expansion of Schaffer Library, President Roger Hull told the faculty at their meeting last week.

Hull reiterated that building will begin only after the College has completed the fundraising, saying “We will not build and then worry about the funding for
maintaining the building or upgrading the collection.”

Fundraising is expected to be completed this month, said Dan West, vice president for
college relations.

West also told the faculty that the Bicentennial Campaign now totals $130 million,
including the recent gift of $9 million from the F.W. Olin Foundation. About $66 million
has been raised toward endowment, $36 million toward construction and renovation, and
$27.2 million through the Annual Fund. The Bicentennial Campaign goal is $150 million.

Receipts for fiscal year 1996 totaled $14.9 million. That included $2.26 million in
scholarships, $.5 million in Federal grants, $1 million in realized bequests, and $6.5
million in new or increased planned gift instruments.

The alumni participation rate was 47 percent. The cost of fundraising was 13.4 cents
per dollar raised.

The College's endowment stands at about $175 million, it was announced by Diane Blake,
vice president for finance.

President Hull urged all faculty and staff to participate in the College's fundraising
efforts. “It is important to foundations and others when we can say that the people
in the institution support it themselves,” he said.

Dan Lundquist, vice president for admissions and financial aid, thanked faculty members
for their help in recruiting, in particular, members of the admissions advisory committee.

Dean of Faculty Linda Cool reported on the annual merit increases for faculty.