Posted on May 1, 1997

Ted Goble dies Research Professor of Physics Alfred T. “Ted” Goble-honored last year by the College for his fifty consecutive years of service-died March 12 at his home in Schenectady. He was eighty-eight.

In an interview last year, Goble explained his continuing lively interest in physics this way:

“In science, two things happen. One, you get all the answers right and the theories work. Or two, things come out a little different than expected, and that's the exciting part.”

A native of River Falls, Wis., Goble received his bachelor's degree and Ph.D. in physics from the University of Wisconsin, where he also did postdoctoral research. He joined the Union faculty in 1945 for a nine-month position teaching physics for three on-campus Navy training programs.

As the nine months neared an end, a tenure track position became available, and Goble accepted.

Goble got involved in isotope shift measurement research during two sabbaticals at Oxford University. He continued his research after retiring from teaching in 1974, and his work (with colleague Seyfollah Maleki) led to three papers and presentations at professional conferences. For many years he was a consultant to the Air Force on the ballistic missile penetration program, intercontinental ballistic missile systems, and military satellites.

Goble was the advisor to WM., the College's amateur radio station, and remained an active “ham”-an amateur radio operator (he was first licensed as a ham in 1924).

He was a member of the American Physical Society and a founding member of the New York State chapter of the organization. He also was a member of the American Association of Physics Teachers, the Optical Society of America, and Sigma Xi, the national science and engineering honor society.

Survivors include his wife, Ethel Frank Goble;
three sons, Robert, of Brookline, Mass., Louis, of Eugene, Ore., and Jonathan, of Durham, N.C.; a sister, Carolyn Goble, of Charlotte, N.C.; a grandson; and two step-grandsons.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Physics Department at the College, Hospice of Schenectady, or the First Unitarian Society of Schenectady.

For the record Teresa A. Meade, associate professor of history, is the author of “Civilizing” Rio: Reform and Resistance in a Brazilian City 18891930, a book published by the Pennsylvania State University Press.

A massive urban renewal and public health campaign in the first decades of the twentieth century transformed Brazil's capital into a showcase of European architecture and public works.

But for the majority of Rio's citizens-the laboring poor who were uprooted to live in squalor outside the city-life became worse. Meade's book focuses on their plight and their resistance to the “civilization” campaign. She also traces the popular rebellion that continued for more than twenty years after the renovation ended in 1909, illustrating that community protests are the major characteristics of political life in the modern era.

Board sets budget The College's Board of Trustees has approved a 1997-98 budget of $74.1 million, about a 5.1 percent increase over the current year.

The budget includes an increase in tuition and fees of about one percent over inflation. The total will be $28,465, a 4.2 percent increase over this year.

The budget also continues the College's commitment to meet the financial need of all accepted students. The financial aid budget will increase to nearly $15.5 million, a 7.3 percent increase over this year.

Also approved was a continuation of deferred maintenance and facilities renewal, at $600,000 and $400,000, respectively

Posted on May 1, 1997

Shelby Grant '97, an anthropology major, chose to study abroad in Bulgaria last fall because it sounded interesting. But he's a little embarrassed to admit that when he signed up, he wasn't exactly sure where Bulgaria was.
“I thought it was farther north,” he says.

Grant is the first Union student on a newly-created program in Bulgaria. He and seven other American students studied at
the five-year-old American University in Blagoevgrad in western Bulgaria, 120 kilometers south of Sofia.

He also is one of a handful of Americans who have visited Sarajevo since the end of the war. And, just to make the trip complete, he also visited Turkey, Greece, Romania, Denmark, and Germany.

Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria, is a former hiking resort where wealthy Russians vacationed before the dissolution of the USSR, Grant says. Today, few vacation there and, as a result, three of the four local hotels have been turned into dormitories for the new university. Thus, Grant and his Bulgarian roommate wound up in a former two-star Communist hotel.

At the university, located in the former headquarters of the Communist government, Grant studied anthropology, archaeology, and journalism with Bulgarian and Serbian students working toward graduate school.

He was amazed at how different-and sometimes similar Bulgaria was to the United States. Many of the businesses had not yet privatized for fear that a large percentage of the population would face unemployment, but at the same time “Coca-Cola is everywhere,” he says.

Given such a weak economy, Grant was able to “live like a king” on five dollars a day. Sometimes, he felt resentment from the people of the town. “They expected Americans to behave in a certain way and to fulfill their expectations,” he says. It surprised and sometimes disturbed them to see him behaving differently and living so frugally.

Assured by the Bosnian embassy that Bosnia was open to Americans, Grant and three friends ignored the advice of the American embassy in Bulgaria and obtained transit visas. Despite the assurances, Grant and his friends encountered a border guard who demanded money for their entry.

“Eventually we figured that since it was 3 a.m., we were all freezing, and we couldn't communicate with the guard, it would be better to pay,” he says, and they went onward to Sarajevo.

As Grant's bus made its way down a mountain, the city spread out beneath them in a valley. “It was beautiful. It looked like a normal city,” he says. Then he began to see houses that were uninhabited. As they entered the inner part of the city, the houses became increasingly dilapidated. “There would be whole apartment buildings that were just shells,” he says. “We started seeing apartment buildings where eighty percent would be burnt out, and two or three scattered apartments would have glass in the windows and laundry hanging out to dry.”

On every corner he saw tanks manned by Italian, Belgian,
Turkish, and American soldiers. As he walked along the front line, he was amazed by the bullet holes and depressed by the devastation.

But meeting the people of Sarajevo changed his attitude. In the center of the city, people walked dogs, chatted with neighbors, and smiled wherever they went, he says.

“It started becoming a very positive experience because the people were so happy,” he says.
“I was almost jealous of them, not of what they'd been through, but of their happiness. After four years of oppressive circumstances, they were enjoying life more than most people have the chance to.”

The people of Sarajevo welcomed Grant and his friends as a signal that tourism was returning. When the Americans went out for breakfast, they weren't
allowed to pay for their food-it was all given as a gift.

It was not only the people of Sarajevo that enchanted Grant. “It was amazing how beautiful the city was,” he says. “You see 100,000 bullet holes and then you stop seeing them and you start seeing the buildings and the minarets.”

The reminders of the war followed Grant's every footstep. Careful to walk only on pave
ment for fear that mines might still be planted beneath the grass, Grant and his friends were delighted to tumble and roll in the grass when they returned to Bulgaria. “It's very strange to not be able to touch the ground, and very unnatural to be afraid of it,” he says.

Grant loved being in Eastern Europe. “Bulgaria is beautiful,” he says, reminiscing about looking up at the snow-covered peaks while wearing just a T-shirt.
Beyond the landscape, Grant loved the fact that it was so different from America. “I liked being on my own and not being able to speak the language. I especially liked the people I met.”

Grant is considering working for the Peace Corps or State Department after graduation. He is also applying to graduate schools and may continue
his education before going abroad again.

Posted on May 1, 1997

Barbara Kolski '97 came to Union intent on becoming a doctor, but now she is gaining experience in what she really wants to
do – special education for infants and young children-by substituting at a local school for children with neurological impairments.

The change in career goals was an evolutionary one.

Between her freshman and sophomore years, she completed a summer research program in the pediatric operating suite of Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center, studying the influences of secondhand smoke on children undergoing anesthesia.

“It was fantastic and I loved it. At that point, I was thinking `this is definitely for me,”' she says. “I loved the interaction with the families and the children. The medicine aspect was interesting, but that isn't what I want to do.”

The evolution continued back at Union, when she was immersed in what most pre-med students love-studying anatomy and a health care practicum at nearby St. Clare's Hospital. “Anatomy just didn't amaze me as it should,” she says. And she wasn't impressed by her experience in the hospital.

So Kolski decided to look into other aspects of health. She has always known that she wants to work with children; during high school, for example, she volunteered at a children's special education hospital near her home and worked for two summers at a day camp for autistic children. After exploring graduate schools that offer advanced degrees in special education, she
was excited to discover programs in infancy and early intervention, allowing her to work with young children and infants.
“It was neonatalogy without the medicine,” she says. “It was exactly what I've always wanted to do.”

To gain experience, she took the advice of a counselor in the College's Career Development Center and approached the Wildwood School, a local school that provides support to
people mostly children-who have neurologically-based impairments and whose needs cannot be met by their local school districts. Last term, Kolski substituted in Wildwood classrooms at least once a week, squeezing her last term of classes at Union
into two days.

Kolski taught life skills, helping children learn to share, wait for directions, listen, and behave. “I was just reinforcing social skills because that's what these
kids need most,” she says.

Kolski loved her work at Wildwood. “My mental image of how children should be treated draws me to this group that doesn't normally get as much of a fair chance as they deserve,” she says. “And I enjoy it because they are no different from the kids in my kindergarten class except that there is a language barrier.”

She remembers being saddened and frustrated when she first began dealing with children with neurological impairments. With the knowledge she has gained in school, though, she understands why the kids sometimes behave the way they do. And she is excited that in graduate school her academics will coincide even more closely with the activities of her students.

For Kolski, her involvement in programs outside of the classroom are natural. “I don't think that what I'm doing is out of the norm, because I'm getting more education from it than from
many of the classes I have taken,” she says.

Kolski graduated in March and is now working at home in Westfield, N.J., before entering graduate school in the fall.

Posted on May 1, 1997

The late David C. Mandeville '45, a long-time benefactor of the College, has left approximately $5 million to the College through a bequest.

Under the terms of his will, Union will receive thirty-five percent of his estate, which is estimated at more than $15 million.

That David was so generous comes as no surprise ” T to anyone who knew him,” said President Hull. “He had been a faithful and generous donor to Union and many organizations. His support of Union will have a tremendous impact.” Mandeville, who died Sept. 16, 1996, at the age of seventy-four, had pledged $1 million toward the restoration of the Nott Memorial. The Mandeville Gallery, the exhibit space on the building's second floor, honors the memory of his father and grandfather, both of whom were alumni.

His bequest fulfils that pledge to the Nott. Under the terms of the will, the balance will create the David C. Mandeville Scholarship Fund.

Mandeville's service to Union included membership in the Terrace Council and the
Rameé Circle, alumni admissions interviewer, alumni club officer, associate class agent, and estate affairs chairman of his class. In 1975, he received the Alumni Council's Gold Medal for distinguished service.

Mandeville earned his undergraduate degree in English and his law degree from Albany
Law School. He was a veteran of World War 11, receiving a Purple Heart after being wounded in Italy.

He joined the family law firm in Elmira, N.Y., but later began his own practice in business and real estate law. A lifelong resident of Elmira, he was noted in the city for his philanthropy and promotion of the arts. He funded the Mandeville Hall for performance, led the creation of a retirement village-nursing home, and helped establish the Strathmont Museum.

In addition to his father (William H., of the Class of 1915) and grandfather (Hubert C., Class of 1888 and a life trustee), his Union relatives included an uncle (Ernest, Class of 1917), and a cousin (Hubert, Jr., Class of 1962).

Posted on May 1, 1997

As readers of this column know, I believe strongly that we should examine periodically everything that we do at Union. With the January announcement that Achilles Rink faced up to $2.5 million of renovations, I stated that we had an opportunity and an obligation to explore other options. Although that exploration resulted in the conclusion that Achilles would be renovated, the
process seemed to concern many on campus.

Recently, we put together review teams to examine engineering at Union and the Graduate Management Institute. Those teams, too, seemed to cause some unease on campus.

The engineering task force-Steve Ciesinski '70, president and CEO of Resumix, Inc. (chair); Hermann Haus '49, institute professor at MIT; Charles Hutchinson, professor for emerging technologies and former dean at the Thayer School at Dartmouth; Bill Wallace '47, former chairman and CEO of Ebasco Services; and Linda Cool, dean of the faculty-concluded that a ten-year strategic plan needed to be developed. Such a plan, stated the report, “would emphasize the unique place that engineering has in the traditional liberal arts college.”

Specifically, the task force recommended:

• that the current department structure in engineering be maintained; 
• that a process be developed to assess regularly the performance of Union's engineering program relative to engineering programs at other institutions;
• that Union needs to find better ways to integrate engineering with the rest of the College (aside from enhancing communication with and involving the general arts and sciences faculty in the planning and implementing of the engineering curriculum, it was stressed that engineering faculty be involved fully in the general education component of Union's curriculum and that academic advisors in engineering be knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the general education requirements at the College); 
• that ways be found to encourage and/or require engineering students to participate in terms abroad; 
• that the upper level offerings in each of the disciplines be restructured; 
• that ways to collaborate either physically or virtually with neighboring institutions be explored; 
• that ways be found “to encourage and/or require engineering students to participate in a hands-on internship experience before graduation”; and 
• that the process of strengthening the engineering faculty be continued.

The report of the task force on the Graduate Management Institute (GMI) -written by Norton Reamer '58, president and CEO of United Asset Management Corp. (chair); Sheridan Biggs, executive in residence at GMI and former vice chairman
of Price Waterhouse; Larry Matteson '61, professor at the William E. Simon Graduate School of Business of the University of Rochester; and Christina Sorum, dean of arts and sciences-concluded that the “quality of the students, faculty, and programs at the Graduate Management Institute is comparable to that of the undergraduate college.”

Saying that GMI is an appropriate program to offer because Union has a unique identity, namely, that it not only is a liberal arts college but also has engineering, the task force concluded that the institute should be continued. The task force also said:

• the institute should not move to Albany to be in proximity with Albany Law School, Albany Medical College, and the Albany School of Pharmacy, but ways should be found to cooperate more fully with these three entities to provide appropriate courses in the correct sequences and at convenient times; 
• GMI should continue to develop programs with the undergraduate college so that both students and faculty would benefit from the linked programs, such as the five-year MBA and the MBAs in international management and health systems administration; 
• a position in marketing/ strategic management should be added; and 
• a full-time director of the institute should be hired. Following a nation-wide search, Joe Zolner '76 has become the director with a mandate to promote the program aggressively and develop with the faculty a long-term strategic plan that makes clear the vision and the strategies that they will employ to achieve them.

The task force said, “If in two years the recommended changes have not begun to show the desired effect, or even if with these changes, GMI does not receive AACSB [American Association of Collegiate Schools of Business] accreditation or is asked to add further personnel to obtain accreditation,” then the issue of GMI should be revisited.

What I find interesting-and perplexing-is that the examination of the feasibility of playing hockey at another facility and the re-examination of engineering and the graduate management programs should produce unease. At a time of such rapid change in society, we must continue to take a hard look at everything that we do. After all, isn't a college like Union a perfect place to thought
fully and carefully examine options?

ROGER H. HULL