Posted on Jan 8, 1999

Union President Roger Hull and Price Chopper
Supermarkets President and COO Neil Golub were named Schenectady Patroons at a City Hall
ceremony on Wednesday afternoon with Schenectady Mayor Albert Jurczynski.

“I can think of no two people more deserving of the
Patroon Award than Roger Hull and Neil Golub,” the mayor said. “Their names have
become synonymous with accomplishment and dedication to improve Schenectady and the lives
of its citizens.”

Hull and Golub were recognized for being the architects of
Schenectady 2000, the community revitalization organization established in 1993. Last
year, Schenectady 2000 was successful in establishing the Metroplex Authority, a
multi-million dollar economic development initiative to revitalize downtown Schenectady
through renovation and new construction projects.

The City's most prestigious award, the Patroon, was
established in 1954 by Mayor Archibald C. Wemple. It is awarded to persons who have
rendered distinguished service to the city and its visitors. According to the original
document by Wemple, “the title will be awarded only to those who, by their deeds,
have brought distinction to the City of Schenectady, and to those who, by their presence
here in the City of Schenectady, lend dignity and honor to the community.”

Other notable Patroons have included Ronald Reagan; Hubert
H. Humphrey; Rocky Marciano, former heavyweight boxing champion; Lowell Thomas, famous
news commentator during the World War II era; and Tom Constantine, head of the U.S. Drug
Enforcement Administration.

Posted on Jan 8, 1999

Before starting his new job as the College's
director of campus safety on Monday, William Sickinger had to make a choice that most of
us take for granted: what to wear. He showed up in a gray shirt and tie, not too unlike
the gray uniform and purple tie he wore nearly every day in his 31 years with the New York
State Police.

Sickinger, who retired from the Troopers on Dec. 23,
succeeds Paul Manitca, who has retired.

Since 1982, Sickinger, 56, of Halfmoon was commander of
the state police zone that includes Saratoga, Warren and Washington counties. He has an
expertise in emergency management programs, having coordinated state police response with
local and county authorities at emergency sites statewide including the 1987 Thruway
bridge collapse and the May 31 Mechanicville tornado.

He holds a bachelor's degree in criminal justice, and
a master's in public administration, both from Russell Sage College. He also has
completed over 800 hours in emergency management and hazardous materials courses.

Other new employees at the College include:

Marilyn Howley, registrar's assistant; William
Blanchard, Joseph Glasser and Jason Kutey, campus safety officers; Donetta DeCarol, Dawn
Coons and Juana Arias, day cleaners; Brad Adair, Roy Andrews, Misty Feulner and Robert
Skiff, dining services; Leslie Williams, computer information analyst II; Debra Pantalone,
data entry clerk, Admissions; James Rost, communications system operator/officer, Campus
Safety; and Jennifer Szolwinski, assistant director of student activities.

Posted on Jan 8, 1999

Friday, Jan. 8, through Monday,
Jan. 11, 8 and 10 p.m.
Reamer Auditorium.
Film Committee presents Rounders.

Monday, Jan. 11, through Feb. 7
Arts Atrium.
“Under Pressure,” an exhibit of works by 10 Capital Region printmakers.

Thursday, Jan. 14, 4:30 p.m.
Nott Memorial.
Gallery talk and opening reception with artist Terry Adkins, who has created Powre Above
Powres: Passing Freedom. (story this issue)

Thursday, Jan. 14, 5 p.m.
F.W. Olin Center 115
Dr. Curt Stager, Paul Smith's College, on “Killer Lakes of Cameroon, West
Africa,” the first talk in Environmental Studies series on “Lakes and
Environmental Change.”

Friday, Jan. 15, and Saturday, Jan. 16, 8:02 p.m.
Yulman Theater.
Proctor's Too presents The Shoulder, a “chamber opera” about an
elderly farmer who drives a mowing tractor 250 miles to visit his ailing brother. $15, $10
students.

Through Feb. 7.
Arts Atrium.
“Sicula Sixhentsa XA Sisonke: The South African Aesthetic,” a traveling show
curated by Harris Wiltsher.

Posted on Jan 8, 1999

Twelve Years a Slave: The Kidnapping, Enslavement
and Rescue of Solomon Northup. Photographs, prints, documents and artifacts retell
the story of Solomon Northup, a resident of Saratoga Springs, who was kidnapped in 1841
and sold into slavery in Louisiana. The exhibit also brings to light the common practice
of kidnapping free blacks for sale into slavery prior to the Civil War.

This exhibition was curated by Mandeville Gallery director
Rachel Seligman with assistance from Khayree Miles '01 and Wendyanne Ramroop
'01. Research was done by Clifford Brown, professor of political science and chair of
the Nott Memorial Exhibits Committee; Heather Buanno '98, Heath Fradkoff '00;
Miles and Ramroop.

Powre Above Powres: Passing Freedom.
Installation exhibit by Terry Adkins, which features a series of sculptures and drawings
inspired by the story of Solomon Northup and attuned to the architecture and geometry of
Union's Nott Memorial. The exhibit is a work in eight sites exploring themes of
spiritual freedom within the bonds of slavery.

The exhibit opens Thursday, Jan. 14, at 4:30 p.m. in the
Nott Memorial with a slide lecture and reception with Terry Adkins. A reception and
gallery talk by Sue Eakin, co-editor of the 1968 book Twelve Years a Slave is set
for Thursday, Jan. 21, at 7:30 p.m. The exhibits run through March 14.

A number of events to be presented throughout the exhibit
will be detailed in future editions of the Chronicle.

Posted on Jan 7, 1999

Schenectady, N.Y. (Jan. 7, 1999) – An exhibit of color photography by James E. Schuck at Union College's Social Science Building explores the fascinating and often beautiful world that lies beneath our feet, and the tires of our cars.

“Three Feet from the Street,” a series of a 19 2 by 2-foot color photographs of streets, sidewalks, bridge gratings, potholes and manhole covers, runs through March 12. The show is free and open to the public. Hours are weekdays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

There will be a reception with the artist on Thursday, Jan. 14, from 4 to 6 p.m.

Schuck's photographs show a world that has no scale, except for a blade of grass, a cigarette butt or a footprint. Some appear as satellite photographs of mountainous continents, others as lakes in the middle of deserts. Some look like starry skies. But a closer look reveals that nearly all have some small clue that they are part of the city underfoot – tire marks, pieces of broken glass, gum wrappers, paint, oil.

Schuck created the images by tripod mounting a Hasselblad pointing straight down at the street. He used a Carl Zeiss 80 mm lens, with a minimum focus distance of three feet – hence the name of the exhibit. His work often drew curious crowds, particularly for one picture taken near a drive-through window at a McDonald's.

The project grew out of Schuck's fascination with urban streetscapes. “At some point, I looked down at the streets I had been traversing for years and actually began looking at them,” said the Brooklyn artist. “Reflections in puddles began to fascinate me, cracks in the sidewalk, the garbage, the strewn paint, broken glass, oil spills, tar, everything looked more beautiful than I had ever seen it before (if I had ever seen it before).

“Every streetscape was a cosmos in itself – there was a wholeness in each fragment – a self-contained, unique atom of life. Some of these worlds existed for a finite period of time – after a rainstorm a landscape was transformed; the next day it was gone. I discovered a world of infinite beauty, filled with magnificence and grace that I had simply overlooked, and I began to wonder how much more I was inured to or simply ignored in my rush to get somewhere. This work has taught me the value of discernment; that each microcosm holds within it some wisdom, if only I am mindful enough to show it the respect of careful attention.”

For more information, call (518) 388-6090.

For calendar listings:

Exhibit: “Three Feet from the Street,” photographs by James E. Schuck

Dates: Through March 12
(Opening reception is Thursday, Jan. 14, 4 to 6 p.m.)

Place: Social Sciences Building Lounge (second floor), Union College

Time: Weekdays, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Cost: Free

Information: (518) 388-6456