October 23, 2000
1. The minutes of the Oct. 16 AAC meeting were corrected and approved.
2. Dean Doug Klein reported on a new advising system and registration
software. The committee discussed many of the problems associated with the
present system. Dean Klein also began a discussion on distance learning.
3. The AAC discussed some of the problems associated with class scheduling.
Read MoreExtra lighting and increased surveillance followed an attempted firebombing
early Tuesday morning of the building that is to become the William R. Grant '49
Admissions and Financial Aid Center.
Local and federal authorities were investigating the incident at the former
Alpha Delta Phi fraternity house after four “Molotov cocktails” were
hurled at the building sometime between Monday night and Tuesday morning.
One of the incendiary devices charred a section of railing and a pillar on
the northwest corner of the building, but the fire apparently self-extinguished
before spreading, said William Sickinger, director of campus safety. The other
devices did not ignite. Investigators on Tuesday were gathering the devices for
evidence and analysis.
The case is under investigation by officials from Campus Safety, Schenectady
police and fire departments, and the Federal Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and
Firearms. The incident was discovered early Tuesday morning by workers who had
arrived to resume the renovation work on the building. The project is to be
completed in the spring of 2001.
“This is a very serious incident and the College will cooperate fully
with the investigation,” said Frederick Alford, dean of students, in a memo
to members of the campus community. He went on to ask anyone with information
that might be helpful to the investigation to contact the Office of Campus
Safety, ext. 6350.
Peter Williams, right,
offers up some cake at a ceremony honoring his retirement recently. Williams, a member of the campus grounds operations since 1964, was cited by President Roger
Hull, who acknowledged that much of the credit should go to Williams for the College's recent beautification award from the American Society of Landscape
Architects. Williams' retirement party on Oct. 19 was also his 65th birthday; more than 100 colleagues joined in for a chorus of “Happy Birthday.”
Williams' efforts in campus beautification have been noted elsewhere: the Class of 1994 recognized his efforts with a citation at Commencement.
“Union Women – 3 Decades of Art” displays work by painters,
printmakers, and photographers for whom art is both vocation and avocation. The
exhibition opens on Monday, Nov. 6, and kicks off with an opening reception on
Thursday, Nov. 9, from 5 to 7 p.m. followed by a panel discussion at 7:30 p.m.
in Union College's Nott Memorial.
The exhibition, free and open to the public, runs through Jan. 14.
The exhibition honors those particular Union women who have established their
interest and expertise as artists – from Claudia Gioseffi who graduated in
1976 to become a painter of bold colorful landscapes, to Veronica Sack, a member
of Union's most recent graduating class, and a printmaker who works on cloth
as well as paper.
The exhibitors include not only professional artists, but those such as
Meredith R. Miller '97, a lawyer for whom printmaking and photography are
avocations, and Sally Eckhoff '77, whose creative life bridges both the
professions of painter and writer. Tina Tryforos '86 is a photographer who
works with plastic cameras to explore the “unintentional consequences of
making art with a toy.” Linda E. Fisher '87 paints richly textured
landscapes that explore “how land reveals time.” Elizabeth Tremante
'89 took only a few art classes at Union but is now a painter inspired by the
“sense of alienation from reality” she finds around her in Los
Angeles.
Schenectady Mayor Albert P. Jurczynski took a swipe at city fathers who in
1825 largely ignored the opening of the Erie Canal, and corrected the oversight
175 years later by proclaiming Oct. 26 “Erie Canal Anniversary Day.”
The mayor read the proclamation at the gala dinner in the College's Old
Chapel:
“Whereas in 1825, the Schenectady City Fathers spent their energy
lamenting the fading away of their monopoly of the overland freight business
from Albany; and
“Whereas the same City Fathers chose to ignore the arrival of the
official inaugural barges along the Erie Canal in Schenectady; and
“Whereas the students of Union College took it upon themselves to
welcome the governor and his party by holding a dinner and performing a 'salute
of musketry' in their honor; and
“Whereas, in the year 2000, the City should correct this oversight of
the past by officially recognizing the importance of a project that forever
altered the movement of goods, services, and the people to the then-western
reaches of our growing country; and
“Whereas, the City of Schenectady had and has an honored place on the
'Waterway to the Future,' now the Erie Canal Corridor;
“Now … I proclaim (Oct. 26, 2000) “Erie Canal Anniversary Day in
the City of Schenectady.”
President Roger Hull and the mayor took turns holding a musket. No shots were
fired.