Posted on Aug 1, 2001

Amie Csiszer (pronounced “caesar”) '02 has already seen and conquered wild art, wild animals, and her senior thesis. Is there a common theme? Says she, “I love to explore – to see new and different things. And it's even more exciting to share.”

An anthropology-biology major, Csiszer took her desire to explore to New York City last year, where she tracked down graffiti artists for a research project. Although graffiti artists tend to be difficult to contact and tie down to commitments, Csiszer used the Internet to locate a few who were willing to be interviewed and to show her around. Camera and sketchpad in hand, she went to the city to do field work.

Looking at the art itself at first, she began thinking about its meaning and cultural assumptions, commercialism in art, and the political nature of public space. (Putting up a billboard has quite different connotations from writing graffiti, says her adviser, anthropology professor Ian Condry. It's socially acceptable to pay for a sign, he notes, but “if you create something beautiful on the street, it's considered vandalism.”)

Most interesting to Csiszer was finally understanding the subculture and how graffiti writers see themselves.
“People have so many different ideas about graffiti. It's really about identity in art. It ceases to be graffiti if it's in a gallery. It doesn't have to be illegal, but it does have to be big, and on a wall or other large surface where everyone can see it. If there were public walls set aside for graffiti, they'd use them.” She presented her research, including photos and sketches, at the Steinmetz Symposium last spring.

Her desire to understand other cultures took her to Kenya last fall, where she decided to do her senior thesis on the impacts of tourism – “now some Kenyans' only source of income,” she says. When Kenya was a British colony, the Western way of categorizing identity led to stronger tribal associations. After Kenyan independence, tribal identities, such as Maasai and Kikuyu, stuck. With no sense of national unity, “It's almost as if there is no such thing as a Kenyan,” she explains. Tourist expectations have reinforced tribalism, but increasing intertribal conflict has resulted in decreases in tourism. “It's a Catch-22,” says Csiszer.

While tourists at five-star hotels enjoy hot showers and swimming pools, “there's a drought throughout Kenya – animals are dying, people are losing crops. The land-based way of life is eroding as grasslands become national parklands and land becomes otherwise unusable,” she says. “It will take a big wakeup call for any meaningful change.”

Csiszer learned about the Kenyan landscape while completing an internship with the Kenya Wildlife Service. She worked at the soon-to-open Nairobi Safari Walk, on the site of the Nairobi Animal Orphanage, a popular wildlife facility and long a refuge for wild animals found abandoned, orphaned, or injured throughout the country; these semi-tame animals can't be re-released into the wild. She worked with the keepers, caring for the animals – from cheetahs to lions to “a sedated buffalo,” which she and another student had to pick up and move onto a flatbed truck. Csiszer, who plans to be a veterinarian, also made the rounds with veterinarians from the KSPCA (Kenya Society for the Protection and Care of Animals).

She's thinking about taking a year off before veterinary school, hoping to intern for a wildlife organization. Having already worked at the Philadelphia Zoo and the New Jersey State Aquarium, she loves working with animals, and just being out of doors. And one day, she says, she'd also love to return to Kenya.

Posted on Aug 1, 2001

Clark Jones '01 clearly loves hockey. But he also worries about it: “Professional hockey is a fast-paced, emotional, and aggressive game. However, the way the game has been going in recent years concerns me greatly.”

Last fall, for example, NHL player Marty McSorley was convicted of assault with a deadly weapon, and received a conditional discharge. But the real story, says Jones, “was the fact that he was put on trial.” McSorley was the twelfth NHL player to land in court for an on-ice incident.

A political science major as well as co-captain of Union's hockey team, Jones was the perfect person to do a senior thesis on violence in sports. Combining interests in law and sports, he focused on a legal gray area: When does a hockey stick become an assault weapon?

Jones sent out 1,000 three-page questionnaires to a national random sample of trial court judges, seeking their views on sports violence, how they assess the criminal status of sports violence, responses to a hypothetical incident, and whether they think sports violence cases should be handled in court. Says Jones's adviser Richard Fox, “We were nervous – it was a gamble. We made the questions closed ended because judges are so busy, but what if only twenty-three answered?”

Returning from winter break, however, they found a huge box waiting for them, containing 400 replies. “And quite a number of the judges took the time to write down additional thoughts,” Fox says. “Clark's cover letter must have touched a chord.”

Going through the stack, Jones found:

– Judges generally view sports violence as a serious problem.

– Judges acknowledge that sports violence is different from other violence cases.

– More than seventy-five percent of the judges said that excessive sports violence cases should be considered criminal conduct.

– About sixty percent of the judges said that it is difficult to differentiate between tolerable and excessive acts of sports violence.

– Women judges tend to view sports violence as more serious than do male judges.

– The degree to which a judge is a sports fan does not influence his or her opinion on the general issue of sports violence.

Jones and Fox are including these findings in an article they hope to publish in a judicial or legal journal. “I think the response rate alone makes it publishable,” says Fox. Jones is also working on an opinion piece for newspapers.

Does Jones think far greater acts of violence in hockey go unpunished while drawing applause? Jones replies carefully: “It's been argued that a lot of the attraction of professional hockey is the violent nature of the game. What's 'excessive' is not clear though.

“I think the NHL needs to do a better preventive job,” he continues. “If anything, they need to stop the excessive acts as much as they can so courts don't get involved. Changing the mindset of the players is the challenge. My main concern is with the excessive violence that has been occurring, not necessarily because there has been an increase in the sheer number of incidents but because the visibility is more widespread.”

There are two distinct consequences of this visibility, he says. First, children tend to emulate the actions of professional athletes, and second, the exposure may mean that more athletes are prosecuted for on-ice incidents.
“No athlete can play with freedom and passion when there is a threat of litigation,” he says. “At the same time, athletes are responsible for their actions because with their right to play hockey comes a responsibility to play within the rules, customs, and norms of the game.”

Jones, who graduated in June, will be working as a paralegal with a Boston law firm.

What two judges say about violence and sports:

“Some sports are inherently violent, i.e., hockey and football. However, none should condone intentional violent assaults that are outside the rules. It never ceases to amaze me how we excuse one's actions in proportion to their wealth or station in life.”

“If there was an immediate and certain penalty, it would go far to keep such disputes out of court. If not, the courts must be involved because this spreads to children and parents when they see professional athletes do it and nothing happens.”

Posted on Aug 1, 2001

Carolyn Micklas has retired from Union, but it was retirement in the narrowest sense of the word.

As Admissions and Recruiting Coordinator for the Graduate Management Institute, she loved her job. And she loved doing things that were not a formal part of her job — going to the airport to greet arriving international students, conducting orientation, helping students find housing, giving them the grand tour, and generally trying to make them feel welcome. “For many of them, coming here can be a real culture shock,” she explains.

A lifelong resident of Schenectady, Micklas has served on the city school board and been involved in local politics. She retired so she could get even more involved in community service. “It's fun to be able to pick and choose.”

Fortunately for Union, her choices have included continuing to do many of the things she did here. “When you work at Union, a certain amount of loyalty and connection remains. I'm very delighted to be able to continue to be a part of that.”

She still greets students at the airport, does orientation, and helps them feel at home. She still puts together the GMI Report newsletter. And she hasn't stopped recruiting: “Everybody I meet is a potential MBA candidate!”

Her community service extends to Schenectady Family Health Services, which serves thousands of low-income area families; Micklas is involved in a capital campaign — development, public relations, and “whatever needs doing.” She's also a United Way leader, president of her church community, and board member for a couple of other organizations. And she mentors a student at Schenectady High School.

“I think retirement is whatever you make of it. I'm a big-time volunteer! Ever since I was four years old, I've wanted to save the world. Now I know there's only so much one person can do, but I can chip away at it a bit at a time.”