Prof. Hilary Tann's Water's Edge will conclude a program of
premieres titled “New Year's Celebration: String Orchestra Music by Composers
from the Americas” on Sunday, Jan. 11, at 3 p.m. at Christ and St. Stephen's
Church, 120 West 69th St. in New York City.
Tann, professor of music, is
featured along with composers Dinos
Constantinides, Leo Kraft, Tudor Dominik Maican and Alba Potes. Works
will be performed by David Jolley, French horn; Susan Jolles, harp; and the
North/South Chamber Orchestra conducted by Max Lifchitz.
The College's commitment to international study was
recognized recently by the Institute for International Education, which ranked
the College seventh among peer institutions nationwide in the number of
students who engage in study abroad.
The College sent 400 students to study abroad during the
2001-2 academic year. Saint Olaf
College ranked first with 644 students, Colgate
University second with 544. After
that the grouping was tight. A margin of only 29 students separated Smith
College, in third place, and Union.
“The IIE study validates what those of us at Union
have held all along,” said William Thomas,
director of international programs. “International study is an important part
of the undergraduate experience, and at Union it is an
integral part of the curriculum.”
The number of U.S. university-level students receiving
credit for study abroad in 2001/02 increased 4.4 percent from the previous
year, reaching a record total of 160,920, according to Open Doors 2003, the annual report on international education
published by the IIE with funding from the State Department's Bureau of
Educational and Cultural Affairs.
“Despite a weak economy and post-9/11 concerns, American
students continue to regard study abroad as a critical component of their
higher education experience,” said an IIE release that accompanied the study.
Prof. Brenda Wineapple, author of
a biography on Nathaniel Hawthorne, was a guest on C-SPAN's
“Booknotes” with host Brian Lamb on Sunday, Jan. 4.
Wineapple, the Doris Zemurray
Stone Professor in Modern Literary and Historical Studies, talked with Lamb
about what she discovered about the 19th-century literary figure she
said is “a cross between Stephen King and Kafka.” Her book is titled Hawthorne: A Life.
Among her discoveries was a trunk
full of letters supplied by a descendent of the author that revealed a great
deal about Hawthorne's life at home
with his family.
Also this week, Wineapple was the
first source in a lighthearted story in the Chronicle
of Higher Education about the tendency of academics to use the colon in
titles of their works. “I hate colons,” she was quoted as saying, noting that
she wrote the title for her previous book, Sister
Brother: Gertrude and Leo Stein, without a colon, as Gertrude might have.
“Nobody can handle that,” Wineapple said. “Anyone who ever talks about the book
puts it on.”
Craig LeDuc and Kyle Schrade were recalled at a campus memorial service on Thursday, Jan. 8, for their spontaneous wit, their love of laughter and their infectious personalities.
President Roger Hull announced the creation of a scholarship in memory of the two men, who were killed in car accident on Dec. 13.
“There is little I can say or do …” Hull said before an audience of several hundred in Memorial Chapel. “But I hope that a scholarship in their names will give both families a measure of relief.”
Hull recalled Kyle, who occasionally helped look after the president's children, and his love of basketball and video games. At the end of his visits to the President's House, “I had to pry him away from [the television],” Hull said.
Byron Nichols, professor of political science, remembered Kyle for his enthusiastic sharing in class, his integrity and his sense of responsibility for his academics. Speaking of the various roles people play in a college setting, Nichols said that Schrade transcended the role of student to prove that “role doesn't matter, the person does.”
Stephen Schmidt, associate professor of economics, spoke about looking out at a class to see Craig, “a light on in his face,” as he understood a topic in class. “He was thinking and … understanding the world we live in.”
Wes Shaffer '05 spoke of the duo's “laid-back attitude” and “their ability to make people feel special.” Steve Kimmel-Hurt '05 remembered the constant laughter they enjoyed. He spoke of one evening when Kyle, sometimes reserved on first encounters, met some new friends and by the end of the evening had become the center of attention.
Aaron Ginsberg '05 talked about Craig's love of the Red Sox and his uncanny ability to multi-task, watching Seinfeld while reading the sports pages. He also spoke of the evening when Craig broke a door after a Red Sox loss in the playoffs.
Avi Abecassis, a childhood friend of Craig's and a student at U Mass., asked friends of the two men to stand as he related an exchange between Craig and Kyle in which they spoke of their fortune in having such good friends. “No one has friends like ours,” he recalled one of them saying.
Viki Brooks-McDonald, Protestant chaplain, spoke of the support that friends have given each other since the tragedy and reminded them that counselors and chaplains are available.
Thoughts and prayers were also offered by Bonnie Cramer, Hillel program assistant; and Thomas P. Boland Jr., Catholic chaplain. The Garnet Minstrelles performed “Amazing Grace.” Prof. Dianne McMullen was organist and accompanist.
Friends have recalled Kyle, a political science major, as a dedicated member of Sigma Chi fraternity who loved playing and watching basketball. Despite commuting to classes from his home in Delanson this past term, he was one of the fraternity's most involved members, according to one friend. Another recalled Kyle as a young man who overcame an initial shyness to become a popular student who enjoyed trading barbs with friends over his basketball prowess. “Once we got to know him, he was the biggest goofball,” said Ryan Smith '05, relating Schrade's boast that his former roommate could “dunk on anyone.” A high school basketball player at Duanesburg Central School, Kyle continued to play in intramurals. He was an avid fan of Union basketball and a DJ on College radio station WRUC. As a student, he worked in Union's Office of College Relations.
Schrade's family includes his father, Steven '70; his mother, Sherry, who received her master's in teaching from the College in 1990; and his sisters, Kelly '99 and Amy '02. Kelly read A.E. Housman's poem, “To An Athlete Dying Young,” at Thursday's memorial.
A classmate remembered LeDuc as a bright, friendly and curious student who early in his time at Union “changed majors just about every week.” As an economics major, he wrote a paper about the effects of changing oil prices on consumer spending patterns. LeDuc would stay up late to discuss the merits of each player on the Red Sox roster, said Smith, himself a Yankees fan. This year, LeDuc had begun to get involved with the College's Concert Committee, an activity he shared with Schrade. Friends said that LeDuc and Schrade were looking forward next year to living in a residence hall at the former Ramada Inn on Nott Street, now being renovated by the College.
Jamie Laubisch '05 during a recent trip to an area hospital.
Jamie Laubisch has touched a lot of hockey pucks, and a lot of lives.
The Union College junior from Apalachin, NY, and captain of Union's women's ice hockey team, has been nominated for the Hockey Humanitarian Award.
The award is open to any male or female NCAA college
hockey player who “best exemplifies personal character, a commitment to
studies, and whose contributions to his/her community are worthy of
attention.”
Laubisch, just one of 15 players nominated in the nation, is leading her team in it's first year of competing at the Div. I level.
Laubisch, a member of the ECAC all academic team, keeps a near
perfect grade point average while staying involved with a number of
activities.
At merit scholar at Union, she serves on the
Union College student athletic advisory committee, and the
College's social space committee. A member of Gamma Phi sorority,
Laubisch still finds time to stay involved with choral activities. She
is part of the Union College Garnet Minstrels Chorus, the St. John's
contemporary choir, and also sings the national anthem at home games
at Messa Rink. Then she takes the ice to play.
Laubisch, who is studying to become a doctor, volunteers her time as a
research assistant at Ellis Hospital in Schenectady, and at St. Claire's
Hospital, working in pediatrics.
As a team and community leader, Laubisch and her teammates volunteer for
the Animal Protective Fireplug 500, which helps to save and protect
animals.
Serving as captain, Laubisch helps to organize “Skate with the
Dutchwomen,” which supports the local Girl Scouts, and gives a chance
for the local youth to skate with the team.
A current ECAC Academic All-American, Laubisch was named to the ECAC All-Rookie team as a freshman. Even after all this, she has been known to visit local children in area hospitals who are in need of some cheer.
Union Women's Head Coach Fred Quistgard said Laubisch is “the
most dynamic athlete I have coached in my 20 years,” and one who
“embodies the definition of a true student athlete.
“Jamie and the other student-athletes recognized by the Humanitarian Award are really the kind of
individuals our kids should be looking up to,” he said.
The finalists will be announced on January 8. Finalists will
be honored during a home game in February, and the presentation of the
Humanitarian Award will take place April 9, at the NCAA Frozen Four.
