Thanks in large part to help from alumni volunteers, the College has set a record for undergraduate applications. Union Admissions saw applications rise above 4,800, according to Steve Ciesinski '70, chairman of the College's Board of Trustees. That's about 10 percent ahead last year's total. The College got 8 applications per spot in the incoming freshman class, which is higher than the average 7.7 applications per class spot of Union's top competitors.
“These good numbers are the result of years of College-wide efforts including expanded travel, communications initiatives, publications, and, of course, enhanced outreach by our proud alumni,” wrote Ciesinski in a February board report.
Last fall Palmer Fargnoli '93 was named director of the newly created Alumni Admissions Program. The program connects alumni with prospective students to offer them a chance to discover our community beyond the walls of Union. Alumni volunteer opportunities include attending college fairs, conducting off-campus interviews, referring outstanding students, and donating frequent flier miles.
To reach Palmer, call him at: (518) 388-6112, or e-mail him at: fargnolp@union.edu. To be an alumni admissions volunteer, contact Admissions at (518) 388-6112 or e-mail lecceh@union.edu.
Janet Grigsby, a Union College sociology professor, led a group of 22 students and faculty to volunteer New Orleans for a week in early December. The group joined rebuilding efforts still desperately needed more than a year after Hurricane Katrina.
Grigsby maintained a Web blog about the trip for the Times Union, a newspaper that covers New York’s Capital Region. Under the auspices of the St. Bernard Recovery Project and Habitat for Humanity, the group gutted buildings, moved refrigerators, hung siding, removed rubbish and installed roofs in St. Bernard’s Parish and New Orleans East, two of the worst damaged sections of the city.
Below is an excerpt from Grigsby’s blog.
“First, in my mom/professor mode: I have been so very impressed by these kids. They have managed the primitive living conditions with little serious fuss and worked like beavers each day on site. Most of them have little or no experience with construction, but they have learned they can do most everything.
Halley Vora, a small, demure young woman was slinging a sledge hammer with gusto yesterday as she helped get flooring in place. Mary Volcko reveled in her job nailing shingles on a rooftop. Hannah Comeau wielding a portable electric saw. The women, especially, have impressed me. Union women are tough, strong and can-do.
The men have also been fearless. Aaron Goldman, Evan Smith, Matt Grigsby and Viktor Olsan all traipsed around rooftops like it was nothing.
I tell them I am here on behalf of all of their mothers, so proud I am about to burst! And, the professor in me is so pleased at the way they are representing their school.” Grigsby is the mother of two sons, including 23-year-old Matthew Grigsby, who joined the volunteer trip.
In the first months in my “job” as Parents Association chairperson, I have thoroughly enjoyed my connections with Union parents. There could not be a more supportive group with such a wide range of interest in Union on and off campus.
Many parents feel that, though this is their child’s experience, they would like to be more involved. Here are some things you can do:
– Join Welcome Wagon: Parents of current students can meet parents of incoming students. – Attend College fairs: Spread the good word about your Union experience. – Get involved with career services: Provide internship or job opportunities. – Join the Parents Fund: Support Union and invite other parents to join. – Attend Union Club events: Parents and alumni and are always invited. You’ll hear more about events in your area.
If you are interested in any of the above, or have questions, feel free to e-mail me at kmdumonet@hotmail.com or parents_association@union.edu. Please send me your e-mail address if you would like to get the monthly Parents Association e-mail.
Finally, Vivian Falco (Peter ’07), chairperson of the Union Parents Fund, joins me in thanking all parents who are participating. This is a great gesture of support for Union College, and donor numbers are way ahead of last year. You can join in by sending a gift of any amount and designate it as you like. Thanks.
Take care, Karen Dumonet (Vanessa ’07, Sebastian ’09) Parents Association Chairperson
Peter Heinegg, professor of English, authored a collection of essays published by Hamilton Books. The collection, Good God! (And Other Follies): Essays on Religion, takes a critical and satirical look at the wave of religiosity now sweeping the nation, from faith-based initiatives to attacks on evolution. Heinegg also published his review of Frederick Brown’s Flaubert: A Biography in America Magazine: The Catholic National Weekly.
Frank Wicks
Frank Wicks, associate professor of mechanical engineering, authored an article published in the November 2006 issue of Mechanical Engineering, a monthly magazine for the estimated 130,000 members of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. Wicks is the only engineering professor in the United States classified as a frequent contributor to the publication. The article, “No Einstein: Overshadowed by a Legendary Mentor, Leo Szilard Switched on the Atomic Age,” describes the birth of the atomic age.
Cheikh M. Ndiaye
Cheikh M. Ndiaye, assistant professor of French, is the author of the preface to Septième Printemps/Seventh Springtime, published by Les Editions du Pangolin, Huy (Belgique). The book is a collection of poems by Ramonu Sanusi, who teaches French, African and Caribbean literatures at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va. Cheikh also published “Remembrance and/or Oblivion: The Politics of Memory” in the West African Research Association Newsletter in spring 2006. The newsletter is published twice a year with the support of the Center for African Studies and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at the University of Florida. Ndiaye also chaired a panel on French language and culture at the 60th annual convention of the Rocky Mountain Modern Languages Association in Tucson, Ariz.
Lorraine Morales Cox, assistant professor of contemporary art and theory, organized and chaired a panel for the American Studies Association’s annual meeting in Oakland, Calif., titled “Neither Here nor There: (Re)presenting and (Re)constructing Transnational Identity in Contemporary American Art.” Artist Siona Benjamin, whose work is the subject of a new essay by Cox, was on the panel. The essay, “The Decorative Aesthetic as a Critical Painting Practice: The Art of Siona Benjamin,” has been accepted for publication as a chapter in a forthcoming book published by the German American Studies Association. A separate essay by Cox, “Kara Walker’s Performative Turn,” has been accepted for publication in the spring 2007 issue of Women and Performance: A Journal of Feminist Theory. The essay focuses on Walker’s recent filmic and performance use of shadow puppets for her installation, “Song of the South,” exhibited in 2005 at the CalArts REDCAT Gallery in Los Angeles.
George Y. Blizer
George Y. Bizer, assistant professor of psychology, who has conducted research in political psychology, was quoted in a Saturday, Nov. 4, Associated Press article about negative campaigning. The article was published in more than 100 newspapers, including The New York Times and Boston Globe. The article notes Bizer’s published research showing that when people conceptualize their opinions negatively—when they think in terms of whom they oppose instead of whom they support—they are more difficult to persuade. He was quoted as saying of negative ads, “Everyone says, ‘We hate them, they’re terrible.’” But, he added, “They seem to work.” Bizer also participated in a roundtable discussion of campaign ads on Northeast Public Radio in mid November. Bizer was also a presenter at a January meeting of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology.
Louisa Matthew, professor of art history, spoke on “Color in Renaissance Venice: Taste, Technology, Commerce and the Uses of Pigments” at Skidmore College as a Mellon Visiting Fellow. Her talk was based on recent research in the State Archives in Venice, Italy and her ongoing collaboration with Barbara Berrie, chemist and senior research scientist at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.
Linda Evers Cool, professor of anthropology, and her husband, Kenneth E. Cool, a former administrator at Vassar College, helped create The Mellon College Retirement Project. The project has led to the Emeriti Retirement Health Solutions, a nonprofit health care plan for higher education institutions. The new health plan was featured in an article titled, “For Retirees’ Health Care, a Balancing Act,” in the Sept. 29, 2006 issue of The Chronicle of Higher Education.
Hans-Friedrich Mueller, chairman of the Classics Department and interim chairman of Modern Languages and Literatures Department, read a paper titled, “The Manes at Night (Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum and Visits from the Dead” in Baltimore, Md. at the annual meeting of the Classical Association of the Atlantic States. Mueller’s paper examines a funerary inscription in which a widow requests nocturnal visits from her deceased husband. Roman religious rituals associated with the hours between midnight and dawn and literary representations of ancestral spirits help explain why this seemingly odd request might reflect wider popular conceptions.
Deidre Hill Butler
Deidre Hill Butler, assistant professor of sociology, is a contributor to the recently published African-American culture text, Legacy: Treasures of Black History. She is a guest editor for an upcoming issue on Africana mothering for the Journal of Pan African Studies, an interdisciplinary peer-reviewed scholarly journal devoted to a synthesis of African Diaspora studies and research.
Judith Lewin
Judith Lewin, assistant professor of English, authored a journal article and a book chapter that are set for publication in 2008. The article, “Diving into the Wreck: Binding Oneself to Judaism in Contemporary Jewish Women’s Fiction,” will appear the summer 2008 edition of Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Jewish Studies. For an upcoming book called Jewish Cultural Studies: Expression, Identity and Representation (2008), Lewin wrote a chapter titled, “The Sublimity of the Jewish Type: Balzac’s Belle Juive as Virgin Magdalene aux Camélias.”
The College will receive nearly $500,000 over the next five years to provide scholarships and other support for students in science, technology, engineering and math.
The Supporting Scholars in Science and Engineering grant from the National Science Foundation will provide about $500,000 through 2012 to students who take an interdisciplinary approach to their studies. During the next five years, scholarships will be offered to 20 incoming students based on need and merit.
The goal is to attract innovative students, especially from groups traditionally under-represented in science, technology, engineering and math. The program has been dubbed, Converging Technologies Scholars or CT Scholars.
"These students will be mentored and prepared for leadership roles and have the interdisciplinary team experience needed in today's science and engineering workplace," said Therese McCarty, interim vice president for Academic Affairs.
Cherrice Traver, dean of the Division of Engineering and Computer Science, and Doug Klein, dean of Interdisciplinary Studies and Special Programs, worked with Jill Salvo, associate professor of biology and director of the College's Government Grants Program, on the successful proposal. The CT Scholars program will be directed by Professor Ann Anderson and Professor Christina Tonnesen-Friedman.
