Posted on May 21, 2008

More than 1,500 alumni and friends converged on campus this weekend for ReUnion, the annual celebration of Union’s graduates.

To see the video, please visit: ReUnion '08: Reasons to celebrate

The festivities included events ranging from scholarly lectures to guided tours of downtown Schenectady to the popular ReUnion Parade. The College also honored two longtime benefactors, John S. Wold ’38 and David J. Breazzano ’78.

Wold and his wife, Jane, have directed $13 million of their recent $20 million gift to a multidisciplinary teaching and research center, the Peter Irving Wold Science Center. The building is named in honor of John's father, a professor of physics at Union from 1920 to 1945.

The building, to be located adjacent to the Science and Engineering building and the F.W. Olin Center, just north of Schaffer Library, will better integrate the science and engineering departments  with each other and the rest of the College's academic departments.

"Peter was a scientist of incredible accomplishment who also made incredible contributions to the College," President Stephen C. Ainlay said at a groundbreaking Saturday. "When this new building is finished, it will provide a gateway into science and engineering. None of this would have been possible without the generosity of John and Jane Wold."

"This project holds great promise for American education," said Wold, 92, a geologist and president of Wold Minerals Company, and a former U.S. congressman and Wyoming state representative.  "So darn few engineers and scientists have an understanding of the liberal arts, and so darn few liberal arts students have an understanding of science and engineering."

Breazzano, co-founder and principal of an investment firm, recently gave an additional $2 million to support the College’s main fitness facility. The center was formally renamed Breazzano Fitness Center during a ceremony Friday.

“I cannot think of a better time than ReUnion to honor two of the College's most loyal sons," said Nick Famulare ’92, director of Alumni Relations. "ReUnion Weekend is a wonderful opportunity for alumni to pay tribute to our alma mater while strengthening the lifetime friendships that were made during their college days.”

Returning alumni also gave back during ReUnion, with classes raising nearly  $18 million,  including the $13 million Wold family gift.

For more images from the weekend, check out our photo gallery.

Awards

At Alumni Convocation on Saturday at Memorial Chapel, the College hosted a ceremony to present Alumni Gold Medals, the Faculty Meritorious Award, a special appreciation award, parade trophies and class gifts. The ceremony closed with the traditional Senior Handshake between the Class of 2008 and the 50th ReUnion Class, welcoming the senior class into the Alumni body.

The parade trophy results: The Anable Cup for the greatest number of classmates in the parade and The McClellan Cup for the highest percentage of class attendees both went to the Class of 1958.  The Van Voast/Class of 1941 Cup for best costume went to the Class of 1998. The Class of 1943 ReUnion Award for overall effort went to the Class of 1943. Harald Wieler '58 was honored for traveling the furthest to attend ReUnion, coming from Germany.

On Friday at Beuth House the College honored outstanding engineering alumni at the Engineering Awards Reception. 

Read more about award winners here.

To find out about ReUnion 2009, click here.

Posted on May 20, 2008

A family of seven from Schenectady has a new home, thanks to the College and the local chapter of Habitat for Humanity.

Michael and Kelly Harris, and their five children – Sujea, 12, Sabrina, 9, Michael, Jr., 8, Isaiah, 8, and Samone, 3 – were surrounded by dozens of well-wishers recently when the house at 1124 Barrett Street was officially dedicated.

The College donated the house to the local Habitat chapter and the campus community has worked since last fall to help refurbish it.

The project received extensive media coverage. To read an account of the dedication in the Daily Gazette, click here (registration may be required).

Posted on May 19, 2008

The “Professor Speaker Series: Professors Present Their Work” debuts Wednesday, May 21, 2008, at 12:50 p.m. in the Golub Great Room featuring talks by Associate Professor Kara Doyle, Lecturer April Selley and Professor Jordan Smith of the English Department.

The talks are free and open to the public; lunch will be provided.

The idea for the series sprang from YAWP (You’re Addicted to Writing and Poetry), which was founded by co-presidents Yolaine Jean ’08 and Becky Chawner ’08. They wanted to show students a different side to their professors’ lives.

“This was something that we’ve wanted to do since the Alumni Writer’s Series began,” said Jean. “We liked the idea of students hearing what the alumni were doing. This takes it one step further, to show professors’ career and personal interests.”

Doyle’s talk is titled “Every Woman’s Friend: Chaucer and the Fifteenth-Century Audience."

“My courses on Chaucer are informed by and touch tangentially on my research,” said Doyle. “But I seldom have the opportunity to talk solely about my work. It’s an honor to be able to share this other side of my scholarly career—a side not always visible in the classroom because it doesn’t fit into the curriculum.”

Selley teaches American Literature, but has focused her recent efforts on creative writing, particularly fiction. Her talk illustrates how her endeavors as a teacher, critic and creative writer are interrelated.

“I’m looking forward to getting students’ reactions,” she noted, “since I write some unusual material.”

Selley will also read a section from her short story “Bodies,” which was inspired by newspaper accounts of a serial killer in Poughkeepsie, N.Y.

The author of five collections of poetry, Smith will discuss some of his recently published poems as well as the process of compiling poems for a collection.

Future speakers in the series will draw from other departments. YAWP also plans to broaden the scope of the club through co-sponsor events with the newly formed Dickens Theme House beginning in the fall.

The Professor Speaker Series is sponsored by YAWP and Student Activities. For more information, contact Jean at yobear2K@gmail.com

Posted on May 19, 2008

Melissa Harris-Lacewell, associate professor of politics and African American Studies at Princeton University, will discuss “Race and the 2008 Election” Tuesday, May 20, at 7 p.m. in the Nott Memorial.

A reception will follow the talk, which is free and open to the public.

Harris-Lacewell is the author of the award-winning book, “Barbershops, Bible and BET: Everyday Talk and Black Political Thought."  Her latest project is “For Colored Girls Who’ve Considered Politics When Being Strong Wasn’t Enough.” She is a frequent commentator on various national news programs.

Harris-Lacewell recently taught a course at Princeton called “Race, Disaster, and American Politics”  which included a trip to post-Katrina New Orleans.

Harris-Lacewell received a bachelor’s in English from Wake Forest University and a doctorate in political science from Duke University. She is a student at Union Theological Seminary in New York.

The lecture is sponsored by the Presidential Forum on Diversity. For more information, call (518) 388-6131.

Posted on May 19, 2008

A family of seven from Schenectady has a new home, thanks to the College and the local chapter of Habitat for Humanity.

Michael and Kelly Harris, and their five children – Sujea, 12, Sabrina, 9, Michael, Jr., 8, Isaiah, 8, and Samone, 3 – were surrounded by dozens of well-wishers Sunday as the house at 1124 Barrett St. was officially dedicated.

"I just want to say thank you to everyone," an emotional Kelly Harris said, standing in the middle of her crowded new kitchen. "I love all the volunteers so much. They worked really hard. They're just wonderful people." 

The College donated the house to the local Habitat chapter, and the campus community has worked since last fall to help refurbish it.

President Stephen C. Ainlay said the genesis for the project sprang from students inspired by their trip to New Orleans to help with rebuilding efforts after Hurricane Katrina.

"They approached me about doing something to help someone in Schenectady," he said.

Ainlay challenged the campus community to help restore the home as a way to re-cultivate its sense of social-connectedness and civic commitment. Hundreds of volunteers, including members of athletic teams, Greek organizations, student groups, faculty, staff and administrators pitched in to renovate the house, built in 1910.

The family also chipped in 400 hours of “sweat equity” in their new home, which is just blocks from campus. Minor work on the house still needs to be completed, but the family should be in their new digs after the closing in a few weeks.

"I'm so thankful for Union College. We wouldn't be here if it wasn't for them," said Kelly Harris.