Posted on Jan 8, 2009

Posted on Jan 8, 2009

Ethics bowl  

At the end of last term, the Union College Ethics Bowl Team – a group with intellectual curiosity and fortitude to spare – was preparing to compete at the Northeast Regional Ethics Bowl Tournament at Villanova University.

Veterans Meagan Keenan ’09 and Ian Clemente ’10 and newcomers Lativa Holder ’10, Bui Duy Thanh Mai ’11 and David Leavitt ’12 advanced to the quarterfinal round, where they were narrowly defeated by a strong Dartmouth team in a split decision.

Advisor Mark Wunderlich praised the team members for their insights, hard work and perseverance under pressure. One veteran member was unable to compete at the last minute, and Holder jumped in and took on a full load of cases. “Each of our novices did a fantastic job, and Meagan deserves special recognition for leading the team since the beginning of fall term.”

Habitat for Humanity

During fall term, 34 Union volunteers spent 148 hours working at two Habitat for Humanity houses at 39 and 41 Verona St. The houses were dedicated Dec. 7.

The efforts were coordinated by Kenney Community Outreach Specialist and AmeriCorps VISTA volunteer Santos Avila ’08. Working closely with Jeff Clark, director of Habitat for Humanity of Schenectady County, Avila recruited volunteers from Green House, Sorum House, Student Affairs and the Dutch Pipers.

“We want to keep students, faculty, administrators and staff active in building a better community right here in Schenectady,” Avila said.

Of holiday cheer and angels  

College employees participated in two programs that are an annual holiday tradition of campus kindness and giving. They brought in toys and clothing for about 100 children in the Salvation Army Angle Tree program. “Union always comes through,” said Kim Puerto, administrative assistant in the Dean of Students Office. Campus angels have been giving for about 15 years.

And as part of an adopt-a-family program with Schenectady Department of Social Services, 76 participants gave gifts, food and household supplies to 68 parents and children in 18 families. Coordinator Kathy McCann, director of College Relations Data Systems, said, “I was particularly touched by the number of people who were giving back to the organization that assisted their own family in the past. I’m grateful we were able to demonstrate that Union College is fully invested in being a good neighbor.” The College has been involved for about a dozen years.

Early decision

Despite an unsettled economy, applications for early decision to the Class of 2013 ran ahead of last year’s pace. Students applying for early decision by the Nov. 15 deadline rose 7 percent this year, said Matthew Malatesta, vice president for Admissions, Financial Aid and Enrollment.

Malatesta attributed this increase, in part, to the growing reputation of the College and the value of a Union education. A recent survey placed the College among the top schools in the country where graduates have the most earning potential.

Posted on Jan 7, 2009

A number of compelling activities – from films to performances to a computerized experience known as the Human Race Machine – have been planned to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day, with a cross-section of campus groups joining together as sponsors.

The national tribute to Martin Luther King Jr. this year is Monday, Jan. 19.

“We are doing events that will remind us of why we are celebrating the life of one man who lost his life while fighting to protect the lives, rights and future of all of us who believe in ourselves, our cultures and our nation,” said Karen Ferrer-Muñiz, director of Multicultural Affairs.

She noted that Reamer Campus Center will display a banner with the following quote from King: “An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity.”            

Here, a look at the scheduled events:

Tuesday, Jan. 13, 7 p.m. / Reamer Campus Center Auditorium: “Tying the Knot,” an award-winning film on gay marriage by Jim DeSève. Contact: Prof. Andrew Feffer, feffera@union.edu.

Thursday, Jan. 15, 6:30 p.m. / Old Chapel: “From Auction Block to Hip Hop,” an off-Broadway play that chronicles the life of a young black entrepreneur. Contact: Black Student Union President Nadia Alexis, alexisn@union.edu.

Monday, Jan. 19, 9 a.m. (and continuing for six sessions throughout the day) / Strauss Unity Room, Reamer 305: The Human Race Machine, a computerized program, will give participants a new perspective on race by enabling them to see themselves with African, Asian, HIspanic, Indian, Middle Eastern and white facial characteristics mapped onto their own faces. Contact and reserve space: Karen Ferrer-Muniz, ferrermk@union.edu.

Monday, Jan. 19, 5:30 p.m. / Reamer Campus Center Auditorium: PBS documentary, “Race: the Power of an Illusion.” Contact Karen Ferrer-Muniz, ferrermk@union.edu.

Tuesday, Jan. 20, 11:30 a.m. / Reamer Campus Center Auditorium: Broadcasting of the presidential inauguration. The theme for the 2009 inauguration of President-elect Barack Obama is “A New Birth of Freedom,” which honors the bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln’s birth. Contact: Karen Ferrer-Muniz, ferrermk@union.edu.                            

Wednesday, Jan. 21, 7 p.m. / Old Chapel : “Léonora Miano: France's Hippest Afro-Francophone Writer.” The author will be reading from her latest novel, “Tel des astres éteints (Like Fading Stars).” Contact: Prof. Michelle Chilcoat, chilcoam@union.edu

In addition, the Kenney Community Center is sponsoring a community service fund-raising project to benefit the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, which will be located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Throughout the year, members of the Union community who donate $5 for the project will receive a blue “Build the Dream” wristband and a lapel pin.

The memorial is conceived of as a powerful landscape experience that uses water, stone and trees to convey three fundamental and recurring themes of King’s life: justice, democracy and hope. For more information, contact Angela Tatem, Kenney Center director, at tatema@union.edu.

Posted on Jan 7, 2009

Prism, the monthly magazine of the American Society for Engineering Education, features a story on how some colleges have integrated engineering into the liberal arts curriculum.

The article highlights the national symposium hosted by Union last spring, "Engineering and Liberal Education.” In 1845, Union became the first liberal arts college to offer engineering. The symposium explored different models for integrating engineering, technology and the traditional liberal arts.

The article also includes comments from Cherrice Traver, dean of engineering at Union.

To view the article, click here. 

Posted on Jan 7, 2009

Samuel Amanuel, professor of physics, Anna Gaudette ’09 and Professor Sanford Sternstein of RPI have published a paper, “Enthalpic relaxation of silica-polyvinyl acetate nanocomposites” in the Journal of Polymer Science Part B: Polymer Physics.  The authors were able to show that nano particles substantially reduce physical aging in polymers, which has immediate application in industry such as determining shelf life, and predicting and enhancing long-term reliability of polymer products. The paper also provides crucial evidence to understand the underlying mechanism of reinforcement in polymer composites and polymer nanocomposites. 

An entry about fission-track dating by John I. Garver, chair of Geology, is included in the recently published Encyclopedia of Paleoclimatology and Ancient Environments, V. Gornitz, (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Earth Science Series (Kluwer Academic Press). A process of dating the timing of rock cooling, fission track dating involves damage zones in crystals produced by the spontaneous fission of uranium. The technique is used to understand when rocks cool, which is key for the exploration of oil and gas, and to comprehend the evolution of mountain systems.

Rudy Nydegger, professor of psychology, recently signed copies of his book, “Understanding and Treating Depression: Ways to Find Hope and Help,” at the Open Door Bookstore in Schenectady.  

Helen Hanson, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering, recently chaired a session, titled “A Quantal Transition: Ken Stevens in ‘Retirement,’” at the 156th meeting of the Acoustical Society of America, in Miami. She also presented a paper, “Physical Principles Behind Quantal Relations,” at the session. Hanson attended the awards program of the American Speech- Language-Hearing Association Convention in Chicago. An article which she co-authored, “On the Structure of Phoneme Categories in Listeners With Cochlear Implants,” was selected by the Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research (JSLHR) as the outstanding article of 2007 and the winner of the 2007 Editors Award for the Hearing Section of JSLHR.

Union faculty members who presented recently at the Society for Ethics Across the Curriculum Conference in Baltimore, Md., were invited to contribute to an issue of the society’s journal, Teaching Ethics. The Union panel was chaired by Anastasia Pease, program director of the Rapaport Ethics Across the Curriculum Initiative and assistant professor of English,who spoke on using science fiction to teach ethics. Kelly Black, associate professor of mathematics, discussed teaching ethics in his statistics course, while Lewis Davis reviewed his “Economics of Sin” course. Hal Fried, the David L. and Beverly B. Yunich Professor of Business Ethics, gave an overview of the initial grant to the Economics Department for the Union ethics initiative. Robert Baker, the William D. Williams Professor of Philosophy, gave the introduction at the conference. Ashraf Ghaly, professor of engineering, delivered a talk, “The Collision between Cultural Norms and Engineering Ethics in the Age of Globalization,” which he was invited to submit for publication in “Teaching Ethics.”    

Prism, the monthly magazine of the Amercian Society for Engineering Education, includes comments from Cherrice Traver, dean of engineering, in its cover story on how some colleges have integrated engineering into the liberal arts curriculum.  "Polymers to Poetry,"  highlights the national symposium hosted by Union last spring, "Engineering and Liberal Education.” To view the article, click here.