Posted on Dec 22, 2009

Ethics bowl wins

The end of fall term ended on a high note for members of the Union College Ethics Bowl Team, who emerged victorious in the Northeast Regional Ethics Bowl.

With 18 teams representing 12 colleges and universities at the regional, Union won its semifinal round against regional host Marist College and defeated Dartmouth in the final round. As a result, the Union team will compete in the Intercollegiate Ethics Bowl National Championship in Cincinnati in March.

“Our students are confronting a rich variety of issues and developing moral arguments that draw on a wide range of disciplines,” said the team’s advisor, Mark Wunderlich of the Philosophy Department. “Their success reflects their hard work, dedication and phenomenal ability to collaborate under pressure.”

Team members included Ian Clemente ’10, Lativa Holder ’10, David Kanaan ’10, Hyma Kavuri ’10, Adam Koslin ’10, David Leavitt ’12, Jacob Pet ’12, Ryan Semerad ’13, Benjamin Setel ’13 and Ryan Vineyard ’12. They explored the ethics of such issues as the increasing use by students of neuroenhancers, illegal settlement in Kenyan national parks and the credibility of Internet “news.”

The team is funded by the Internal Education Fund, the Office of the Dean of Studies and the Office of the Dean of Academic Departments. It is sponsored by the Philosophy Department, with faculty members from a cross-section of campus providing perspectives and insight.

“The Ethics Bowl means a lot to all of us,” said Leavitt, an economics major who joined the team as a freshman last year. “We all realize that the moment we step into the debate, everything we do reflects upon ourselves – and on Union. We want to represent Union in the best possible light we can.”      
 

11 embarked on Birthright trip to Israel

Eleven Union students participated in a 10-day trip to Israel in December through Taglit-Birthright Israel: Hillel. Traveling with participants from Dickinson, Elon, Princeton, and Washington and Lee universities, they visited the Dead Sea, Jaffa, Jerusalem, Masada, Mt. Herzl, Tel Aviv, Tiberias, Yad Vashem and other sites and cities.

Taglit-Birthright Israel provides the free gift of first-time, educational trips to Israel with peers for Jewish young adults ages 18 to 26. The gift is funded through private philanthropists, the government of Israel and local Jewish communities around the world.

“The philanthropists who fund this program are fully aware of its short-term positive effect on campus and long- term impact maintaining Jewish identity and values,” said Bonnie Cramer, director of Union College Hillel. “I am grateful that our Hillel will be reaping these benefits.”

Union recently was designated a “Small & Mighty Campus of Excellence” by Hillel International, a distinction that offers a number of resources and privileges. Union’s Taglit-Birthright group, the largest among the Small and Mighty cohort, includes: Alex Antonucci ’12, Jeffrey Brous ’11, Amy Cerini ’12, Rachel Feldman ’12, Andrea Grenadier ’12, Carly Orden ’13, Allison Seiler ’12, Hanna Squire ’12, Stuart Uffner '11, Elyse Van Pelt ’12 and Emily Zehngut ’13.

Social services holiday giving – Kathy McCann program 2009

Holiday giving  

College employees’ generosity helped make the holiday season a little brighter for hundreds of families this past year. Despite an uncertain economy, the Salvation Army’s Angel Tree program was a huge success on campus, just as it has been every year for the last two decades, said Kim Puorto, administrative assistant in the Dean of Students Office. “The Union community always pulls through,” she noted. The program brings toys to area children in need. Campus angels have been giving for more than 15 years.

And a part of an adopt-a-family program with Schenectady Department of Social Services, 101 participants gave gifts, food and household supplies to 57 parents and children. Coordinator Kathy McCann, director of College Relations Data Systems, said, “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.  
 

College mourns Pilcher's passing  

Valter Ennis Pilcher Jr., professor of physics emeritus and author of a comprehensive history of early science at Union, died Dec. 20 at his home in the Glen Eddy in Niskayuna. He was 84. Pilcher specialized in nuclear physics, doing doctoral research at Brookhaven National Laboratory, where he later worked two years as a staff physicist. He joined the Union Physics Department in 1956, teaching and working with students and colleagues over the next 30 years. A memorial service will be held on Saturday, Feb. 6, 2 p.m., at the First Unitarian Society at 1221 Wendell Avenue, Schenectady. For more about Pilcher, click here.