Posted on Dec 19, 2005

Cellist David Finckel and pianist Wu Han, perennial favorites among Union classical music lovers, return to Memorial Chapel at 3 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 8, as part of the College's 2005-2006 Chamber Concert Series.

The popular duo's 14th series appearance will include The Two Cello Sonatas by Brahms and Bach's Italian Concerto and Gamba Sonata.

Over the years, their recitals have featured a growing number of works written specifically for their exceptional talents, including those by such American composers as Bruce Adolphe and Augusta Read Thomas. 

Finckel and Han are ranked among the most esteemed and influential classical musicians in the world today.

Their wide-ranging repertoire includes equal emphasis on the classics as well as pieces by contemporary composers. They have performed significant works by leading 20th-century composers including Prokofiev, Britten, Alfred Schnittke and Andre Previn.

Their international engagements have taken them to Mexico, Canada, the Far East, Scandinavia and continental Europe to unanimous critical acclaim.

Highlights from recent seasons include their debuts in Germany and at Finland's Kuhmo Festival, their presentation of the complete Beethoven cycle in Tokyo and their signature all-Russian program at London's Wigmore Hall.

Tickets are $25 for the general public and $12.50 for students, at the door one hour before the performance or available at the College Facilities Building.

For more information, call 388-6080 or call 372-3651, or visit the Union College Web site at www.union.edu.

Posted on Dec 19, 2005

The holidays will shine brighter for dozens of local children and adults in need this winter, thanks to an outpouring of thoughtful, beautifully wrapped gifts from the Union community.

Kathleen D. McCann, director of College Relations Data Systems, expanded her department's informal tradition of sponsoring people through the Schenectady County Department of Social Services.

“I can tell you first hand how appreciative the recipients are, and how excited the donors are, so this year I thought others on campus might want to participate, too,” McCann said.

Seventy Union staffers pitched in with gift bags, cards, food and more. Gifts ranged from Spiderman sheets, Dora the Explorer toys, books and a dollhouse to hats and gloves; even a toaster popped up in one package.

“Everyone was very generous,” McCann said. “One person literally had to drag her gift package into our office, as it was just bursting with stuff.”

Participants also enjoyed the opportunity to involve their children as a lesson in sharing and giving.

“In our family, my three-year-old's the official gift wrapper,” McCann notes.

Helping McCann with the gift-giving effort were Records Coordinators Erin Adams, Nancy Beekman, Rita Damiano, Wendy Duff, Nanette Krantze, Mary Lyford, Tonya Martinez-Hilton and Marilyn Tommasone.

Posted on Dec 19, 2005

SCHENECTADY — ReUnion 2005 — Union College's annual alumni weekend, which brought together more than 1,000 former students this year — won special recognition from the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education.

The District II Accolades Awards lauded the program with a “silver award” that will be presented to the college's Office of Alumni Relations at the council's annual conference in Pittsburgh in February.

“This is a wonderful recognition for the college and our ReUnion programming,” said Nick Famulare, class of 1992, director of alumni relations, in a statement. “But more importantly, it is a testament to the hard work of our many alumni volunteers who make ReUnion so special.”

Nearly 1,500 alumni attended ReUnion 2005 in May. About 40 percent of the 50th ReUnion class attended for events that ranged from a medallion ceremony to a handshake with members of the graduating class. Thirty-five percent of attendees were graduates of the last decade. Total giving from classes was nearly $3 million, with a participation rate of 43 percent.

The entry for the awards program was prepared by Betsy Seplowitz, class of 1996, associate director of alumni relations, who directs the ReUnion programming.

Plans are already in the works for next year's event, slated for May 18-21. The weekend will include a golf outing, foot race, medallion ceremony, class photographs, alumni parade, family picnic and other activities.

Posted on Dec 19, 2005

Demolition workers began taking down the Big N Plaza on Nott Street Thursday, nearly 30 years after its namesake closed.

The building, a symbol of Schenectady blight, is making way for a new $20 million development to include the YMCA and the Graduate College of Union University.

“This is a great day for Schenectady,” Mayor Brian U. Stratton said. “This is the realization of a dream for me personally and a great addition to the community.”

Demolition and cleanup is expected to take 45 days at a cost of about $450,000, officials have said. Syracuse-based Bianchi Industrial Services is performing the demolition. Construction on both the college and YMCA buildings is targeted to begin in the spring, taking about 12 months, Metroplex Development Authority Chairman Ray Gillen said. The Graduate College of Union University is to lease a 36,000-square-foot $8 million building from the Galesi Group. The YMCA signed onto the project last year.

The new site will shed the Big N moniker in favor of the new designation College Park.

The site has held the Big N name for more than 40 years. The Big N department store chain went on a building boom in the early 1960s, constructing department stores and groceries in Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Schenectady in 1962 and 1963, according to newspaper accounts.

Construction on the 68,000-square-foot Neisner Big N Discount House was to begin just after Labor Day 1962 on the former ALCO Products property at Maxon Road and Nott Street.

But the Big N was short-lived. It was closed by 1978, not 15 years after it opened.

The building remained, with successive tenants since, most recently the Ellis Hospital School of Nursing. The school finally moved out in summer 2004.

Over the years there were several proposals to redevelop the site. A 1983 proposal had an outlet mall going in, a spokesman then called it “definitely not a flea market.” An extensive arcade amusement area with 30 or more new game machines was also slated. The building and parking lot gradually fell into disrepair. But a small, faded Big N Restaurant sign on a much larger sign post still beckoned passing motorists. Officials repeatedly ran into environmental problems from its industrial past. The Metroplex Development Authority approved a move Wednesday night making it lead agency in the site's state-mandated environmental reviews. “We're removing a blighted spot in the city and replacing it with a fabulous business park,” Gillen said.

Posted on Dec 15, 2005

Union College in Schenectady has compiled a catalog of mathematics- and science-oriented educational programs available to students in the Albany, N.Y., area.

The compendium was produced in conjunction with a conference on preparing a work force to fill the technology-oriented jobs the region is trying to create through its Tech Valley initiative. The Dec. 6 conference at Schenectady County Community College was moderated by U.S. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton.

The catalog describes 156 programs ranging from college-level courses to “Invention Convention,” a problem-solving competition offered locally for elementary and middle-school students through the Schenectady Museum.

The compendium will be posted starting Thursday, Dec. 15, on the Web site of the Graduate College of Union University, another sponsor of the Dec. 6 conference.

Jon Lemelin, executive director of Union College's U-Start business incubator in Schenectady, said a half-dozen other programs have been identified since the conference. They and others will be added to the catalog, he said.

“We are getting a lot of interest now in follow-up,” he said. “People were very happy with the conference and very happy with the compendium.”

Experts at the conference called for more cooperation between local businesses and schools to better align the educational system with the needs of employers.

The Center for Economic Growth in Albany also offers a Web site that provides profiles of regional technology and service organizations.

Posted on Dec 14, 2005

Union's ReUnion 2005 program has received special recognition from the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE).

CASE will present its District II Accolades Silver Award to the College's Office of Alumni Relations at its annual conference in Pittsburgh, Feb. 5-7. Winning entries will become part of a multimedia showcase event.

“This is a wonderful recognition for the College and our ReUnion programming,” said Nick Famulare '92, director of alumni relations. “More importantly, it is a testament to the hard work of our many alumni volunteers who make ReUnion so special.”

Nearly 1,500 alumni attended the annual alumni gathering last May. About 40 percent of the 50th ReUnion class attended for events ranging from a medallion ceremony to the handshake with members of the graduating class.

Thirty-five percent of attendees graduated in the last decade. Total giving from anniversary classes was nearly $3 million, with a participation rate of 43 percent.

The CASE awards entry was prepared by Betsy Seplowitz '96, associate director of alumni relations, who directs ReUnion programming. “Betsy has done a terrific job with ReUnion, and she represented the effort well in the entry to CASE,” Famulare said.

Plans are under way for ReUnion 2006, set for May 18-21. Alums can look forward to another full slate of activities, including a golf outing, foot race, medallion ceremony, class photographs, alumni parade and family picnic.