News for the Smith College Community // March 4, 1999
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What Tariro Makadzange '97 learned from her Smith professors and peers and from what she calls "the achievements of Smithies before us who have done amazing things" did much to get her where she is today: completing her first year at Harvard Medical School and preparing to go to Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar. Makadzange says that the accomplishments of Smith alumnae were a particular inspiration in that they "compel you to do likewise, and you feel that there is a whole world of opportunities out there if you work hard, enjoy what you're doing and don't let any setbacks get you down." Makadzange, who is from Zimbabwe, will go to Oxford in October to begin three years of studying tropical medicine. "So many diseases that tend to affect Africans living in a tropical climate are not as well studied as they could be," she says, "especially by physicians with both the practical clinical skills and the scientific skills to ask the appropriate questions and use the appropriate tools to tackle those questions." Makadzange is particularly interested in undertaking research on HIV/AIDS. After her time at Oxford she will go back to Harvard to complete medical school and her residency training before returning to Zimbabwe. Asked to name her greatest influences at Smith, Makadzange praises her adviser, biology professor Stylianos Scordilis, as "a brilliant man and very encouraging." He persuaded her to apply to the Johns Hopkins and Harvard medical schools although, she admits, "I never thought I'd get in." For his part, Scordilis sees Makadzange as "very focused, with an abiding, deep-seated belief that what she is doing will help her country." Hesitant to mention too many other influences for fear of leaving someone out, Makadzange says that among her other great teachers and role models were physics professors Malgorzata Pfabé and Piotr Decowski and Margaret Anderson and Richard Olivo of biological sciences. She also recalls that Samuel Black at the University of Massachusetts, with whom she did a special studies in parisitology, "had such great passion for research that it was infectious." Makadzange is the second Smith alumna to receive a Rhodes Scholarship. Angela Lwiindi Leila Hassan '94 of Zambia is currently studying development economics at Oxford on a Rhodes that she was awarded two years ago. The Rhodes Scholarship, initiated in 1902, is the oldest international fellowship. It provides generous financial support for two years of study, sometimes renewable for a third year, at Oxford. Recipients are expected to present both an outstanding academic record and evidence of significant potential for leadership and accomplishment.
Fees Approved by Trustees Along with approving the establishment of the college's new engineering program (reported in last week's AcaMedia) at its meeting on February 19-20, the Smith College Board of Trustees approved the comprehensive fee for 1999-2000 and took action on a number of other matters. The board voted to raise the comprehensive fee for next year by 3.5 percent to $30,442, which includes $22,440 for tuition, $7,820 for room and board and a projected $182 student activities fee. In other actions, the board:
Administrators Get Veep Titles President Ruth J. Simmons has announced that two vice presidents have been named at Smith College. Effective March 1, Ruth Constantine, chief financial officer and treasurer will become vice president for finance and administration, and Karin George, the college's new chief advancement officer, will hold the additional title of vice president for development. Citing the importance and complexity of finance and advancement in the operation of the college, Simmons indicated that in many peer institutions, both the chief financial officer and the chief advancement officer hold the title of vice president. She said that the titles do not suggest a change in the scope of either position but are meant to reflect the more prevalent terms for both positions. Because some had expressed concern about the confusion such a change might create as to the college's institutional priorities, the president emphasized that the provost remains the senior administrative officer next to the president, and, as chief academic officer, he serves as acting president in the president's absence. Constantine came to Smith in 1991 from Cornell University where she was director of administration at the College of Human Ecology. At Smith she is responsible for finances, human resources and facilities management and oversees the botanic garden, residence and dining services and public safety. George, a 1986 Smith graduate, was named CAO after a search that followed the departure last summer of former Chief Advancement Officer, Carey Bloomfield. George started at Smith on March 1. She came here from Vassar College where, as vice president for development, she directed the "Campaign for Vassar College," which, with more than a year to run, has already raised nearly $206 million. Back to top of page Fund Drive to Help Children Ten-year-old Elena functions every day as an interpreter, a nurse and caregiver. Her mother is infected with HIV. Elena's life is regimented by her mother's increasing needs, medical procedures and the constant pressure of holding her family together amid the disease's deadly onslaught. Friends wonder why she rushes straight home after school and avoids talking about her family. But Elena doesn't tell anyone about her mother's illness. This year the SOS fund drive, which continues through March 25, will benefit children like Elena by raising money for local agencies that serve children with HIV and of HIV-infected caregivers. Funds will go to programs that aim to reduce children's isolation and provide a supportive network. Often such programs coordinate ice-skating, play therapy, parties and similar activities that help children like Elena by offering outlets to discuss their problems and emotions. Children like Elena, whose family members or caregivers are infected with HIV, are growing in numbers. Local experts say in Western Massachusetts there are 800 men, women, and children with HIV, a disease that can lead to AIDS. Last fall the SOS board chose Children Touched by HIV/AIDS as the focus of its drive. The fund drive's success hinges in part on the efforts of SOS's 38 house representatives who request donations from the Smith community. Also, as student liaisons, representatives distribute information, set house goals, accept and record donations, keep track of progress and inform their housemates about the cause. SOS has conducted an annual fund drive for more than 30 years for causes like hunger, women's health, and homelessness. Last year the Smith community raised $1,700 to help combat illiteracy in our area. Donations may be sent to the SOS office in the Helen Hills Hills Chapel. Prizes will be awarded to houses with the greatest participation rates and the most generous individual donors.
Unno to Give Engel Lecture Taitetsu Unno, Jill Ker Conway Professor Emeritus of Religion and East Asian Studies, will give the 41st annual Katharine Asher Engel Lecture, "Space as Metaphor: Evolution of the Stupa from India to Japan," at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, March 9, in Wright Hall auditorium. Unno, who has spent part of this semester at the Buddhist Study Center in Honolulu, began his Smith career in 1971 as professor of world religions and director of the Ada Howe Kent Program, which funds lectures, symposia, workshops and other projects that focus on world religions and cultures. Unno was appointed to the Conway professorship in 1988. He was educated at the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of Tokyo, where he received a Ph.D. in Buddhist studies. The author of a number of books, monographs and translations, Unno's most recent book, Path Through Fire and Water: The Pure Land Tradition of Shin Buddhism, was published last year by Doubleday. During his lecture, Unno will discuss the stupa, "huge mounds containing the relics of the historical Buddha, which gave rise later to miniature, votive stupa and to the five-tiered tombstone stupa found in East Asia." The five tiers symbolize earth, water, fire, air and space, Unno explains. The lecture will explore the significance of "space" that crowns the five-tiered stupa. Last fall, Unno's faculty colleagues sponsored several events, including lectures and exhibits, marking his retirement from Smith after nearly 28 years on the faculty. The Engel lecture is granted annually to a Smith College faculty member who has made a significant contribution to his or her field. A reception in Wright Hall common room will follow the lecture.
Curtain's Up on Zimet & Co. Chaos reigned on stage during Tilt, a musical production presented last month at New York's La MaMa E.T.C. theater by Talking Band, a contemporary theater company co-founded by Paul Zimet, associate professor of theater and the company's artistic director. The play, which ran through February 14 at the Greenwich Village theater that specializes in contemporary works, attempted to bring order to the chaos through music, language and movement with the help of several Smith-affiliated performing artists. Tilt was written and composed by Zimet's wife, Ellen Maddow, who next year will be a visiting fellow with the Kahn Liberal Arts Institute's year-long symposium on Galileo Galilei. Both Zimet and Maddow, who are collaborating on a musical stage production that will provide the culmination of next year's Kahn symposium, performed in the play. It was directed by Will Pomerantz. During the musical production street sounds, ringing phones and two roving, on-stage musicians compete with a frenetic dialogue between two long-time business partners who have contrasting approaches to gaining control over their hectic lives. Ziggy (Zimet) is all science and natural order, nothing left up to mysticism. His cohort Flo (played by Tina Shepard, a lecturer in the theater department) is intuition and gut feeling, seeking to define life's forces metaphysically. Ultimately, a sort of order comes about on stage and for an implied brief period in the principals' lives, but not one so definitive as to eliminate the certainty that entropy will return. Of the play, New York Times reviewer D.J.R. Bruckner wrote that "the impression of chaos is so pervasive that, when the last scene reveals how neatly constructed this odd little play is, the revelation comes as a surprise that extorts laughter. In Tilt, [Maddow] outdoes herself; her imagination has been consorting with Mozart and Haydn." Talking Band's production of Tilt also featured performances by Elizabeth Alfred '00, who was assistant stage manager; Julia Baldassari-Litchman '99, assistant director; and Zimet's and Maddow's son, Isaac, who played Mop, a doll-like symbolic presence in the play. The Talking Band, which was founded in 1974 by Zimet, Maddow and Shepard, celebrates its 25th season this year. The company, which has created and presented 30 theater productions since its inception, has garnered several theater awards and toured Europe, South America and extensively in the United States.
Campus Center Ideas Sought Members of the Campus Center Programming Committee are fanning out over the campus to sample student, faculty and staff opinions about the kinds of spaces and activities that should be included in the long-discussed, eagerly awaited campus center. Groundbreaking for the campus center, slated for a site adjacent to John M. Greene Hall, is expected in the late spring of 2000, but first Dean of the College Maureen Mahoney and her planning committee want to be sure they have a fix on what the community envisions for the center. They have already gathered ideas that range from the obvious -- creative dining options and comfortable lounge space -- to the less obvious -- a fireplace and changing tables in restrooms. In an attempt to be exhaustive in its research, on Tuesday, March 9, the committee will add a survey to its Web site, www.smith.edu/campus center. All members of the community are invited to participate in this short Q&A or to send more extensive communications to the committee at its email address: ccpc@smith.edu. Do you think the mail room, a bookstore, an ATM or pool tables should be available in the new campus center? Do you want a coffee house, a bistro or health food? Would you like to sit outdoors on a patio or inside on pillowed window seats? Do you have even better ideas? Tell CCPC. Back to top of page
Board Approves Faculty Promotions By vote of the board of trustees at its recent meeting the following tenure and promotion actions were taken: John Davis, Priscilla Van der Poel Associate Professor of Art, and Elliot Fratkin, associate professor of anthropology, received tenure; Rodger Blum, dance, Margaret Sarkissian, music, and Nancy Whittier, sociology, were promoted to associate professor with tenure; Maki Hubbard, East Asian languages & literature, was promoted to associate professor; J. Patrick Coby, government, Donald Joralemon, anthropology, Ann Leone, French language and literature, and Richard Millington, English language and literature, were promoted to professor; and Jennifer Klein, history, was recommended for promotion to assistant professor conditional upon the completion of the requirements for the doctorate by September 1, 1999. Catherine Nye of the Smith School for Social Work faculty was promoted from assistant professor to associate professor.
Library Director Moves On Come April, Sarah Pritchard, director of libraries, will leave Smith to head the 2.5 million-volume library at the University of California at Santa Barbara. "I have mixed feelings," Pritchard says about leaving Smith, citing significant progress in the seven years she has been here in virtually every area of the Smith libraries -- from electronic information to "really putting our rare books and manuscripts on the map. Everything is working very well." But, she says the move to UCSB "is also very exciting for me." Pritchard, who came to Smith in 1992 from the Association of Research Libraries, says she is enthusiastic about returning to the research library community, familiar people in the UC consortium and interesting new projects in a state that is just emerging from financial retrenchment. UCSB Chancellor Henry Yang in announcing Pritchard's appointment, said she "will bring such rich experience and balanced perspective to lead our world-class library into the future." Pritchard previously served at the Library of Congress as a reference librarian, specialist in women's studies and head of the microform reading room section in the general reading rooms division. A graduate of the University of Maryland, she completed master's degrees in both French and library science at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. Among her honors are the 1997 American Library Association's Equality Award recognizing individuals who promote equality between men and women in the library profession. The same year Pritchard was named alumna of the year by the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Library and Information Studies Alumni Association. The citation accompanying the alumni award described Pritchard as "an innovator and leader. Her bibliographic and reference work in support of emergent feminist scholarship were pioneering efforts in the field."
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Another "Word!" This year's "Word!," the Five College festival of staged readings written and performed by students, will be hosted by Mount Holyoke's Department of Theater on March 9 and 10. Five different scripts will be presented on each evening in Rooke Theater, Mount Holyoke, at 8 p.m. Students whose works have been selected to be staged will receive a $100 honorarium from the Five College James Baldwin Memorial Fund. "Word!" is sponsored by the Five College Multicultural Theater Committee and the Five College Multicultural Theater chairs. The winners of this year's awards are listed below with the dates when their scripts will be performed. Smith College students who won this year's awards -- and the dates when their scripts will be performed -- are Ruchika Mandhyan '99 and Iami S. Badu '99 on March 9 and Shannon Sickels '99, Margaret Bruchac '99 and Olga Vaquer de Samalot '99, on March 10. Of the 10 scripts selected for performance, five were written by Smith students. Chapel Hiatus There will be no Ecumenical Christian Church morning worship service on the spring-break Sundays, March 14 and 21. Services will resume on Palm Sunday, March 28, at 10:45 a.m. There will be no Roman Catholic Eucharistic liturgy at the Chapel on Sundays, March 14 and 21. Summer Employment Smith College will have job openings this summer in building services, residence and dining services, the botanic garden and the grounds and rental-properties departments. All positions are full-time, Monday through Friday, with various shifts available. To be eligible, applicants must be Smith students or dependents of Smith faculty or staff members. All applicants must be at least 16 years old by June 14, returning to school full time in the fall and available to work through August 27 (though some work is available after that date). Applications are available through March 26 at 30 Belmont, the Neilson circulation desk, the college club and the front desk at physical plant. Completed applications must be submitted at 30 Belmont by 4:30 p.m. on March 26. Hiring priority will be given to returning workers from last summer, then to college-age dependents and Smith students, and finally to high schoolage dependents. A waiting list will be started for applicants who are not placed initially. (Mark Carmien, ext. 2288; mcarmien@jessie.smith.edu.) Faculty & Staff Kyoto Faculty Fellowships Information is now available for the Associated Kyoto Program (AKP) Faculty Fellowship competition for the academic year 2000-2001. Smith College is one of 15 member colleges of the AKP consortium, a study-in-Japan program located at Doshisha University in Kyoto, Japan. Faculty fellows teach one course in English to undergraduate students from the participating U.S. colleges in either fall or spring semester. Course content may focus exclusively on Japan, or may involve Japan in a comparative context, as appropriate to the fellow's preferences and academic training. Fellows are also expected to pursue a program of research or study in Kyoto designed to enhance his or her professional development. Applicants may be Japan specialists or non-specialists who wish to increase the quality and extent of the Japan component in courses they teach at their home institution. The fellows are provided with a $17,000 semester stipend and a housing subsidy to cover rent and part of utility costs. For more information, contact Smith AKP representative Thomas Rohlich, ext. 3441 or trohlich@sophia.smith.edu. Deadline for applications for the 20002001 fellowships is June 1. Faculty Meeting There will be a regular meeting of the faculty at the Alumnae House on Wednesday, March 24, at 4:10 p.m. Anyone with business for the meeting should notify Rosetta Cohen in writing no later than Wednesday, March 17. Material to be included in the mailing with the agenda must be camera-ready and submitted to College Hall 27 by Monday, March 15. HR Deadline Completed performance appraisals are due in the Office of Human Resources by Wednesday, March 31. If special circumstances require an extension, please contact Addie Cain, ext. 2287, or Gaynelle Weiss, ext. 2286. The appraisal forms are also available on disk. Please call Erika Subocz, ext. 2267, if you prefer this method. Students Mingus Tickets The Fine Arts Council is offering 10 tickets at $9 each for Smith students wishing to attend the Mingus Big Band concert at the UMass Concert Hall at 8 p.m. on Saturday, March 27. The 14-piece ensemble celebrates the music of the late, great composer and bassist Charles Mingus and tours extensively in Europe and the U.S. under the direction of Sue Mingus. Tickets are on sale at the SGA Office, Clark Hall, and are subsidized by the Smith College Fine Arts Council. Preludes Leaders Applications for leadership positions in the Preludes '99 pre-orientation program will be available March 8 in the mailroom, outside College Hall 24, or from any Prelude Planning Committee member. Preludes Leaders' responsibilities include returning to campus several days early and introducing new students to Smith in a fun, relaxed setting. Informational sessions about the program will be held in Seelye 202 on March 10 at 7 p.m. and March 11 at 5 p.m. Questions: Abigail, ext. 4540, or Erin, ext. 7510. Application deadline: March 24, 4 p.m. |
Textbook Returns The Grécourt Bookshop is now returning all unsold textbooks to the publishers. If you haven't purchased all of your books, please do so as soon as possible. Information Distribution As part of a National Day of Appreciation for Abortion Providers, postcards honoring abortion providers and information about abortion legislation and recent barriers to access to abortion services will be distributed Wednesday, March 10, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the mailroom. Cycles Survey Reminder to all students asked to participate in the Cycles survey: Please complete your survey. It's one of your best chances to make your opinions heard. Instructions were included on your survey form, but if you have questions or need another form, please call the Office of Institutional Research, ext. 3021. Vacation Housing All students who wish to remain in campus housing during spring break-Saturday, March 13, through Sunday, March 21-must complete a vacation housing request form in the Office of Student Affairs, College Hall 24, no later than 4 p.m., Monday, March 8. The following houses will remain open during the break: Albright, Chase, Cutter, Dawes, Duckett, Friedman, Gillett, Lamont, Lawrence, Morris, Northrop, Talbot, Tenney, Ziskind and 150 Elm. Students residing in non-vacation houses who wish to stay for the vacation must make arrangements with students in open houses to stay in their rooms and obtain their room key. A $25 fee will be charged for spring-break housing, $15 of which will be nonrefundable and help cover the cost of housekeeping. All students residing in vacation housing will be issued a vacation key, available in the Office of Student Affairs on Wednesday and Thursday, March 10 and 11, during regular office hours. The remaining $10 deposit will be refunded pending return of the key to the Business Office, College Hall 05, by 4 p.m. on Friday, March 26. (Ext. 4940.) Denis Johnston Prize The annual Denis Johnston Prize for Creative Writing in the Dramatic Media is awarded jointly by the Smith College departments of English and theatre to a current Five College undergraduate. Any unpublished manuscripts of any length may be submitted to the Denis Johnston Prize Committee, Theatre Building T205, Smith College. Please submit three copies of each manuscript to be considered, along with an envelope addressed to a return destination appropriate after June 1. Submission deadline: April 1. Jordan Prize The Barbara Jordan Prize was established in 1989 to encourage African-American women to undertake careers in law and public policy, after the example of Texas Congresswoman Barbara Jordan (1936-1996). Students and alumnae can compete, provided they have at least applied for admission to a law school or a graduate program in public policy. The prize funds may be used to help prepare for admission (e.g., for LSAT coaching, for application costs, internships, travel to interviews) or they may be applied toward academic loan-forgiveness. The funds may also be held for later use to help meet the costs of tuition and books. Applicants should submit evidence they have been or are likely to be accepted into a school of law or a graduate program of public policy, along with a statement of professional intentions and career plans and two letters of recommendation. Applications will be reviewed by former recipients of the prize or by other alumnae already active in law and or public policy. All materials must be submitted to Sue Briggs, College Hall 21, by 4 p.m. on April 9. Burres Prize This award was established in 1985 by family and friends of Attorney Burres, who in his lifetime encouraged the entry of women into the legal profession. The prize, to be used toward first-year tuition, is awarded annually to a graduating senior or an alumnae who has been accepted to law school (entrance may be deferred; the prize will be held until needed). Preference is given to students aspiring to practice law in the public interest rather than for private gain, in memory of Attorney Burres's work for the disenfranchised and in the area of civil liberties. Need is a factor, but the prize is not restricted to students on financial aid. Applicants should submit a statement of professional intentions, along with a statement of where they have been accepted for law school and whether they will be receiving financial aid, and two letters of reference. All materials must be submitted to Sue Briggs, College Hall 21, by 4 p.m. on April 16. Tuttle Prize The Ruth Dietrich Tuttle '09 Prize was established in 1985 as an award for achievement and for plans for further study, work or research in the areas of international relations, peace studies or race relations. The prize is for use during the present 1998-99 academic year or the next academic year (1999-2000). Smith undergraduate students of any nationality who have done substantial academic work or have had relevant experience in any of these areas are eligible. Preference is given to seniors, who are eligible as long as they haven't enrolled in graduate school. Applications are available in the Office of the Dean of the College, College Hall 21, and must be filed by 4 p.m. on April 16. |
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AcaMedia staff: Ann Shanahan, co-editor; Cathy Brooks, layout; Mary Stanton, calendar/notices; Eric Sean Weld, co-editor
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