News for the Smith College Community // December 3, 1998

NewsPeople NewsArchive

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Students to Witness Haiti's Agony

During three trips to Haiti during the past year, Melinda Miles '98 has seen poverty and squalid living conditions that rank among the worst in the Western Hemisphere. In Port-au-Prince, the Caribbean island nation's capital, shantytowns are built on garbage dumps, open sewer canals have been out of service for years and many dwellings are patchworks of cardboard, scrap tin and aluminum.

"The poverty in Port-au-Prince is shocking," says Miles. "The slums are considered the worst in the world."

Since graduating, Miles has traveled to Haiti with Hands Together, a national nonprofit agency whose members assist Haiti's needy by establishing medical clinics and educational centers, building wells and helping farm the fields. Miles volunteered for the agency during her senior year and began working full-time in its Springfield office in May.

This January she'll take between six and eight Five College students, including some from Smith, to Haiti through an agency program called "Experiential Learning" that for seven to 10 days immerses participants in the cultural surroundings and societal struggles of Haiti's inhabitants. "We combine a lot of intense activity with some reflection," she says.

Program participants will visit Cité Soleil, Port-au-Prince's largest slum, and spend time with Haitians there and in the capital's outlying areas. Several students will stay with Haitian families and assist them in their daily work, says Miles. Program participants will pay their own airfare of up to $500 and another $100 for food and lodging in Haiti. According to Miles the agency has not yet decided which of 15 applicants will take part in the program.

Miles looks forward to working with Five College students "because they go back to their campuses and give people a wider, more compassionate world view. We want to get them out of the intellectual realm and into the human realm." Hands Together's programs in Haiti have in the past involved students from Harvard, Princeton and other institutions but, says Miles, "we've never focused on the Five Colleges before and I thought that was a pity."

She hopes participants gain an appreciation for the similarities between people. "I think the most important thing a Smith student can learn is the connectedness of all people," she says. "Then they can direct their lives to addressing that."

Hands Together was founded in 1985 by the Rev. Tom Hagan, O.S.S.S., at Lafayette College in Pennsylvania, to inspire and assist disadvantaged people in Haiti. It opened its Springfield office in 1990. For more information about Hands Together, call (413) 731-7716 or e-mail handstog@aol.com.

 

Low Rate Can Trim Student Loans

Homeowners aren't the only ones who should be giving serious thought to refinancing. For the next 60 days -- applications must be received by January 31, 1999 -- borrowers can refinance outstanding federal student loans at a low 7.46 percent interest rate.

"Time is running out for borrowers to apply to consolidate their federal student loans at this rate," says U.S. Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley. "For most, it will mean lower monthly payments. I strongly urge eligible borrowers to take advantage of this brief window to lower their interest rate and save themselves a considerable amount over the life of their loan."

Kathleen Curry of Smith's financial aid office reports that between 1,100 and 1,200 current Smith students can benefit from this opportunity.

The lower interest rate will save most borrowers at least $50 for every $1,000 of debt over the life of their loans. A typical student borrower at a four-year college, who graduates $13,000 in debt, will save about $700 over a 10-year repayment period. The savings may also be significant for parent borrowers with Direct Plus Loans.

Through January 31 a consolidation loan is available to anyone who is not in school or accepted for enrollment in school and who is making payments on her student loans. It is also available to in-school borrowers who only have direct loans and to parents with Direct Plus Loans. Although the interest rate for consolidation loans is variable and recomputed annually, borrowers who act now can lock in the current interest-rate formula (91-day Treasury bill rate plus 2.3 percentage points) for the life of the loan.

Borrowers interested in this opportunity should apply through the direct loan program. Additional information and applications are available at 1-800-557-7392 or www.ed.gov/DirectLoan/consolid2.html.

 

Browsing Room Set for Changes

After closing for renovations in January and February, the Neilson Library Browsing Room will reopen with improved lighting, a retractable, ceiling-mounted audiovisual screen and a more attractive furniture arrangement. These changes are part of a larger project to refurbish the library's front hall and exhibit areas, which will be rededicated in the spring as the Constance Morrow Morgan '35 Gallery. The Browsing Room, with its valuable objects and heirloom carpet, will be an elegant adjunct to the gallery, observes Sarah Pritchard, director of libraries.

Scheduling guidelines for the Browsing Room have been revised to reduce wear and tear from large events. The room will be available for small lectures, seminars and receptions but will no longer routinely be used for fairs, commercial purposes, performances or large training classes. Library visitors will be welcome to sit, read and converse in the room when it is not otherwise engaged.

The new furniture set-up -- 52 chairs, with sofas and armchairs grouped for casual seating -- will accommodate small audiences. About 100 chairs can be set up for occasional larger lectures. No more than 65 people will be permitted in the room for sit-down meals or events using round tables.

The Browsing Room is available only when the library itself is open, making it off limits for many events held during holidays and intersessions. Event requests for the room will be reviewed by Mary Stanton, college events coordinator, and Pritchard.

 

S.O.S. Brightens Kids' Holidays

Thanks to the efforts of Service Organizations of Smith (S.O.S.), some 50 children in communities around Northampton will have gifts of toys and clothing to unwrap this holiday season. For the third straight year S.O.S. is working with the Hilltown Food Pantry in Ashfield to benefit low- and middle-income families in the western Hampshire County­Plainfield area, says project co-chair Ruth Wilson '01.

Any Smith student can join the gift drive. S.O.S. representatives in each house are encouraging residents to collectively "adopt a child" -- provide him or her with gifts of clothes and toys. "Most of the time their needs are very basic: socks, underwear, a pair of pants," says project co-chair Christina Davis '01. "These gifts are what get some of them through the year."

Wilson says that the standard gift is two toys and two items of clothing for each child registered in the program. Some groups join with others to provide a standard gift. The donors are responsible for delivering the gifts. "If a group of people do this, it comes to only a dollar or two per person," says Davis.

Last year, 50 children registered at the Hilltown Food Pantry in the First Congregational Church in Ashfield to receive donations, noting their clothing sizes and toy requests on the registration form. The Hilltown Food Pantry provides food, clothing, medical and personal supplies to hundreds of area families.

S.O.S. supports and promotes the community-service efforts of some 400 Smith students. Students wanting to take part in the gift drive should contact S.O.S. at extension 2756.


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Job Flexibility Debate Goes On

Were you one of the lucky faculty or staff members who picked up a free, flexible, psychedelic, glow-in-the-dark ruler at the 1998 Benefits Fair? Those collector's items were distributed to publicize www.smith.edu/hr/flexfocus, the Web site that monitors the ongoing work of the ad hoc Committee on Flexibility at Smith. Check the site out and let committee members (whose names are listed there, of course) know what you think of it.

Thanks to all of you who accessed the Web site and entered the ad hoc committee's contest on FlexFocus knowledge. The five randomly selected winners of the contest are David Osepowicz, central services; Carole Grills, sports information; Erika Subocz, human resources; Pat Wheeler, campus operations and facilities; and Kara Dienes, science library. Each winner received a $25 Splurge gift certificate.

The ad hoc committee is still looking for input. Tell committee members what you think or join one of the focus groups meeting on campus. Some of the issues raised in the groups include:

  • Will use of a flexible work schedule interfere with one's upward mobility at the college?
  • Are unions interested in including the issue of flexibility when negotiating contracts?
  • Are some reasons for requesting a flexible work schedule more worthy of consideration than other reasons? (For example, would a need to care for an elderly parent be deemed more worthy than a request to have more time to write, paint or exercise?)

Do you have questions about flexibility you would like to see explored? It's not too late to have your voice heard or e-mail message read. Call Sid Dalby, chair of the Subcommittee on Communications, at extension 3090 or write to flexfocus@jessie.smith.edu.

 

Cot Shelter Gets Aid from Smith

Smith students and staff have begun raising money, encouraging volunteerism and gathering socks for Northampton's Interfaith Community Cot Shelter.

The "One Dollar: No More, No Less" fund-raising campaign, spearheaded by students Liz Titus '99 and Tanna Engebretsen '00J as part of an internship for a psychology seminar, continues through December 11. They have received permission to set up collection tables for two days in College Hall and in the Smith College Club. (Donors who favor checks over cash should write checks to "Interfaith Community Cot Shelter" and send them to Titus at campus box 8934.) Titus and Engebretsen hope to raise at least $2,000 of the shelter's $20,000 goal to help pay for rent, utilities and basic supplies.

Beyond money, the shelter's most pressing challenge is to assemble a volunteer cadre to sustain the program through April. Four-person evening/dinner teams are largely in place but occasional substitutes and overnight assistants are needed to help staffers, wake shelter guests at 6 a.m., set out breakfast and get guests to help with vacuuming and general cleaning. To volunteer, call Cynthia Di Geronimo at extension 3003.

In a related effort, Staff Council is collecting new, thick men's socks for the cot program. Collection boxes are being placed in College Hall, Lilly Hall, Wright Hall, the Alumnae House, the Jacobson Center and elsewhere on campus.

 

Campus Center Planning Begins

Having last year approved the construction of a campus center at a site near John M. Greene Hall, the Smith College Board of Trustees recently moved the long-awaited building yet closer to reality by approving an architectural firm, Weiss/Manfredi, for the project.

The center is progressing on other fronts as well. Dean of the College Maureen Mahoney said last month in a letter to students that she is assembling a programming committee to "consider important issues such as what spaces should be included in our campus center ... and advise the architects as they begin the work of realizing a design." The committee will include several students as well as faculty and staff, and open meetings will be held for students and others to express design ideas and preferences.

Mahoney says that such careful consultation with the campus community makes her feel "confident that we will invent a warm, inviting, informal space that will be a gathering place, a point of fun and relaxation and a 'front door' to the campus for visitors and guests."

Marion Weiss and Michael Manfredi have done important renovations at Columbia University and other projects elsewhere but are perhaps best known for the Women's Memorial and Education Center at Arlington National Cemetery, completed in October 1997.

 

Article Offers a 1910 Look at Smith's Origins

It was not uncommon in the old days -- when there were more newspapers, and fewer topics considered worthy of coverage in them -- to see Smith College regularly claiming a prominent place in the pages of major East Coast dailies. Take, for example, a story unearthed recently by a friend in the course of doing research on another subject: two full columns in the June 12, 1910, issue of The Sun, a highly regarded New York newspaper, about the retirement of L. Clark Seelye as Smith's first president and his role in the college's early years.

The story commends Seelye for initiating "a novel experiment when in 1875 he organized Smith College to teach the higher branches of learning to women. Only fourteen girls could pass Smith's original entrance examination."

The article recounts that "Dr. Seelye's plans encountered some prejudice. The agent who tried soliciting funds gave up after six months of failure to get any backing." Skepticism seems to have abounded: a physician is quoted as having told Seelye, "I fear you will soon have a lot of invalids on your hands," and one Rev. Dr. Leonard Bacon is said to have claimed, "I hear you have a case of brain fever every week in your effort to make women know as much as men."

Yet, claims The Sun, health and sanity prevailed: "The prompt introduction of [a] gymnasium and bowling alleys, with early hours and the simple life, produced a wholesome appearance among the students which was not suggestive of much business for the doctors."

Of the administration's early ambitions, we learn that "confronted thus by obstacles, the founders never expected more than 200 pupils; yet today there are 1,635."

The Sun goes on to describe how the college was run: "'Our system of government,' says a Smith professor,' is like the British Constitution. It is a thing of precedents, traditions and contradictions. When I taught in another college they had my previous opinions all in writing and tabulated and if I said anything different, they at once went into the file and confronted me with the inconsistency. Here we decide by word of mouth. Dr. Seelye dislikes constitutions and by-laws.'"

Note is made of student behavior: "'The same rules that hold in good society' used to be President Seelye's reply when any one wanted to know what the regulations as to general conduct were. This seemed indefinite, but the president has never been strong on codes and he liked to deal with each case individually. It used to be said that the only rule was 'Lights out at 10.' 'Of late years,' says a professor, 'since we have taken in some that have not learned how to behave in civilized society, we have had to draft a few regulations.'"

And finally, the article addresses money matters, noting that the college's income "was much increased at one time by a voluntary ten years' agreement of the faculty, who undertook for that period to remain content with the then existing salaries and with the size of the teaching force."


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SportsNews


Squash
November 19: Smith 6, Mount Holyoke 3
November 20:
Smith 0, Harvard 9
Smith 0, Brown 9
 
Swimming & Diving
November 21: Smith 153, Wheaton 146
 
Basketball
November 21: Smith 62, Amherst 49
November 23: Smith 58, Union 67
 

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People News

After a wait of more than four years, Ed Ferguson, a lecturer on African history in the Afro-American studies department, has finally seen 6,000 scholarly books from his personal collection shipped off to the Africa Research Library in Zanzibar, to which he has donated them. Ferguson, who has taught at the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of Tanzania, Dar es Salaam, decided to make the donation in 1994, when he and his wife, Ann Ferguson, assistant professor of African-American studies and of women's studies, were moving to Northampton from California. Getting the books to Zanzibar, an island off the coast of Tanzania, proved difficult, however. While the collection sat in a dockside warehouse in San Francisco, several West Coast institutions added books and computer equipment to the gift, which grew to include more than 10,000 volumes.

Ferguson was philosophical about the four-year delay. "They're accustomed to waiting in Africa," he said in an October 23 interview with the San Francisco Chronicle. "I can get accustomed to waiting, too." Finally last month, thanks to services donated by the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, the Maritime Union and the shipping companies American President Lines and Columbus Lines, the books made the 10,000-mile trip via Australia, Mombasa and Kenya. "This is a very unusual act of solidarity," Ferguson told The Dispatcher, a San Francisco monthly, in describing the combined effort. "So many people have called from both continents asking how did we do it."

*

At a White House ceremony on November 5, Diana L. Eck '67, professor of comparative religion and Indian studies at Harvard University Divinity School, was one of nine scholars who received 1998 National Humanities Medals for contributions to the liberal arts. Eck is the creator and director of the Harvard-based Pluralism Project, which documents and analyzes America's religious diversity and produced an acclaimed CD-ROM widely used in the study of the role of religion in American culture. Other medal recipients were Nancye Brown, founder of Motheread, a program that encourages and improves the learning and reading skills of parents and their children; social and cultural critic and Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr.; Carnegie Corporation President Vartan Gregorian; historians Eduardo Ruiz, Arthur Schlesinger Jr. and Stephen Ambrose; and authors Garry Wills and E.L. Doctorow.

In November four students -- junior Layla Rivera and seniors Marie McCarthy, Lia Thomas and Shawna Annand -- joined Stefan Bodnarenko, assistant professor in the psychology department and neuroscience program, in attending the 28th annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience in Los Angeles. The meetings provide a forum for rigorous scientific scrutiny and feature the latest findings about the brain from research laboratories around the world. Bodnarenko reports that the Smith group's presentation, "The Role of N-Methyl-D-Aspartate Receptor Mediated Activity in the Development of On and Off Retinal Ganglion Cell Morphology," was well received.

*

Ruth Simmons, president, has been inducted as an honorary member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, the first Greek-letter organization in the U.S. for college-educated black women. The sorority was founded at Howard University in 1908 as a service organization. Its honorary members have also included Marian Anderson, Ella Fitzgerald, Mae Jemison, Coretta Scott King, Toni Morrison, Eleanor Roosevelt and Ntozake Shange.

*

Ruth Solie, Sophia Smith Professor of Music, has assumed the presidency of the American Musicological Society, the principal learned society for music history and criticism. Many music theorists and ethnomusicologists also belong to AMS. The society supports scholarly exchange through meetings and publications, awards prizes for exemplary work and raises funds for dissertaion fellowships for students in the field.

*

An anthology, The Best Spiritual Writing 1998, edited by Philip Zaleski, professor of religion, was the number-one nonfiction paperback on the Independent Booksellers bestseller list in mid-November at the same time that his book, Gifts of the Spirit, was published in a paperback edition. Zaleski reviewed Gregg Easterbrook's Beside Still Waters: Searching for Meaning in an Age of Doubt in the October 11 New York Times Book Review.

*

Richard White, professor of astronomy, appeared twice during November in a series of Channel 22 news stories on the greenhouse effect and global warming.


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Calendar Key

Sources of further information, if any, are shown in parentheses at the end of event descriptions. An asterisk following a listing indicates that the event is open to the public. Admission charges, if any, are listed when known. Items for this section must be submitted on Event Service Request Forms.

Monday, December 7
 
Lectures/Symposia
"Are History and Literature Strangers or Bedfellows?" Ruth Klüger, William Allen Neilson Professor in German Studies. 4:30 p.m., Seelye 106*
 
Fine/performing arts/films
Concert: "German Renaissance Christmas and Other Music" for voices and instruments. Five College Early Music Collegium, Robert Eisenstein, director. Works by Isaac, Hassler and Praetorius.
8 p.m., Sweeney Concert Hall*
 
Meetings/workshops
CDO workshop: "Career Choices and Direction." Assess your skills, interests and values. 11 a.m., CDO
 
HR workshop: "Healthy Holiday Eating." (Kathleen Chatwood, ext. 2263.) 1-2 p.m., Graham Hall
 
CDO workshop: "How to Write an Effective Résumé." 2 p.m., CDO
 
Amnesty International general meeting. 4-5 p.m., Seelye 102
 
Debate Society. Learn public speaking. Open to all. 4:15-6 p.m., Seelye 110
 
Student Labor Action Coalition general meeting. 7 p.m., Women's Resource Center (Davis third floor)*
 
Other events and activities
MISC bake sale. Muffins, cookies and more. Sponsor: Multi-ethnic Interracial Smith College. 10:30 a.m.-3:45 p.m., mailroom
 
Language lunch tables
French, Italian
12:15 p.m., Duckett House Special Dining Room
 
B'Ivrit Chat with pizza. 12:15 p.m., Bodman Lounge, Chapel
 
Open hour with Carmen Santana-Melgoza, director, Office of Institutional Diversity, 3-4:30 p.m., College Hall 31
 
Chorale auditions. The Smith Chorale is looking for a few more singers for the spring semester. Spring events include a mini-tour to New York City. No experience or preparation for audition is necessary. Sign up outside Sage Hall 2. 4-5 p.m., Sage Hall 2
 

Tuesday, December 8
 
Lectures/Symposia
Sigma Xi Luncheon Talk: "Escher Revisited." Marjorie Senechal, Louise Wolff Kahn Professor of Mathematics. Open to faculty, emeriti and staff. Noon, College Club lower level
 
Reading: "Three Women Poets." Cathy Song, Angela Jackson and Kim Addonizio. Women Poet's Symposium. Sponsor: Poetry Center. 7:30 p.m., Chapel*
 
Fine/performing arts/films
Rec Council movie. 9 p.m., Wright auditorium
 
Meetings/workshops
Coalition for Children bag lunch. (Jane, ext. 4448; Jessica, ext. 6641.) Noon, Wright common room
 
Early American Shape-Note Sing. All welcome. 7-9 p.m., Chapel
 
Senate meeting. 7 p.m., Seelye 201
 
CDO workshop: "Ten Steps to Finding an Internship." 7:15 p.m., CDO
 
CDO workshop: "Preparing For a Successful Interview." 8 p.m., CDO
 
Religious Life
Episcopal-Lutheran Fellowship. All welcome. Noon, house parlor, St. John's Church, Elm Street
 
Other events and activities
MISC bake sale. See Monday listing. 10:30 a.m.-3:45 p.m., mailroom
 
Language lunch tables
German, Chinese
12:15 p.m., Duckett House Special Dining Room
 
Open hour for students with President Ruth Simmons. First come, first served. 4-5 p.m., College Hall 20
 
Project on Women and Social Change Open House to highlight the work of its members. Penina and Mickey Glazer will discuss their new book and talk on "The Courage of Ordinary People" at 4:30 p.m. 4 p.m., Seelye 207
 
Chorale auditions. See Monday for details. 4-5 p.m., Sage Hall 2
 
Yoga class. Noncredit, for students. 5-6:15 p.m., Davis ballroom
 
CDO open hours. Peer advisers available. 7-9 p.m., CDO
 
Swimming and diving vs. Westfield State. 7 p.m., Dalton pool, Ainsworth gym*
 

Wednesday, December 9
 
Lectures/Symposia
Candidate seminar for faculty position in the chemistry department. Dr. Sandy Burkett. 4:15 p.m., McConnell 102
 
"The Effects of Hurricane Mitch in Honduras." Fulbright Scholar Camille Collins-Lovell. 4 p.m., Dewey common room
 
Fine/performing arts/films
Theatre: The Seagull by Anton Chekhov. Peg Denithorne, director. Tickets: $5, general; $3, students/seniors/children. 8 p.m., Theatre 14, Mendenhall CPA*
 
Recital: Smith College Gamelan Ensemble. Ki Sumarsam, director. Dance music of central Java. 8-9:30 p.m., Earle Recital Hall, Sage Hall*
 
Meetings/workshops
CDO workshop: "CDO Orientation for Seniors." 4 p.m., CDO
 
Religious Life
Catholic Adas' gathering and informal discussion/reflection. Lunch served. All welcome. Noon, Bodman Lounge, Chapel
 
Advent Catholic reconciliation (penance) service. Liturgy of the Word, meditation, music. Fr. Ronald Sadlowski, celebrant. 5:15 p.m., Chapel
 
Al-Iman. Discuss Islamic values and Qu'ran literature. 7 p.m., Capen House study
 
Buddhist service and discussion. 6 p.m., Bodman Lounge, Chapel
 
Other events and activities
Student payroll vouchers due. Noon, College Hall 10
 
Conversation: Alan Bloomgarden, Office of Advancement, will discuss his Jewish heritage. First in "Show and Tell: Getting to Know You," a series of conversations with Smith community members about their heritage. Bring lunch; beverages and cookies provided. See notice. Noon­1 p.m., Neilson Browsing Room
 
Language lunch tables
Japanese, Spanish
12:15 p.m., Duckett House Special Dining Room
 
Chorale auditions. See Monday for details. 4-6:30 p.m., Sage Hall 2
 

Thursday, December 10
 
Lectures/Symposia
Liberal Arts Luncheon: "Language and Age: A User's Manual." Paul Pickrel, professor emeritus of English language and literature. Open to faculty, emeriti and staff. Noon, College Club lower level
 
"Between Vengeance and Forgiveness: Responses to Mass Violence." Martha Minow, Harvard Law School. Sponsors: First Year Seminar 112a, Lecture Committee, Office of the Provost/Dean of the Faculty, Office of the Dean of the College and government department. 4:30 p.m., Wright Hall common room
 
"Land Rights in Kenya and Tanzania." Joseph Ole Simmel, Maasai activist. Sponsor: Anthropology department. 7 p.m. Dewey common room*
 
"The Disability Rights Movement: History and Challenges for the New Millennium." Chris Palames, disability rights activist, writer and historian. Reception following in Seelye 207. 7 p.m., Seelye 201
 
Fine/performing arts/films
Exhibition opening: "A Renaissance Treasury: The Flagg Collection of European Decorative Arts and Sculpture." Museum of Art*
 
Auditions: Concerto Competition. Winner(s) will perform with the Smith College Orchestra in its spring concert. Contest rules and entry forms available outside Room 1, Sage Hall. 7:45-10 p.m., Sweeney Concert Hall*
 
Theatre: The Seagull. See Wednesday listing. 8 p.m., Theatre 14, Mendenhall CPA*
 
Rec Council movie. 9 p.m., Wright auditorium
 
Meetings/workshops
HR workshop: "Prostate Cancer Awareness Program." (Kathleen Chatwood, ext. 2263). Noon-1 p.m., Dewey common room
 
CDO workshop: "Using the Internet to Search for Internships and Jobs." 4 p.m., CDO
 
Debate Society. Learn public speaking. Open to all. 5-6 p.m., Seelye 110
 
Association of Low-Income Students meeting. Refreshments and child care with advance notice. (587-3781.) 7 p.m., Chapin House
 
Religious Life
Jewish Text Study. Dinner and Torah discussion. 6 p.m., Terrace Room B, Valentine Hall, Amherst College
 
Other events and activities
Yoga class. 8-9:15 a.m., Davis ballroom
 
Language lunch tables
Korean, Russian
12:15 p.m., Duckett House Special Dining Room
 
Basketball vs. Trinity. 7:30 p.m., Ainsworth gym*
 
Smith Hillel Hannukah Party featuring potato pancakes, dreidels and the music of the Wholesale Klezmer Band. 8 p.m., Davis Ballroom
Friday, December 11
 
Fine/performing arts/films
Film: Raise the Red Lantern (China/Hong Kong, 1992). With Li Gong and Jingwu Ma. Zhang Yimou, director. Asian Film Series. 8 p.m., Wright auditorium*
 
Theatre: The Seagull. See Wednesday listing. 8 p.m., Theatre 14, Mendenhall CPA*
 
Meetings/workshops
Smith Science-Fiction and Fantasy Society. (Allison, ext. 6683.) 4:30-6:15 p.m., Seelye 208*
 
Religious Life
Shabbat service. Dinner follows in Dawes House Kosher Kitchen. 5:15 p.m., Dewey common room.
 
Shabbat service and dinner. 5:30 p.m., Alumni House, Amherst College
 
Keystone weekly meeting. 7 p.m., Bodman Lounge, Chapel
 
Smith Christian Fellowship (InterVarsity). 7:30 p.m., Dewey common room*
 
Other events and activities
Chilipeppers Swing/Salsa Dance! Lessons from 8­9 p.m., Deejay from 9 p.m. on. $2.50, Five College students; $5, others. Sponsor: Chilipeppers! Hot Without the Sauce Web site consortium. 8 p.m., Davis ballroom
 

Saturday, December 12
 
Fine/performing arts/films
Theatre: The Seagull. See Wednesday listing. 8 p.m., Theatre 14, Mendenhall CPA*
 
Film: The Trial (1962) with Anthony Perkins, Orson Welles, Jeanne Moreau, Romy Schneider. Written and directed by Orson Welles. 8 p.m., Wright auditorium*
 
Meetings/Workshops
Ikebana: The Art of Japanese Flower Arrangement. Alice T. Unno, certified master of Ikenobo and Ohara schools of Ikebana. Registration fee of $25 includes all materials. To register call ext. 2742. 10 a.m.-noon, Lyman Conservatory classroom
 
Other events and activities
GRE Testing. Seelye first floor, 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
 
Latin Dance Party. Sponsor: Baha'i Club. 8 p.m.-midnight, Davis ballroom
 

Sunday, December 13
 
Fine/performing arts/films
Film: Raise the Red Lantern . See Friday listing. 2 p.m., Wright auditorium*
 
Film: The Trial . See Saturday listing. 7 p.m., Wright auditorium*
 
Meetings/workshops
CDO workshop: "Ten Steps to Finding an Internship." 1:15 p.m., CDO
 
Feminists of Smith Unite. "Action and Education." 7 p.m., Women's Resource Center (Davis third floor)

Religious Life
Ecumenical Christian Church morning worship of lessons and carols for the Advent season.10:45 a.m. Chapel*
 
Quaker meeting. Informal discussion at 9:30 a.m.; worship begins 11 a.m. All welcome. Bass 203*
 
Roman Catholic Eucharistic liturgy. Sunday supper follows. 4:30 p.m. Bodman Lounge, Chapel*
 
Other events and activities
CDO open hours. Peer advisers available. 1-4 p.m., CDO
 

Monday, December 14
 
Lectures/Symposia
Candidate seminar for faculty positions in the chemistry department with Dr. Lina Doerrer. 4:15 p.m., McConell 102
 
Meetings/workshops
CDO workshop: "Career Choices and Direction." Assess your skills, interests and values. 11 a.m., CDO
 
CDO workshop: "How to Write an Effective Résumé." 2 p.m., CDO
 
Amnesty International general meeting. 4-5 p.m., Seelye 102
 
Debate Society. Learn public speaking. Open to all. 4:15-6 p.m., Seelye 110
 
Student Labor Action Coalition general meeting. 7 p.m., Women's Resource Center (Davis third floor)*
 
Other events and activities
Language lunch tables
French, Italian
12:15 p.m., Duckett House Special Dining Room
 
B'Ivrit Chat with pizza. 12:15 p.m., Bodman Lounge, Chapel
 
Open hour with Carmen Santana-Melgoza, director, Office of Institutional Diversity, 3-4:30 p.m., College Hall 31
 

Tuesday, December 15
 
Classes end
 
Lectures/Symposia
Sigma Xi Luncheon Talk: "Deer Reproduction: The Ordinary and the Odd." Virginia Hayssen. Open to faculty, emeriti and staff. Noon, College Club lower level
 
Fine/performing arts/films
Concert: "Eye Candy." Original solo works by first-year MFA dance students. 7:30 p.m., Scott dance studio*
 
Rec Council movie. 9 p.m., Wright auditorium
 
Meetings/workshops
Coalition for Children bag lunch. (Jane, ext. 4448; Jessica, ext. 6641.) Noon, Wright common room
 
Early American Shape-Note Sing. All welcome. 7-9 p.m., Chapel*
 
Senate meeting. 7 p.m., Seelye 201
 
CDO workshop: "Ten Steps to Finding an Internship." 7:15 p.m., CDO
 
CDO workshop: "Preparing For a Successful Interview." 8 p.m., CDO
 
Religious Life
Episcopal-Lutheran Fellowship Noon, house parlor, St. John's Church, Elm Street
 
Other events and activities
Language lunch tables
German, Chinese
12:15 p.m., Duckett House Special Dining Room
 
Center for Foreign Languages and Cultures Annual Winter Festival. Food, music, interactive media. 4 p.m., Wright Hall common room
 
Yoga class. 5-6:15 p.m., Davis ballroom
 
CDO open hours. Peer advisers available. 7-9 p.m., CDO
 
Smith Film Studies Presents: A showing of short video work from FLS 281. 7:30 p.m. Stoddare auditorium*
 

Wednesday, December 16
 
Pre-examination study period begins.
 
Meetings/workshops
Faculty Meeting. Tea served at 3:45 p.m. 4:10 p.m., Alumnae House Conference Room

Friday, December 18
 
Pre-examination study period ends.

Saturday, December 19
 
Examination period begins

Tuesday, December 22
 
Examination period ends.

Wednesday, December 23
 
Winter recess begins-houses close 10 a.m.

Sunday, January 3
 
Winter recess ends-houses open 1 p.m.

Ongoing Events
 
"Daphnis and Chloe: Original Woodcuts by Aristide Maillol." Through January 2. Museum of Art*
 
"Equal Partners: Men and Women Principals in Contemporary Architectural Practice." Work by 15 American architecture firms founded and run jointly by women and men. Ends December 13. Museum of Art*
 
"A Renaissance Treasury: The Flagg Collection of European Decorative Arts and Sculpture." Eighty objects of rare and historically significant medieval and Renaissance art from the Milwaukee Art Museum. Through March 14. Museum of Art*
 
"Vitruvius Rediscovered: Architectural Books of the 16th, 17th and 18th Centuries." Early printed texts of Vitruvius' De Architectura and illustrated treatises by Renaissance and Mannerist architects influenced by him. Ends December 15. Neilson Library*


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Getting Your Word Out in AcaMedia
AcaMedia, which is produced by the Office of College Relations, is the official vehicle for making announcements within the Smith College community. By action of the faculty, students are held responsible for reading AcaMedia's notices and calendar listings.
 
Submission Procedures
  • Calendar items must be submitted on an Event Service Request Form (ESRF) preferably on line at www.smith.edu/events/esr.html but if necessary on the paper version of the ESRF by mail or fax. (Obtain forms by calling ext. 2162.) The ESRF is to be used for submitting listings for the Five College Calendar and local media calendars as well.
  • Items for the Notices section of AcaMedia should be submitted by email to Mary Stanton at mstanton@colrel.smith.edu. When submitting notices for which the intended audience may not be self-evident, please indicate whether they apply to the entire Smith community, to faculty and staff only, or to students only.
  • Submit news articles or suggestions for news articles to Ann Shanahan (ashanahan@colrel.smith.edu) or Eric Weld (eweld@colrel.smith.edu).
Deadlines
Copy is due by 4 p.m. Wednesday for the following week's issue. Late information cannot be accepted.
 
Five College Calendar Deadline
Entries for the January Five College Calendar must be received by December 11. Please send entries to Mary Stanton in Garrison Hall (mstanton@colrel.smith.edu).
 
Sources of further information, if any, are indicated last in parentheses.
 
Blue-Pencil Alert
All calendar items and notices submitted to AcaMedia are subject to editing for clarity, brevity and style. Almost none see print exactly as originally written.

Smith Wide

Panel to Discuss Homophobia

"Surviving Homophobia," a panel and community discussion, will be held Thursday, December 3, at 7 p.m. in Seelye 201. Sponsored by the Campus Climate Working Group and the Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Alliance, the event was motivated by the October murder of University of Wyoming student Matthew Shepherd. Panelists will include Joseph D'Amour, local gay activist and attorney; Anne Sullivan and Kristen Kuehnle, Salem State College faculty members who study gay and lesbian hate crimes; and the Rev. Erin K. Swenson, Presbyterian minister, marriage and family therapist and post-operative transsexual.

Understanding Diversity

A new series, "Show and Tell: Getting to Know You," in which Smith community members will discuss their personal heritages and interests, will begin Wednesday, December 9, at noon in the Neilson Browsing Room. The series, co-sponsored by the Campus Climate Working Group and the Diversity Visions Committee, will feature as its first speaker Alan Bloomgarden of the Office of Advancement, who will talk about his Jewish heritage. Those attending are asked to bring lunch; beverages and cookies will be provided by the Office of Institutional Diversity.

Open Forum

The Smith College Museum of Art will hold a series of open forums to update the Smith community on the upcoming renovations of the museum (2000-2002). This is an opportunity for rethinking not only the museum's space but also its mission and interaction with the college community. Please bring your ideas! The first meeting will be for all Smith faculty, Friday, December 18, noon-1 p.m., Smith College Club lower level. The second meeting will be for all Smith staff, Thursday, January 14, at 4:15 in the museum; refreshments will be provided. For Smith students an electronic forum as well as a face-to-face meeting are planned for February. For further information or to pass along ideas, please contact Nancy Rich at nrich@ais.smith.edu, or extension 2773.

Weather Alert

Next time you face the classic weekday-morning winter-weather decision-whether to dig out the four-wheel-drive in order to meet your Smith obligations or crawl back in bed and pull up the covers-check the college's only official source of weather emergency information, the Smith Information Line at 585-INFO. Beginning at 6 a.m. on bad-weather days it offers the latest announcements about delayed openings, early closings or other curtailed operations. You can also hear Smith weather updates on WHMP (Northampton) 1400 AM or 99.3 FM and WFCR (Amherst) 88.5 FM.

Women of Distinction

The Office of Admission will host a fall open house for prospective students of color on Monday, December 7. Guests and their parents will have an opportunity to tour the campus, attend a class, hear from representatives of the Career Development Office and the Office of Financial Aid and attend a panel discussion about how Smith supports diversity in our college community. Guests from the Boston area will arrive on campus on December 6 and will spend the night with hostesses in the houses.

Stamp Out Breast Cancer

A number of Smith people involved in fund-raising for breast cancer research wish to alert others about a new U.S. postage stamp. Each stamp costs 40 cents and is intended as a substitute for the 32-cent first-class postage stamp; the eight-cent difference in cost is a contribution to breast cancer research. In the first three months of its circulation, the stamp has raised $3.6 million for that cause.

Graphic Art Contest

A $35 cash prize is being offered for the best wide-appeal graphic design for T-shirts and mugs illustrating the concept "Welcome to Paradise"-with a Smith edge. Interested? Write to Wendy Sutter at wanns@mail.excite.com or Donna DeLuca at deluca@sophia.smith.edu.


Faculty & Staff

Faculty Meeting

Agenda items for the December 16 faculty meeting must be received by faculty secretary, Rosetta Cohen, no later than December 9. Material to be included in the mailing with the agenda must be camera-ready and received in College Hall 27 by December 7.

Child Care Openings

Sunnyside Child Care Center has mid-year openings for 4- and 5-year- olds and in the after-kindergarten program. Openings are for full or half days. (Debra Horton, ext. 2293)

Staff Art Show

Staff Visions, the annual exhibit of art and crafts created by Smith College staff, will be held January 25­February 5 in Hillyer Gallery. The show's registration deadline has been extended until December 15. Staff members interested in exhibiting their work must fill out a registration form and return it to Patty Hayes in Garrison Hall. (The forms were included in the September Council Chronicle; if you need another, contact Patty Hayes at extension 2180 or phayes@colrel.smith.edu.)

Final United Way Winners

Lunch at the Smith College Club, Linda Chirgwin; flavored-coffee and pastry break for four at Davis, Nancy Rich; two Academy of Music tickets, Margaret Shook; Del Raye Bar and Grill $50 gift certificate, Taitetsu Unno; Grécourt Bookshop $25 gift certificate, Karen Korza; Green Street Cafe dinner for two, Cathy Hutchison; Autumn Inn night for two, Denise Rochat and Charles Robertson; Lulu's Hair Salon $25 gift pack, Amy Hague; Anton Corliss Cleaners $25 gift certificate, Jim Montgomery; Davis Center $5 gift certificate, Ann Boutelle; Packard's $20 gift certificate, Kevin Martin; CD of John Van Buskirk performances of Schumann fortepiano compositions, Dorian Fill; Trellis Works $40 gift certificate, Barbara Pelissier; artwork by Gary Niswonger, Charlotte Heartt; wood-turning by Eric Reeves, Barbara Reinhold.

Students

Magazine Internships

The American Society of Magazine Editors offers a summer internship program for students who have completed their junior year. The internships pay $325 per week and are mostly in New York City. ASME gives preference to students who have worked on a campus magazine, newspaper or yearbook and have had a summer job or internship in journalism. Application forms are available in the CDO and must be submitted by December 10.

Résumé Referral Deadlines:

Résumés/cover letters (and sometimes additional materials) are due at the CDO by December 15 for the following companies: Analysis Group (economic consulting); Hambrecht & Quist (investment banking); Lazard Freres (investment banking); McKinsey & Co. (consulting); NationsBanc Montgomery Securities (financial); Research & Planning Inc. (IT consulting firm); Sidley & Austin (Washington, D.C., law firm).

Job for a January Grad

The financial aid office has a temporary, part-time position from January 7 to June 11, 1999, for a financial-aid specialist to answer the office's toll-free information line, 2-9 p.m., Monday-Thursday, and 2-4:30 p.m. on Friday. The specialist will help prospective students and their parents understand financial-aid application forms and procedures. Applicants should be attentive to details and have basic knowledge of undergraduate financial-aid forms and procedures, good judgment, a pleasant telephone manner and good clerical and record-keeping skills. The salary is $10 per hour. Submit a letter of application and brief résumé to Ann Playe, assistant director of financial aid and admission, Office of Financial Aid, College Hall.

Consulting Trip to NYC

Seniors interested in consulting are invited to visit three consulting firms-Mercer Consulting, William Mercer and National Economic Research Associates-during a free, one-day trip on December 11. The trip will include presentations on the firms, a case interview workshop and lunch. A bus will leave the CDO parking lot at 6:45 a.m. and return at approximately 7 p.m. Sign up at the recruiting desk on the second floor of the CDO. Limit: 22 seniors.

Faculty Teaching Evaluations

The faculty teaching evaluations will be administered Monday, December 7, through Thursday, December 10, in Wright auditorium foyer. Students are REQUIRED to complete these evaluations. There is a fine of $25 by the SGA for unexcused noncompliance. Students are asked to enter their data according to the schedule below. If you are off campus on your assigned day, please complete your evaluations on another scheduled day. Evaluations cannot be completed after the last scheduled day. Response data should be entered between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. on the following days: classes of 2002J and '02: Monday, December 7; Ada Comstock Scholars and the classes of 2001J and '01: Tuesday, December 8; classes of 2000J and '00: Wednesday, December 9; class of '99: Thursday, December 10.

Submission of Papers

The members of the Administrative Board urge students not to use campus mail for delivery of papers, and not to leave papers tacked to doors, slid under closed doors, left in mailboxes in public places or delivered by friends. Also, students should keep paper copies of submitted work.

Each year the Administrative Board is asked to vote on cases regarding final papers or projects that have gone astray. The best way to avoid such situations is to submit papers to an actual person, for example, the professor of the class or a departmental staff member who can verify receipt. Specifying the time and location of delivery of the work in such cases is advantageous to both the faculty and to the students in the class. Students and faculty should also be reminded that the college requires that papers delivered in the mail be sent by certified mail, return receipt requested.

Technological Problems

The Administrative Board has been asked to provide guidance to faculty and students concerning "printer, diskette and other technological failures" coincident with due dates for papers, take-home exams and other written assignments.

As is the case for all assignments during the semester, and up to the end of the final examination period, faculty members are empowered to grant extensions to their students. If there is some technological reason for difficulty in presenting an assignments, a faculty member may grant extra time for submission of the work. (Extensions beyond the end of exam period may be granted only by the class deans.)

On the other hand, a faculty member may wish to require confirmation of the problems, for example from a staff member at one of the computer centers. Alternatively, the faculty member might ask the student to submit a diskette with the relevant file (along with information about the platform and the word processing program) as a substitute for written work.

The Administrative Board urges students to prepare their work in a timely fashion (and to back it up) in order to avoid last-minute technological difficulties. Nevertheless, the board recognizes that even with the blessings of modern technology, these difficulties do, and will continue to, happen. Staff members at the computer centers may be able to provide technical assistance when such problems occur.

Echoing Green Fellowships

Echoing Green Fellowships are one-year, $30,000 stipends that provide seed money to start a new public-service organization or independent project within an existing nonprofit organization. This fellowship is available to graduating seniors and alumnae who have graduated within the last 10 years. Applications may be obtained at the S.O.S. office in the Chapel. First drafts of project proposals with accompanying documentation are due in the S.O.S. office by noon on December 14; final drafts are due by January 4, 1999. (Tiertza-leah Schwartz, ext. 2758.)

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AcaMedia staff: Ann Shanahan, co-editor; Cathy Brooks, layout; Mary Stanton, calendar/notices; Eric Sean Weld, co-editor

AcaMedia is published weekly during the academic year by the Office of College Relations for the Smith College community. This version of AcaMedia for the World Wide Web is maintained by the Office of College Relations. Last update: December 3, 1998.
Copyright © 1998, Smith College. Portions of this publication may be reproduced with the permission of the Office of College Relations, Garrison Hall, Smith College, Northampton, Massachusetts 01063; (413) 585-2170. // Smith College
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