People News, May 2018

Emily Bellanca ’18 recently published a Ms. magazine blog with Carrie Baker, professor of the study of women and gender, on “The Racist Roots of Rape Culture.”

Noa Randall ’19 participated in the Sea Education Association’s semester program in Oceans and Climate, sailing from New Zealand to Tahiti to study the oceans’ role in the global climate system.

Leslie Marie Aguilar, editorial assistant at Meridians, participated in “Tesserae,” an April poetry reading at the Parlor Room in Northampton organized to highlight immigration issues and the work of immigrant support groups. Smith was a sponsor of the event with Hampshire College, the Northampton Arts Council, Levellers Press and The Massachusetts Review. 

Floyd Cheung, professor of English language and literature, is the editor of John Okada: The Life and Rediscovered Work of the Author of ‘No-No Boy. Cheung’s book—about a Japanese American who was imprisoned during World War II—was recently published by the University of Washington Press.

Randy Frost, Harold and Elsa Sipola Israel Professor of Psychology, recently led a two-day workshop in Cornwall, Ontario, on “Understanding and Treating Hoarding Disorder.”

Steven Heydemann, Janet Wright Ketcham Professor of Middle East Studies, spoke at “Keep Hope Alive,” an April event hosted at First Churches in Northampton by the Valley Syrian Relief Committee. Heydemann described the distinct conflicts involved in Syria’s ongoing civil war.

Peter Rose, Sophia Smith Professor Emeritus of Sociology and Anthropology, is the author of two new books: Mainstream and Margins Revisited (Routledge, 2017) and Max, the Sea Dog: A Modern Day Cape Cod Saga (Sea House Books, 2018).

Professor of Religion Andy Rotman is the recipient of a 2018 Outstanding Translation Award for Divine Stories: Divyāvadāna, Part 2 (Wisdom Publications), a collection of early Indian narrative writing. The award is given for excellence in translation to English from the main classical languages of Buddhism: Pali, Sanskrit, Tibetan and Chinese.

Professor of Religion Vera Shevzov is the editor of Framing Mary: The Mother of God in Modern, Revolutionary and Post-Soviet Russian Culture, published by Illinois University Press.

Lester Tomé, associate professor of dance, gave the keynote address at the Caribbean Studies Conference at Marquette University in April on “Ballet and Revolution in Cuba: Calibanesque Choreographies for Political Bodies On- and Offstage.”

Julianna Tymoczko, associate professor of mathematics and statistics, has been awarded a $204,533 grant from the National Science Foundation for her project “Combinatorial Representation Theory from Knot Theory and Algebraic Geometry.”

Bozena Welborne, assistant professor of government, was a panelist for “Lebanese Women in Politics: Myths, Challenges, and the Way Forward,” held in March at the American University of Beirut in New York. Welborne is the author of The Politics of the Headscarf in the United States, recently published by Cornell Press.

Steven Williams, Gates Professor of Biology, has been awarded a $250,714 grant from the National Institutes of Health for a teaching project “Pre-clinical models of infectious diseases.”

Lynne Yamamoto, Jesse Wells Post Professor of Art, has been selected for a 2018 Smithsonian Artist Research Fellowship, an innovative research-based artist residency program at Smithsonian museums and research sites.

Elim Chan ’09 made her debut with the Florida Symphony in April, leading Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 26, also known as the “Coronation.” Chan earned a degree in music at Smith and a master’s and Ph.D. in visual and performing arts from the University of Michigan Ann Arbor. She served as assistant conductor with the London Symphony Orchestra in 2016, then worked with the Los Angeles Philharmonic on a Dudamel Fellowship.

Jessica Camille Aguirre ’07 is the recipient of a Matthew Power Literary Reporting Award from New York University’s Arthur Carter Journalism Institute. A freelance writer who has worked as a foreign correspondent in Europe and Africa, Aguirre majored in economics and government at Smith and earned a master’s degree in science journalism from Columbia University.

Emily Mitchell-Eaton ’06 gave the Patricia C. and Charles H. McGill III ’63 Lecture in International Studies at Trinity College in March on “Imperial Migration from the Marshall Islands to Arkansas.” Mitchell-Eaton, now a visiting professor at Trinity, majored in Latin American and Portuguese Brazilian studies at Smith.

Shadae Thomas Harris ’05 is the new chief engagement officer for the Richmond, Va., Schools. A former elementary school principal and teacher, Harris majored in education at Smith and earned a master’s degree in teaching and learning from the Harvard University Graduate School of Education.

Alice Parker ’47’s newest CD is Alice Parker: Heavenly Hurt, featuring eight compositions inspired by the poetry of Emily Dickinson. Parker, who majored in music at Smith, earned a master of science in music from The Juilliard School.