12-19

september

2005

wellesley responds with help for hurricane relief

Members of the Wellesley College community have been working intensively to identify effective ways to help with relief efforts along the Gulf Coast. At the request of President Diana Chapman Walsh, the Center for Work and Service has connected with relief agencies and is issuing regular advisories alerting the campus community to particular needs with which Wellesley can assist.

In addition, the President asked Dean of Students Kim Goff-Crews to coordinate efforts to make spaces available at Wellesley for undergraduates from New Orleans colleges and universities shut down by the disaster. Director of Advising and Academic Support Services John O’Keefe is coordinating several initiatives. Five students are ready to take classes at Wellesley as special students for the fall semester. So far the college can accommodate about 20 students in residence. Tuition for these students will be waived, and Wellesley is in the process of reaching out to see if additional New Orleans students would like to spend the semester here.

Melissa Hawkins of the Center for Work and Service has contacted colleges and universities in the affected areas to offer assistance. “We have identified a collaboration with McNeese State University in Lake Charles, La.,” she said. The CWS is collecting items for hurricane victims staying at the Lake Charles Civic Center. Wellesley students, faculty and staff can contribute items for evacuees living in this temporary shelter and in other areas.

College Government President Lindsey Boylan reports that the CG Cabinet and House Presidents’ Council (HPC), in consultation with members of the administration, have launched several key fund raising efforts. Donations were taken at Opening Convocation Tuesday, Sept. 6 and at A Day to Make a Difference Sept. 10-11. Collection sites have also been established in residence halls.

CG and HPC have contacted counterparts at Louisiana State University (LSU), which is providing housing for displaced students and their families from Tulane University, Xavier University and the University of New Orleans, and acting as a special-needs evacuation site and a source of emergency medical services. CG is working with LSU student leaders to identify areas of greatest need and hopes to organize projects through which Wellesley students can provide support during Wintersession, spring break and over the summer. CG has chosen hurricane relief as its special service project this year.

On Sept. 3, students in Pomeroy Hall organized a hurricane relief effort, raising more than $700.

The Wellesley College Alumnae Association (WCAA) last week sent expressions of concern via e-mail to the approximately 68 alumnae in the affected area and has begun to hear back from some of them.

In addition, WCAA will set up message boards on their Web site to allow alumnae to connect and to offer support to one another.

At opening convocation last Tuesday President Walsh reflected on the magnitude and significance of this disaster and said that in addition to doing all we can to help, “we can pledge here and now, while the terrible images are still etched so vividly in our minds, that over the coming weeks and months we will inform ourselves fully about this calamity, about all the reasons it happened (including very deep root causes), and about what can be done, not only to comfort the victims, mitigate the harm, and reduce the odds of a recurrence, but also to prepare ourselves to examine and perhaps change choices we are making that may be part of the problem.”

two new knafel assistant professors join faculty

Hahrie Han and Lara Tohme have been named Wellesley’s first two Knafel assistant professors.

Han will teach in the political science department. Her research interests include political participation, the role of activists and organized interests in American democracy, congressional politics and legislative representation.

Han has worked as a national issues and policy advisor on Senator Bill Bradley’s presidential campaign, developing policy positions and advising on issues related to the environment, campaign finance reform, race relations and agriculture. She completed a 2005 Ph.D. in American politics at Stanford and a 1997 B.A. at Harvard.

Tohme will teach medieval Islamic and Western art. She earned a 2005 Ph.D. from MIT’s Department of Architecture, majoring in Islamic art and architecture 650-1000 CE, a master of arts from the University of Oregon, Eugene, and a B.A. from the University of Washington, Seattle. She has been a research assistant at MIT and a visiting lecturer at Dartmouth and the University of Washington.

Sidney Knafel, a trustee and husband of the late Susan Rappaport Knafel ’52, made an $8 million gift to Wellesley to establish the Knafel Assistant Professorships and the Diana Chapman Walsh Assistant Professorship.

underground art

On Monday, Sept.12, at 4:30 pm, in Jewett Arts Center Student Gallery, an opening reception will be held for the Underground Studios exhibition. The first such exhibit, held in 1994, revealed unknown artists among the art department.“That’s why it was called Underground Studios,” said organizer Jeanne Hablanian, art library. Work will be on display by Hablanian, Nancy Edwards (Knapp/IS), Elizabeth Holden (College Club), Andrew Mowbray (Art), Pamela Rogers (Art), Ellen Schneider (Controller’s Office), David Sommers (Greenhouse), Jim Turbert (Art Dept/IS) and Richard Vabulas (carpenter). For more, call x2042.

three fall exhibits open this week at the dmcc

The Davis Museum and Cultural Center will offer a multiexhibition opening celebration Wednesday, Sept. 14, from 6-8 pm, featuring a talk, “Art and Science, Knowledge and Mystery,” by artist-in-residence Lynette Wallworth and Marianne Moore, biological sciences, and a conversation with muralist Aaron Noble. Exhibits, on display through Dec. 18, include:

• Hold: Vessel 1, a multimedia installation exploring connections between visual art and the sciences by Australian artist Wallworth, who challenges the traditional boundaries between visual art and the sciences and examines the relationship between scientific technologies and human experience.

• Brice Marden: Etchings to Rexroth, a series of 25 works inspired by Kenneth Rexroth’s translations of the great Chinese poet Du Fu (Tu Fu). Marden’s 25 images pay homage to calligraphy and its potential as word, image and story.

• a site-specific installation by Noble, whose work is nspired by superhero comics, graffiti, pop art and high culture.

• Extended Boundaries, featuring Studio Art faculty work, opens Wednesday, Oct. 19, from 6-8 pm with painting, photography, print, installation, sculpture, film and video, by Carlos Dorrien, Bunny Harvey, Jessica Irish, Joel Janowitz, Phyllis McGibbon, Qing-Min Meng, Arne Reimer, Sarah Slavick, Elaine Spatz-Rabinowitz, Karin Stack and Ann Steuernagel. For more information, call x2051.

new book explores moral reasons for war in iraq

Opinions about the war in Iraq tend to fall into two categories: for or against. Now, Tom Cushman, sociology, has edited a book that explores the war from the perspective of humanitarianism.

A Matter of Principle: Humanitarian Arguments for the War in Iraq (University of California Press, July 2005) occupies a special niche in the wealth of commentary on this divisive issue.

It is a collection of essays prominent writers and political figures including Christopher Hitchens, Adam Michnik, Paul Berman, Tony Blair, Ian Buruma, Ann Clwyd, Mitchell Cohen, Norman Geras, Jeffrey Herf, Richard Just, John Lloyd, Jose Ramos-Horta, Roger Scruton and others.

“ There is no other book like it—others either whitewash Bush’s war or are inflammatory attacks on Bush and the U.S.,” Cushman said. “This book presents a human rights case.”

For more, go to www.wellesley.edu/PublicAffairs/Releases/2005/062205.html

flower sunday celebrates sisterhood

Flower Sunday, one of Wellesley’s oldest traditions, will be celebrated this Sunday, Sept. 18, at 10:30 am in Houghton Memorial Chapel. In years past and still today, Flower Sunday helps to ease the transition into the first days of college for both new and returning students.

Flower Sunday has evolved into a day of sisterhood and celebration of the new school year. It features multicultural and multi-faith song, music and dance. It also includes tradition of Wellesley “little” and “big” sisters. First-year students are paired with upperclasswomen, who often bring a bouquet to their little sisters and accompany them to the festivities. For more information, call x2685.

colleagues in the news

raul rubio, Spanish, has published article in the Ciberletras journal titled “Political Aesthetics in Contemporary Cuban Filmmaking.” He has also chaired a panel titled “Puerto Rican Diasporic Narratives” at the “Caribbean Migrations: Negotiating Borders” conference held at Ryerson University in Toronto, Canada, and presented a paper there titled “Within a Critique of Glamour: Staging Gender, Sexuality, and Consumption in Mayra Santos Febres’s Sirena Selena vestida de pena.” He has conducted field research in the Lavapiés neighborhood of Madrid, Spain, visiting non-profit organizations that support Arab and Latin American immigrants. He gathered data on ethnic community centers, such as the Ladinamo Asociación Cultural, which promotes civic involvement, and documented a manifestation in defense of the cultural organization Laboratorio 03 which promotes multicultural integration in Madrid’s urban landscape.

lisa scanlon ’99 has joined the alumnae magazine staff as an associate editor. She recently has been associate editor for the alumnae news section of the MIT Technology Review, serving as lead editor for the university news section and writing science features. She has edited the MIT class notes and was the fact-checker for magazine. She was an English major at Wellesley, studied German in Vienna during her junior year and was a disc jockey for WZLY.

steve slivan, astronomy, has been recognized for his ground-breaking research by having an asteroid named after him. The asteroid, designated Slivan = 2000 AG238, was discovered Jan. 6, 2000, by the Lowell Observatory Near-Earth Object Research at the Anderson Mesa Station. Slivan’s discoveries have led to a new understanding of thermal radiation forces on small bodies.

calendar

monday september 12

tanner conference deadline. Noon.

opening reception. Underground Studios VII. 4:30 pm, Jewett Arts Center student gallery. Sponsor: Art. (See story, page 1.) Info: x2042.

meditation. 7-8:15 pm, meditation room, lower chapel. Sponsor: Buddhist Community. Info: x2793.

panel discussion. “Russia NOW.” Speakers: Ivan ArreguÍn-Toft, political science; Marshall Goldman, economics (emeritus); Philip Kohl, anthropology; Nina Tumarkin, history. Moderator: Thomas Hodge, Russian. 8 pm, PNE 225A. Sponsor: Russian Area Studies. Info: x2602.

meeting. Wellesley College Democrats. 8-9 pm, PNE 122. Info: Democratsmail@wellesley.edu.

cws workshop. “Résumés 101.” 9-10 pm, Severance, Cazenove, Shafer and Tower. Info: x2352.

tuesday september 13

tennis vs. MIT. 4 pm. Info: x2003.

academic council meeting. 4:15-6 pm, Academic Council Room. Info: x3583

class. “Kaplan Prep for GRE.” 6:30-9 pm, JAC 454. Info: x2875.

class. “Kaplan Prep for Oct.’05 LSAT.” 6:30-9:30 pm, JAC 450. Info: x2875.

meeting. Speech and Debate Society. 7:30-9 pm, PNW 117. Info: SpeechandDebatemail@wellesley.edu.

cws workshop. “Résumés 101.” 9-10 pm, Beebe and Pomeroy. Info: x2352.

wednesday september 14

poster sale. 7:30 am-10 pm, Chapel lawn. Info: x2679.

cws orientation. Davis Scholars. 12:30 pm, CE house. Info: x2352.

cws info session. “UC Hastings College of Law and UC Davis Law School.” 12:30 pm, PNE 239. Info: x2352.

cws workshop. “Effective Cover Letters.” 12:30 pm, GRH 428. Info: x2352.

meditation. 12:30-1 pm. (See 9/12.)

ice cream social. “Study Abroad and Visiting Exchange Students.” 3-5 pm, PNE 225. Sponsor: International Studies. Info: x3532.

field hockey vs. Tufts. 4 pm. Info: x2003.

opening reception. “Conversation: Art and Science, Knowledge and Mystery.” 6-8 pm, DMMC. (See story, page 2.) Info: x2051.

gathering. 6-8:30 pm, lower Chapel. Sponsor: Unitarian Universalists. Info: x3484.
meeting. Student Organization Night. 7-9 pm, Alumnae Hall Ballroom. Sponsor: College Government Senate. Info: CGmail@wellesley.edu.

meeting. Speech and Debate Society. 7:30-9 pm, PNE 127. Info: SpeechandDebatemail@wellesley.edu.

cws workshop. “Résumés 101.” 9-10 pm, Bates, Claflin, Freeman, Lake House, Munger and Stone-Davis. Info: x2352

thursday september 15

poster sale. (See 9/14.)

open class. “Fundamentals of Astronomy: Hold: Vessel 1 by Lynette Wallworth.” Speakers: Richard French, astronomy, and Lynette Wallworth, artist. 10-11:30 am, DMCC. Info: x2051.

cws workshop. “Résumés for Davis Scholars.” 12:30 pm, CE House. Info: x2352.
soccer vs. Emerson. 4 pm. Info: x2003.

meeting. “Washington DC Internships.” 4:30-5:30 pm, PNE 225. Sponsor: Political Science. Info: x2194.

esl tutoring. 6-8 pm, PLTC small conference room. Info: x2480.

class. “Kaplan Prep for Oct.’05 L.S.A.T.” 6:30-10 pm, JAC 450. Info: x2875.

worship service. 7 pm, lower chapel. Sponsor: Protestant Christian Chaplaincy. Info: x2655.

meeting. Intervarsity Christian Fellowship. 7-9:30 pm, BIL 100. Info: wivcfmail@wellesley.edu.

cws workshop. “Résumés 101.” 9-10 pm, McAfee and Dower. Info: x2352.

friday september 16

poster sale. (See 9/14.)

open class. “Marine Biology: Hold: Vessel 1 by Lynette Wallworth.” Speakers: Marianne Moore, biological sciences; Lynette Wallworth, artist. 11:15 am-12:45 pm, DMCC. (See story, page 2.) Info: x2051.

bible study. 7 pm, lower chapel. Sponsor: Asian Baptist Student Koinonia. Info: x4692.

dance performance. “Ballet Folklórico de la Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla, Mexico.” 8-10 pm, Alumnae Hall. Sponsor: Spanish. (See story, page 4.) Info: x2437.

saturday september 17

field hockey. Seven Sisters Tournament. 9 am. Info: x2003.

volleyball vs. Smith. 1 pm. Info: x2003.

tennis vs. Clark. 1 pm. Info: x2003.

class. “Beginner Watercolor Painting.” Instructor: Susan Swinand. Saturdays through 11/5. 1-4 pm, Botanic Gardens Visitor Center. Cost: $165.Sponsor: FOH. Info: x3094.

sunday september 18

field hockey. Seven Sisters Tournament. 9 am. Info: x2003.

flower sunday. 10:30 am-noon, Houghton Chapel. Info: x2685.

worship service. 11:15 am, Houghton Chapel. Sponsor: Protestant Christian Chaplaincy. Info: x2655.

class. “Kaplan Prep for Oct.’05 LSAT” 1:30-4:30 pm, JAC 450. Info: x2875.
catholic mass. 4 pm, Houghton Chapel. Sponsor: Newman Catholic Ministry. Info: x2688.

meeting. Darshana. 5 pm, meditation room, lower chapel. Sponsor: Hindu Community. Info: x2794.

monday september 19

fair. Study Abroad. 12-4 pm, Alumnae Hall Ballroom. Sponsor: International Studies. Info: x3532.

cws workshop. “Résumés.” 12:30 pm, GRH 428. Info: x2352.

esl tutoring. 6-8 pm, PLTC small conference room. Info: x2480.

cws info session. “Lehman Bros./LBGT Outreach.” 7 pm, Shafer living room. Info: x2352.

meditation. (See 9/12.)

meeting. Wellesley College Democrats. (See 9/12.)

ongoing

eexhibit. Constitution Day. Clapp Library, second floor. Through September. Info: 3426.

exhibit. Underground Studios VII. Sept. 12-Nov. 1. Jewett Arts Center student gallery. Info: x2042.

exhibit. Hold: Vessel 1. Artist: Lynette Wallworth. Sept. 14-Dec. 18. DMCC. Info: x2051.

exhibit. Etchings to Rexroth. Artist: Brice Marden. Sept. 14-Dec. 18. DMCC. Info: x2051.

exhibit. Artist: Aaron Noble. Sept. 14-Dec. 18. DMCC. Info: x2051.

don't miss...mexican ballet troupe will perform forkloric dances

The Ballet Folklorico of the Benemerita Universidad Autonoma de Puebla will perform Friday, Sept. 16, at 8 pm in Alumnae Hall Auditorium. The Mexico-based ballet performance is, appropriately, on Mexican Independence Day.

The ballet is considered the finest university troupe in Mexico and has won numerous awards at both Mexican and international folkloric dance competitions and festivals. A full listing of its repertoire, awards and histories is available at www.ballet.buap.mx. “The performance by the Folkloric Ballet of the University of Puebla represents the first significant dance event focusing on Mexican culture at Wellesley College,” said Carlos Vega, Spanish. “The performance—together with student workshops on Mexican dance performance—will not only permit a rare opportunity to experience the culture of Mexico, but also will facilitate exchange between Mexican and U.S. students.”

Vega noted that the focus on building ties between students of different nations and cultures coincides with the spirit of Wellesley’s Kathryn Wasserman Davis ’28 Fund for World Cultures and Leadership, which is supporting the event. The performance will feature traditional Mexican dance inspired by reconstructed pre-Colombian religious ritual and Mexican dances known throughout the world, such as the Bamba, the Mexican Hat Dance, the Raspa and more. The troupe consists of 20 dancers; eight musicians; its director, Professor Cristobal Ramirez Macip, and an assistant director, Ytalu Villareal. For more information, call x2437.

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