Assistant Professor of Communications Rod Metts presented his paper, "The Digital Image Against Cezanne: The Masquerade of Pure Form," at the Visual Worlds conference to be held at the University of California, Davis, October 26-28. The conference is co-sponsored by the Center for History, Society, and Culture at UC Davis and by the University of California Humanities Research Institute.
Assistant Professor of Music Gail Levinsky recently performed and conducted a saxophone/clarinet master class for students at Heidelberg University in Tiffin, Ohio. Gail has been named program chair for the upcoming 2002 Biennial Conference of the North American Saxophone Alliance at the University of North Texas.
Associate Professor of Economics Antonin Rusek published the paper "Eastern Europe and the Euro Area" as a chapter in the book EMU, Financial Markets and the World Economy, edited by Thomas Moser and Bernd Schips of Schweitzerische Nationalbank, Kluwer Academic Publishers, 2001. He presented a paper, "Revolution in Business Affairs and Economic Policy," at the 52nd International Atlantic Economic Conference in Philadelphia in October 14 and attended the International Monetary Fund Economic Forum, "Anticipating Crises: Model Behavior or Stampeding Herds," in Washington, D.C., on November 1.
Associate Professor of History George Wei participated in a "Zhiqing Roundtable" discussion at the Second International Convention of Asian Scholars, Free University Berlin, Berlin, Germany, in August. He also chaired a panel, "History in Three Keys: Chinese, Japanese, and British Civilizing Projects on Taiwan," at the annual conference of Mid-Atlantic Region of Association for Asian Studies, Slippery Rock University, Pa., in October.
Director of Multicultural Affairs Brian Johnson was the keynote speaker at Bucknell University's MLK Commemorative Celebration on January 18. His address, "Don't Forget to Remember," focused on Dr. King's message of service to others. Johnson presented "His Panic: The Changing Role of Females in Traditional Latino Families." a workshop and paper at the National Association for Hispanic and Latino Studies conference in Houston, Texas, on February 14, 2002.
Assistant Professor of Political Science Andrea Lopez presented a paper, "Counterinsurgency, Peacekeeping and Legitimacy: Why Military Power Doesn't Matter (Much)" in November at the Joint Conference of the Northeast Political Science Association and International Studies Association-Northeast held in Philadelphia.
Assistant Professor of Political Science Michele DeMary presented a paper, "The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court and Advisory Opinions: Separation of Powers Violated?" at the annual conference of the Northeast Political Science Association held in Philadelphia, in November.
Assistant Professor of History David Imhoof helped to organize the first Modern Germany Workshop at Villanova University In early November. The workshop brought German history and literature scholars together from across Pennsylvania to discuss their research on a variety of topics. David presented the paper, "Nightclub Singers, Professors, and Newspaper Critics: Reactions to The Blue Angel in the University Town of Goettingen."
Professor of Chemistry Neil Potter recently received a $4,380 grant from the Pittsburgh Conference on Analytical Chemistry and Applied Spectroscopy. The money is for Neil's summer elementary teachers' workshops. For the past two years he has been holding the workshops dealing with simple science demonstrations. Over the past five years Neil has received more than $10,000 from the Pittsburgh Conference for his workshops.
Lecturer in Accounting Marvin Rudnitsky presented a program on "Basics of Disability Planning" at the meeting of the National Network of Estate Planning Attorneys in Minneapolis in early November. Rudnitsky was also the featured speaker for the Estate Planning Council of Central Pennsylvania at the West Shore Country Club, Camp Hill, in September. His presentation was entitled "Maximizing Retirement Distributions under the 2001 Regulations."
On Sunday, August 19, the Greater Albuquerque metropolitan community held a reception honoring Professor Emeritus of French Jack Kolbert on the occasion of the publication of his new book The Worlds of Elie Wiesel. U.S. Senator Pete Domenici (R-New Mexico), officials of the University of New Mexico, the Chamber of Commerce, and the Jewish and Hispanic communities hosted the reception at the brand new headquarters building of the Jewish Community Center. From 1974 to 1978, Jack served as president of the City Council of Albuquerque and was active in Democratic Party politics.
"The Canals of Mars," an essay by Director of the Writers' Institute Gary Fincke, has been selected to appear in the anthology The Pushcart Essays, a collection of the best nonfiction to appear in the first 25 volumes of the annual Pushcart Prize compilation. The Pushcart Prize honors the best fiction, poetry, and nonfiction published in literary magazines and by small presses each year. "The Canals of Mars" was originally published in Shenandoah and appeared in Volume XXV (2000) of the Pushcart series. Fincke also recently had a creative nonfiction piece named as a "notable essay for 2000," by Best American Essays. "God of Our Fathers" was originally published in the nonfiction magazine Under the Sun, as one of the hundred best essays published in the United States last year. This is the sixth year in a row his work has been selected for this honor.
Lecturer in Art Robin Adsit had paintings included in the November-December exhibition - "Silent Dialogs"-- at The Gallery at Dodds Hall, University of New Haven.
Jim Smillie Acquires Retirement
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| Jim Smillie
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After building a library career specializing in the book trade, computers, and music, Jim Smillie retired in December of 2001 from his position as acquisitions and computer systems librarian with 31 years of service to Susquehanna.
Smillie earned a B.A. from Haverford College and an M.L.S. from Rutgers University. He also attended the Union Theological Seminary and had previously worked at Dickinson College before joining Susquehanna as director of the Blough-Learning Center 1970 to 1987. He was named acquisitions librarian with associate professor rank in 1988.
The first job he ever had was in the library of the Presbyterian Historical Society during high school. Later, as a student at Union Theological Seminary, he assisted in library acquisitions. "About 40 percent of our budget was spent overseas and I spent a lot of time looking up exchange rates," he recalls.
A curiosity in computers in the late 1960s led to his firsthand experience in the technological advances that have revolutionized library science over the course of his career. Online search tools and electronic databases have become the stock in trade to locate, select, and fill requests for materials ranging from electronic journals to out-of-print texts. "You can do so much more than you could do when you were dealing with paper," he says.
Because Smillie has a longstanding interest and expertise in music - at Haverford, he performed four times with the Philadelphia Orchestra in a tri-college choir - he handled the University's orders for sheet music and recordings.
His plans for retirement include a possible relocation, but until then, more time to enjoy the home he shares with his wife, Barbara. One-and-a-quarter acres on the side of ridge outside Salem, the property has proven an ideal place to enjoy wildlife, The New York Times Sunday crossword puzzle, and favorite opera recordings. "I have a tendency to put it on loud enough to hear wherever I am in the house," he says.
They also plan travel, including trips to California to visit son, Benjamin, a graduate student at the University of Southern California, and continuing their habit of frequent long weekends in New York City for culture and cuisine. "I will be going to more operas," says Smillie. "And I am also planning to expand the repertoire of foods that I cook."
Also on the list: more time to read, and maybe write too, "though not my memoirs," he quips.
Jim Smillie Acquires Retirement
