September 2002

Index for September 4, 2002

University College: a new name, a renewed mission

By Barbara D. Kiernan, Director of University Publications

With a new name come new responsibilities for the administrators of University College (formerly the School of Continuing Education). Dean Edna Farace Wilson, Ed.D., (third from right) will oversee the ongoing transition, assisted by (l-r) Susan Fitzgerald, Kelly Barnes, Marge Glick, Ed.D., Patricia Brunetti, and Janice Dunn.

Change. It's a word most of us welcome, or say we do - until it applies to us.

Hats off, then, to Edna Farace Wilson, Ed.D., dean of what for 22 years was known as the School of Continuing Education (SCE). Last fall, in consultation with Academic Vice President Orin Grossman, Ph.D., Wilson initiated a self-study process she knew might make waves, rock some boats, and possibly lead to a change of course for SCE.

In the name of the mission - and for the greater good of the lifetime learners the University serves - Wilson and her staff worked with a team of consultants to review the structure of the School, assess its programs and services, and determine SCE's ability to respond to the ever-changing needs of its unique constituencies.

The outcome goes way beyond the symbolism inherent in the School's new name - University College at Fairfield University. Chosen to reflect the closer ties University College will now have with the larger institution, the name is the most visible reminder of the significant changes that have begun to take place, both internally and in relation to the many academic units that comprise Fairfield University.

Among the projects undertaken in the year-long review was an audit of course offerings. What became apparent was the near impossibility of earning a degree totally in the evening, given that many courses needed for a specific major were offered only during the day. In cooperation with numerous academic departments, this problem is well on its way to resolution, with an evening rotation of courses in place to support seven distinct majors, to date.

"The new, more precisely focused mission of University College involves a broadening of purpose and a more responsive commitment to the diverse needs of adult learners," notes Grossman. "In today's knowledge-based global economy, lifelong learning has become a must - to stay current, to retool, to advance professionally, to gain new skills."

Adds Wilson, "In the past, many of our programs were simply the same ones offered during the day. The only difference was, we turned on the lights at night and said we were delivering sound programs for working professionals. While we will continue to work closely with the other schools to offer some of the same degrees at night, we are also moving ahead with plans to shape new opportunities for lifetime learners."

Those new opportunities will extend not only to individuals coming to campus for classes, but to distance learners, corporations, and other organizations seeking a specific knowledge base for their employees. To this end, various units within the former SCE have been reconfigured, with the following five now supporting the redefined mission of University College:

• Credit programs, as well as University College's bachelor of professional studies, led by Marge Glick
• Non-credit and certificate programs, headed by Patricia Brunetti
• International education/study abroad, directed by Susan Fitzgerald
• Distance education, led by Janice Dunn
• Corporate education, whose director will be named in the near future. At present, Kelly Barnes and Cindy Christie are working closely with Wilson in this area, and the academic vice president has formed a University-wide task force on corporate education.

Clearly, it's no longer business as usual in Dolan House. While University College will continue to serve as a gateway for part-time students to the broader resources of the University, new energy and spirit are emerging from the openness to change that launched the "Good Ship SCE" into uncharted waters. Re-christened mid-course, University College at Fairfield University - more specifically, its administrators, faculty, and staff - are sailing forth into a new academic year prepared to navigate, and to weather, the changes yet to come.

May the wind be at their backs, and the sailing smooth.

Photo by Jean Santopatre

Fairfield alumna to deliver fall convocation address

By Nancy Habetz, Director of Media Relations

Class of 1974 alumna Brenda Joyce Young, Ph.D., one of the first female undergraduates to study at Fairfield University in 1970, returns to speak at the fall 2002 Academic Convocation on Sept. 13 at 11 a.m. in Alumni Hall. Young was the planned speaker for the 2001 event, which was cancelled in the wake of Sept. 11.

Throughout her three-day stay this month, Young will meet with AHANA students, visit classes, and talk with program directors and faculty members. In her Convocation address, she will reflect on her Fairfield experience and how it prepared her for her career.

Young earned a Ph.D. in African American Studies at Emory University. Currently, she is an instructor of English in the humanities department at Georgia Perimeter College in Clarkston, Ga. She formerly held the position of academic dean in the office of academic affairs at Dillard University in New Orleans.

Prior to that, Young coordinated the Interdisciplinary Humanities Program at Clark Atlanta University in Atlanta, where she also taught. While at Clark Atlanta, Young published a book with her colleagues - Fracturing the Canon: An Interdisciplinary Humanities Reader. Selections of the book were given to members of Fairfield's Class of 2005 to read last summer. Author Barbara Ehrenreich is featured in the anthology, and Ehrenreich's recent book - Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America - was given to members of the Class of 2006 to read during the summer.

Young grew up in the Bronx, N.Y., the oldest of five daughters raised by their mother. A friend, whose son had gone to Fairfield, encouraged Young's mother to send Brenda to Fairfield where she would "have a chance to shine." Eventually her mother and all her sisters earned college degrees as well.

Among her academic awards, Young was named a Patricia Roberts Harris Fellow in 1990 and a UNCF/Mellow Faculty Doctoral Fellow in 1995. She was a Bradley Fellow at the Graduate Institute for Liberal Education at St. John's College in Santa Fe, New Mexico, for three consecutive summers, 1997 through 1999. In 1998, she was awarded the CAU NAACP Image Award for Excellence in Teaching.

The Academic Convocation is open to all members of the University community. For more information, contact the Office of the Academic Vice President at ext. 2292.

Fairfield welcomes Class of 2006

Seven sons and daughters of University employees are among the 854 freshmen in the Class of 2006. The first-years were welcomed to campus last weekend by Fairfield students and staff during move-in day. Some of the nation's best high school students were selected from 6,974 applications - the second highest amount received in Fairfield's history. This class represents the second-lowest acceptance rate ever (49.7 percent).

Hailing from 29 states and seven foreign countries, the Class of 2006 includes students from 496 different high schools. The largest groups are from St. Anthony's High School and Iona Prep, both in New York. More than 90 students have alumni ties to Fairfield, 40 have a sibling here now, and 12 percent identified themselves as AHANA.

In academic performance, the incoming class gets high marks: 70 percent of students ranked in the top 25 percent of their high school graduating classes; more than half of the Class has SAT scores higher than 1200 (up 46 percent from last year); and the average SAT rose 13 points from last year to 1193. Nearly 140 students are merit scholars, and there are nine Community Scholars.

Apart from academics, 68 percent participated in community service work in high school, 34 students were editors of their high school yearbooks or newspapers, and 33 held positions as class or student council presidents or vice-presidents.

SON professor completes Health Partners Fellowship

By Dana Ambrosini, Assistant Director of Media Relations

Philip A. Greiner, DNSc, R.N., associate professor in the School of Nursing, has completed a two-year Health Partners Fellowship at the International Center for Health Leadership Development (ICHLD).

The Center, a strategic alliance of the University of Illinois at Chicago and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, seeks in part to increase the leadership capacity of people working in community organizations and academic institutions, in order to facilitate partnerships that address local health needs. Of 140 applicants to Greiner's class, only 12 were chosen.

Greiner is director of Fairfield University's Health Promotion Center in Bridgeport, which provides health education, screening activities, and referrals to other community organizations. The grant-funded center grapples with issues that affect many organizations that provide services to low- to moderate-income families, such as sustainability, and access to services. "The Health Partners Fellowship helps participants overcome such challenges by interacting with and learning from others in community and academic institutions," he says. "The primary focus is to help develop people."

Greiner traveled throughout the United States for five one-week training meetings during each year of the fellowship.

While helping those in community health organizations to understand the inner workings of the academic institutions they seek to partner with, Greiner also "picked the brains" of his fellow participants about issues he encounters working in communities. Sustainability, for example, is a major problem for organizations such as the Health Promotion Center. "Such organizations often receive significant grant funding the first few years of operations, but then have difficulty securing enough funding to continue operations," Greiner says. "The sudden loss of an organization that a local community has come to depend on often causes them to distrust other such groups. Communities learn to be wary of such hit-and-run approaches.

"Organizations must work on providing programs they can continue after initial grant money is gone," he notes. "And they must make proactive searches for continued funding a priority."

Racial understanding is another issue on which Greiner's fellowship focused. "You learn to listen to people about not just what they need, but about who they are and what their experience has been with other community initiatives," he says.

In July, Greiner and Nancy Tartt, who were fellows in the second class, were chosen to participate in the final round of interviews for the potential third class. Those 12 finalists will begin their two-year fellowships in September 2002.

"Phil was a very active member of the fellowship," says Virginia Martinez, J.D., director of the Center. "His comments were always thoughtful and he drew upon his experience in working with community and university partners."

In February 2003, Greiner will travel to El Paso, Texas, where the Center will bring the three Health Partners classes together to discuss their experiences.

University wins national honors for publications

University photojournalist Jean Santopatre garnered an honorable mention in Company magazine's annual photo contest for this image of James Mayzik, S.J., director of the media center, greeting a young parishioner after Sunday morning mass.

University photojournalist Jean Santopatre has earned recognition from Company, the national Jesuit magazine, receiving an honorable mention in its annual photo competition. Her photo of James Mayzik, S.J. (above) first appeared in Fairfield Now (spring '02) as part of a photo essay and is now featured in Company's summer 2002 issue.

Also in publications, Women in Communication, a national organization of professional communicators representing a wide range of fields, has awarded its highest honor - the Clarion Award - to Fairfield University for two publications produced during the past year. Virginia-based Communication Concepts has done so as well in three categories, conferring what it calls "a rare Grand Award" on one publication, and APEX awards for overall excellence on two others.

And the winners are:

• An undergraduate admission recruitment piece titled I Am; I Have Become (the Clarion and an APEX), written by Jill Caseria, assistant director of publications, and Barbara Kiernan, director of publications, designed by Kim Szabo of Printing and Graphic Services, and featuring several photos by Jean Santopatre.
• A special one-time publication, Friends Remember Friends, created to honor the memory of the 14 Fairfield alumni who died on September 11 (the Clarion and the APEX Grand Award). The piece was written by Barbara Kiernan and designed by Linda Smaligo, formerly of Printing and Graphic Services.
• The alumni magazine, Fairfield Now (an APEX award for publication excellence), Barbara Kiernan, editor; Linda Smaligo, designer; Jean Santopatre, photojournalist.

Photo by Jean Santopatre

The Rev. Charles Allen, S.J., executive assistant to the University President, has been sworn in as chaplain of the Fairfield police department. "I'm very honored," Allen said, after receiving a badge from Police Chief Joseph Sambrook.

Susan Allen, a registered nurse the University's Health Center, was interviewed by the Connecticut Post in August about a new state mandate requiring all students living on campus to be vaccinated against meningococcal meningitis. She strongly recommended that all students receive the vaccine, even if they don't live on campus. Those living on campus won't receive a room key until they do so, Allen said. "It could be a fatal disease," she told the Post. "Students live in close quarters, sharing glasses, utensils, and cigarettes. You can't get it just sitting in class, though."

In May, Robert Bolger, associate professor of mathematics, made his second trip to Kassel University in Germany to speak on n-valued logics and fine geometrics. In July, he was one of 275 scholars from 16 countries who attended the Park City (Utah) Mathematics Institute, which is sponsored by the Princeton, N.J.-based think tank, the Institute for Advanced Study. Bolger, attending The institute for the 10th time, spoke to teachers about memory and regurgitation versus understanding and articulation. In addition, Bolger spoke about "math miracles" when Fairfield University played host to the Clavius Mathematics Group, a team of two dozen mathematicians who meet on college campuses to do research while sharing work, prayer, and recreation.

Also in July, Bolger reconvened with friend, Fairfield alumnus (1955) and faculty member (1958-67) Robert O'Neill, when he and 14 family members traveled to Louisville, Ky., for a three-day bash celebrating O'Neill's 50th wedding anniversary.

Cecelia Bucki, Ph.D., associate professor of history, was elected treasurer of the Connecticut Coordinating Committee for the Promotion of History (CCCPH) at its May meeting. The CCCPH is a group of historians, educators, archivists, and others who function as a clearinghouse for history activity in the state and who sponsor history education through federal and state funds.

In August, Arjun Chaudhuri, Ph.D., chair of the marketing department, and Ipshita Ray, Ph.D., assistant professor of marketing, presented A Study of Consumer and Store Relationships at the American Marketing Association's Summer Educators' Conference in San Diego, Calif.

Edward Deak, Ph.D., professor of economics, was quoted in newspapers in Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and New York. In July, the Westchester County Business Journal reported his quote, "A good liberal-arts education gives the foundation for a lot of careers after (graduation) from school. It's a cliché, but it's what is needed for a lifetime of learning." In the Advocate and Greenwich Time he noted, "Affluence is a nice problem to have, but affluence also comes with its own problems," including the high cost of real estate. Finally, in a July Hartford Courant article on how the market decline has forced many older Americans to rethink their retirements, Deak said, "The big house on the island with the boat, that's gone ... We may have to look at things a little bit differently."

Harold Forsythe, assistant professor of history and director of black studies, was interviewed in July by the Associated Press for a story on the National Visionary Leadership Project. The project, headed by Camille Cosby and Renee Poussaint, seeks to preserve the testimony of legendary and pioneering African-Americans who are 70 years old and older. Forsythe's comments were carried in newspapers in Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Jersey, and New York.

The Rev. Francis Hannafey, S.J., assistant professor of religious studies, recently published "Entrepreneurship in Papal Thought" in the international religion and theology journal, Louvain Studies. In August, he attended the annual meeting of the Society for Business Ethics in Denver, Colo., where he presented Economic and Moral Criteria of Executive Compensation.

Religious Studies department chair and professor Paul Lakeland, Ph.D., was quoted in a July Hartford Courant article about Voice of the Faithful, a lay movement that has gained momentum following the sexual abuse scandals in the Catholic Church. Lakeland said church leaders are likely to be uncomfortable with the idea of structural change within the church. "Bishops are company men," he said. "They are not people who are selected because they want to shake things up."

John Orman, Ph.D., professor of politics (and part-time political comedian and rapper), was among the eclectic mix of artists and activists who participated in a two-day event at Bridgeport's Acoustic Café in July, according to the Connecticut Post. The event was sponsored by The Domino Effect, a non-profit organization seeking to meld the arts with social and political action that was launched by Fairfield University alumna Kari Masi '01.

In August, Prentice Hall published Celebrity Politics, a book co-authored by Orman and Darrell West, Ph.D., professor of politics at Brown University. The book considers the blurring of lines in media coverage of politicians and celebrities. Orman was featured on National Public Radio's program "On Point" to discuss a quintessential example of this phenomena: Bill Clinton's aspirations to become a talk show host.

Orman was also quoted in a Connecticut Post article on the 25th anniversary of the death of Elvis Presley. "Elvis is part of American Americana," he said. "He was the first musician famous for being himself. He was a name brand."

Also quoted in the Post article was music program director Brian Torff, who said what impressed him most about Elvis was "how he transformed American music. I don't think he ever knew the magnitude of what he accomplished, fusing blues and R&B into rock."

Also, in July, Torff performed with jazz pianist Florence Melnotte during a weekend billed as "Jazzin' the Catskills."

Elizabeth Petrino, Ph.D., assistant professor of English, attended the four-day American Literature Association Convention in Long Beach, Calif., this spring, participating in a panel discussion about the narratives of trauma and healing written by 19th-century American women. She presented "Your everlasting rivers speak/Their dialect of yore": Indian Removal, Voice, and the Persistence of Cultural Memory in Nineteenth-Century American Women's Writing.

Petrino's article, "Nineteenth-Century American Women's Poetry" has been published in The Cambridge Companion to Nineteenth-Century American Women's Writing. In addition, she has received a highly competitive position as a Faculty Resource Network Scholar-in-Residence at New York University for the fall 2002 semester. Petrino will participate in university and departmental lectures, develop professional relationships with the faculty, and work on two articles about lyric theory.

In July, an op-ed piece by Gavriel Rosenfeld, Ph.D., assistant professor of history, was published in the Stamford Advocate and Greenwich Time. In the piece, titled "Ground Zero's Future Should Include Present Excavation," Rosenfeld recommended preserving a portion of the current pit at Ground Zero as part of the site's redevelopment.

Voice of America News reported that Katherine Schwab, Ph.D., associate professor of visual and performing arts, was among the speakers who addressed an international conference in July. The conference, held in New York, was part of the 80th Annual American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association Supreme Convention.

Professor of Religious Studies John Thiel, Ph.D., has published God, Evil, and Innocent Suffering: A Theological Reflection. He wrote most of the book during a Robert Wall Research Sabbatical in spring 2001. In addition, his earlier book, Senses of Tradition: Continuity and Development in Catholic Faith, received second place in the Theology category of the 2001 Catholic Press Association annual book awards.

At the 2002 annual meeting of the Catholic Theological Society of America, Thiel was named the society's coordinator of relations between bishops and theologians.

Physics professor Michael Zabinski, Ph.D., was featured in a Sunday Boston Globe article in August about the National Computer Camp he founded 25 years ago. "I wouldn't call myself a prophet or anything like that, but I did always believe computers would become a major part of our daily existence, and that it was a natural around which to design a summer camp for youngsters," Zabinski said of the program, which, since 1978, has reached 25,000 youngsters in Fairfield, Atlanta, Cleveland, and Pittsburgh.

Births
Nancy Lilley, on leave from the department of public relations - grandchildren Emma, born May 7, and Joseph, born July 13.

Condolences
James P. Vail, Ed.D., professor emeritus of sociology who taught at Fairfield University for 30 years, died July 30.
   Vail, who began at Fairfield in 1949, played an important role in the founding of the sociology department. He was named assistant professor of sociology in 1952, associate professor in 1959, and was made full professor in 1964. From 1964 until 1972, Vail was director of the foundations and teaching division in the GSEAP. He retired as a full professor emeritus in 1979.
   In 1970, Fairfield University bestowed upon Vail the Distinguished Service Award for his work with the Graduate School of Education.
   Vail received a B.A. degree from Seton Hall University and his master's and doctoral degrees from Columbia University.

Rudolph Klein, father-in-law of Norman A. Solomon, Ph.D., dean, Charles F. Dolan School of Business, died July 31.

Arnulfo Alicea, brother-in-law of Ed Rivera, contract administrator of custodial services, died August 14.

New Employees
Dana Ambrosini - Assistant director of media relations, Public Relations
Thomas Angelucci - Groundskeeper, Grounds Maintenance
Christopher Beecham - Supervisor, Grounds Maintenance
Lawrence Carroll - Vice president for advancement, Prep
Robert Didato - Security officer, Security
Stephen Dogmantis - Assistant football coach, assistant academic coordinator
Elizabeth Hastings - Program development assistant, University College
Michael Lyons - Network manager, CNS
Jane Matrone - Academic Center coordinator, Prep
Benjamin McAdoo - Assistant head coach, Football
Sallyann Moore - Associate director of Publications, Publications
Claudia Nielsen - Associate director of Annual Giving/Parent Programs, Development
Stephanie Pelletier - Director of Special Events, Advancement
Lisa Roberts - Development writer, Development
Ed Ross - Senior designer, Printing and Graphic Services
Brett Shaw - HVAC mechanic, Energy Services
Jeffrey Werneke - Head coach, Women's Volleyball

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Charles F. Dolan School of Business

 

Arjun Chaudhuri, Ph.D.: The effect of in-store entertainment

By Jennifer K. Covino, Publications Writer

We've all been there on a Saturday morning, perusing the fresh-baked blueberry muffins or the tubs of potato salad at Stew Leonard's, trying to suppress a goofy grin as animated milk cartons wiggle their hips overhead or a ceramic cow mounted on the wall lets out a loud "moo."

Fairfield University professor of marketing and department chair Arjun Chaudhuri, Ph.D., wondered if all that feel-good entertainment at Stew's could be contributing to repeat business. So he conducted a consumer survey outside the store. Store affect - what Chaudhuri defines as a store's potential to "elicit a positive emotional response in the average consumer" - was measured by asking customers how often they felt emotions such as "happy," "amazed," and "entertained" during a visit to Stew's.

"We found that store affect is not directly related to commitment, but that it leads to trust, and trust in turn leads to commitment," Chaudhuri says. "Entertainment - making people feel happy with singing cows or dancing raisins - might get people to trust a store more."

In May, he presented the results, The Effect of Affect and Trust on Commitment: The Role of Entertainment in Retail Store Relationships, at the Academy of Marketing Science's annual conference.

Chaudhuri has been studying the role of emotional communication in advertising and marketing for more than a decade. In April 2001, he reached a pinnacle in his field when he and co-author Morris B. Holbrook, a graduate professor of marketing at Columbia University, were published in the Journal of Marketing, a leading, peer-reviewed publication with a circulation of 20,000-plus.

"When you publish in the Journal of Marketing, you open up a different level of exposure for the University," says Chaudhuri, who spent five years collecting data, writing, and revising "The Chain of Effects from Brand Trust and Brand Affect to Brand Performance: The Role of Brand Loyalty."

The publication has been rewarding on a personal note, as well, he says. "It's substantiation that that what I'm doing is worthwhile."

A native of India, Chaudhuri studied at Calcutta University, earning bachelor's and master's degrees in English in 1972 and 1974 respectively. He loved literature and was active in the local theater scene, but soon discovered there was little money to be made as an English major. He took a job in sales, and eventually became a marketing manager, overseeing 16 industrial and consumer brands for an Indonesian producer of margarine, shortening, and cooking oil.

In 1982, with his interest in marketing piqued, he immigrated to the United States to pursue a master's in communication science at the University of Connecticut. The move made sense, he says, not just because he had friends here, but because the United States "is the ultimate consumption culture."

Chaudhuri taught at UConn, King's College in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., and Eastern Connecticut State University before joining Fairfield University in 1991 as an instructor of marketing. He earned his doctorate in communication science from UConn in 1992 and became marketing department chair at Fairfield in 2001. Chaudhuri has also brought his expertise to the commercial sector, as a brand consultant for Grey Worldwide, the New York City-based advertising giant.

He has been published more than two dozen times in peer-reviewed journals, and has won two "Best Paper" awards - one at the 2001 World Marketing Congress in Wales, and the other at the 1999 American Marketing Association summer conference in San Francisco. Most recently, he and Ipshita Ray, Ph.D., assistant professor of marketing, co-authored a paper on satisfaction, trust, and commitment in store relationships. Some of the research was gathered by Ray's senior-level students, who conducted surveys outside six different stores: a pharmacy, a wholesale club, and music, grocery, department, and convenience stores. The paper has been submitted to the American Marketing Association's Winter Educators' Conference, to be held in Orlando, Fla., in February.

Chaudhuri continues to expand his study of the relationship between emotional communication and product, store, and brand commitment. The research is "what keeps me ticking," Chaudhuri says. "I wake up in the morning and it's the research that gets me up."

And there's always more work to be done. For example, Chaudhuri says, it might be interesting to look at how men and women respond differently to entertainment at a retail store. And he wonders whether the entertainment makes euphoric shoppers a little less tight with their pocketbooks.

So many unanswered questions, but don't expect to run into Chaudhuri at your local market anytime soon. "I'm a very bad shopper," he confesses. "I tend to get in and out as fast as I can."

Photo by Jean Santopatre

Grant to help multicultural students attend Fairfield

By Nancy Habetz, Director of Media Relations

The William H. Pitt Foundation has awarded Fairfield University $40,000 for its Community Partnership Scholars Program, which helps inner-city, multicultural students attend Fairfield University. Under the terms of the gift, the Foundation will provide Fairfield with an annual gift of $20,000, providing $5,000 each to four Bridgeport students from Bassick, Central, Harding, and Kolbe-Cathedral high schools who qualify to attend the University.

The Program was established at Fairfield University in 1999 in response to the rising need for financial aid among qualified undergraduates. The University has made a commitment to award full-tuition scholarships annually and a personal computer to one Community Partnership Scholar from each of the partner high schools in the program.

Managed by the University's offices of Admission and Financial Aid, the program also provides visits by admissions counselors, campus tours, and ongoing advisement to assist and encourage students at the four Bridgeport schools as well as six high schools in New York City. When fully implemented in 2004, the program will include partnerships with 18 high schools in economically disadvantaged areas that have a track record of preparing their students for post-secondary academic success.

University President Aloysius P. Kelley, S.J., has made securing funds to meet the financial needs of AHANA (African-American, Hispanic, Asian, Native American) students a hallmark of his administration at Fairfield. "We are very grateful to have the support of the William H. Pitt Foundation for this important program," he says. "This kind of selfless generosity can truly bring about life-changing opportunities for inner-city students who work hard academically but don't have the financial means to extend their education beyond high school."

Beginning this year, the Community Partnership Scholars will be asked to complete a service component as part of the program by taking part in the partner school visitation program. In addition, Fairfield's Office of Admission will sponsor a sophomore award program to honor community service among academically successful sophomore students in the partner schools.

Noel Appel, director of foundation relations, noted that since 1984, the University has increased by 500 percent the amount it allocates for scholarships and financial aid, not including athletic grants-in-aid. "Nationally, the number of students from low-income backgrounds who are prepared to undertake the rigors of a college education are growing. Their inability to do so holds serious societal implications, which is why this program is so important."

Internationally known expert joins School of Nursing

By Nancy Habetz, Director of Media Relations

Academic Vice President Orin Grossman, Ph.D., and Suzanne Campbell, Ph.D., assistant professor of nursing, met with Grayce M. Sills, R.N., Ph.D. (center), on campus last spring when she worked with students on leadership. Sills is teaching two courses this semester as a visiting professor.

Grayce M. Sills, R.N., Ph.D., FAAN, an international consultant for community-based mental health nursing, has joined Fairfield University's School of Nursing as a visiting professor.

A past president of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association and editor of The Journal of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association, Sills chairs The Ohio State University Hospitals' board and is president of the American Nurses Foundation. She is professor emeritus at The Ohio State University College of Nursing and serves on the advisory board of the American Psychiatric Nurses Foundation.

In 1999, Sills was named a "Living Legend" by the Governing Council of the American Academy of Nursing. She received a Hildegard Peplau Award from the American Nurses Association in 2000 for her contributions to psychiatric nursing.

At Fairfield, Sills is teaching two nursing courses this fall. Each includes one intensive weekend of classes, followed by a semester of "virtual classroom" computer work with the professor and other students, and a final classroom meeting.

One course, "Leadership & Management in Nursing," provides students with organizational, management, and leadership theories, and focuses on decision-making, collaboration, power, and conflict.

"Development of Nursing Science" provides a foundation for understanding the nature of science, the state of the art of nursing science, and approaches to the development of a science. Students examine the connections between theory, research, and practice, as well as critique nursing models and engage in concept analysis and synthesis.

"Fairfield is indeed fortunate to have Grayce Sills join our faculty for the year," says Orin Grossman, Ph.D., academic vice president. "As a recognized leader in nursing education, she will bring extraordinary knowledge and experience to the School of Nursing. I know that the students, faculty, School of Nursing Dean Jeanne Novotny, and I will benefit greatly from her presence."

Photo by Jean Santopatre

Kathy Engelman: Going the distance for others

By Jill Kasiewicz Caseria, Editor

Kathy Engelman, communications coordinator for the Office of Admission, will join thousands of others in the 60-mile Avon Breast Cancer 3-Day walk in October. She has been training regularly for the event since May.

Sometimes the call to do for others comes from an unexpected source. For Kathy Engelman, communications coordinator for the Office of Admission, the call came in the form of a small ad in a woman's magazine. The ad's message empowered her to move - literally - in a new direction. On Columbus Day Weekend, she'll join more than 8,000 others in a 60-mile walk through New York to raise money for breast cancer research.

The Avon Breast Cancer 3-Day walk is one of several fundraising efforts of the Avon Breast Cancer Crusade, an initiative of Avon Products, Inc. Money raised will support breast cancer medical research, clinical care, education and services, and early detection efforts through the Avon Foundation. To participate in the event, each walker must raise a minimum of $1,900. So far, Engelman has raised $1,200 in donations from family members, friends, and co-workers. Engelman says she is thankful to everyone who has supported her endeavor. "People have been so willing to give," she says. "I am so impressed." But what's really impressive is Engelman's courage to push herself through this extreme physical challenge simply to help countless patients she's never met.

Why is she taking on such an intensive endurance test? "I think everyone knows someone who has been diagnosed with breast cancer," Engelman says. "For me, this event is a chance to prove my own physical limits - I've never done anything like this before - and to raise awareness about the importance of early detection."

She will walk as a part of a 25-member team. Traveling approximately 20 miles per day, walkers must begin their journey by 9 o'clock each morning. The event is not a race; rather, it is a chance for participants to learn from breast cancer survivors, understand their own limits, and get information about detection to share with others.

Engelman, who has been training since May, understands that this event will not be easy. Over the past few months, based on the recommendations in the Avon training manual, she increased her distances gradually, now walking eight miles on Tuesday evenings and up to 12 miles each Saturday. "It takes me about 50 minutes to walk 3 miles, so I figure it will take about seven hours for me to complete each day's route," she says. She is about to begin the most difficult training which will best simulate a single day - two back-to-back walks of 15 to 20 miles each. A couple of weeks prior to the event, shorter walks are recommended to reserve energy and minimize the risk for pre-walk injuries. "The walk organizers want us to know what to expect in terms of distance and fatigue, but they don't recommend that we walk 20 miles the day before the event."

She has also practiced her walking techniques (posture, stride length, and how to carry her arms) using her new cross-trainers and transporting her equipment - a hip pack with two water bottles, sunscreen, layers of moisture-wicking clothing, and plenty of extra socks. (It's recommended that walkers change their socks two to three times per day.) If she decides to take it easy on a particular route, she is not worried. There are rest stops every two miles, with latrines, drinks, and snacks provided, along with volunteers and first aid. "We have to be at the camp each evening by 7 p.m.," she explains. "There are 'sweeper' vans who will pick up any walkers still along the route at that time."

Walkers travel to and from "Mobile Cities." An expansive site, each Mobile City is equipped with rows of tents, portable showers and changing areas, and eating facilities with hot meals prepared for all participants - along with medical professionals, massage therapists, and a general store. Upon arrival, walkers find their tents and belongings waiting for them. "For me, organizing these sites would be a logistical nightmare," says Engelman. "I have so much respect for the volunteers." Each evening, there is a program to inform walkers about any news or to entertain them with music.

Her emotional preparation for the trek has included talking to people who have participated in this and similar walks, as well as attending two local information sessions.

"Again and again, I've heard it's a positive, life-changing event, where everyone is willing to help each other - where the camaraderie is incredible," she says. "I am looking forward to learning from the other walkers and experiencing something extraordinary."

To donate, contact Kathy Engelman at ext. 2696.

Photo by Jean Santopatre

University's new Lessing Field is ready for fall season

Photo by James Marshall

Thanks to a gift from University trustee Stephen M. Lessing '76 to Our Promise: The Campaign for Fairfield University, the athletic field across from Loyola Hall was reconfigured during the summer.

Lessing Field now includes 600 bleacher seats, a scoreboard, a rest room, covered team benches, a sound system, and sports lighting, as well as a resurfaced track and a hedge perimeter. The natural grass field will be used for varsity soccer and lacrosse.

Photo by Jean Santopatre

Online tuition payments and donations now possible

By Jennifer K. Covino, Publications Writer

Fairfield University can now receive tuition payments and donations via its Web site using the same Internet-based technology that makes it possible to pay a Visa bill or order an L.L. Bean sweater online. The foray into e-commerce is expected to make a big difference in the University's ability to service students, alumni, parents, and donors by offering a secure, around-the-clock payment option that's just a few mouse clicks away.

Since June 2001, when online giving went "live," 120 alumni and other donors have made instant contributions to the University by entering a credit card number on a Web site form. While the number represents a tiny percentage of Fairfield's 8,000 regular donors, it's enough to keep Director of Development Services Julie Coyle confident that the service is catching on.

Meanwhile, Bursar Ray Bourdeau predicts that the new online tuition service - introduced to parents at freshman orientation this year and also through bright yellow flyers sent home with tuition bills in June - "is going to take off on its own because it's so convenient." Between July 1 and August 15, parents made nearly $500,000 in tuition payments online, he says.

"The big benefit to online payment is that our donors, students, and families have the ability to pay 24 hours a day, seven days a week," Bourdeau says. "It also allows for better use of staff time and has the potential to increase investment income. There's also no handling of the cash, so within a couple of days it ends up in a very good investment vehicle for us, earning a nice return."

The idea of online payments took shape in fall 2000, when Bourdeau and Coyle formed a task force to study the costs and infrastructure involved. The group included University Webmaster Laura Johnson, as well as representatives from the Controller's Office, Computing & Network Services, and Systems and Computer Technology Corp., the outside vendor that maintains Banner and other campus computer applications.

The University chose a third party, a new company called Commonfund Inworks, to process the electronic payments. "Inworks was a start-up, so the costs were lower and they were eager to be flexible," says Coyle.

The choice was also comfortable, says Bourdeau, because Fairfield has had a long-standing relationship with parent company Commonfund, a Wilton, Conn.-based manager of investment funds for college endowment and operating assets. Plus, the company offered several advantages: since it used Web-based forms, there was no need to purchase new software or train employees; the site's security was assured; student accounts could be electronically updated; and money could be transferred almost immediately into Commonfund's interest-earning, short- and intermediate-term funds.

Parents can access the online tuition screen from several links on the University Web site. Students can access it through Campus Pipeline.

Bourdeau sees additional uses in the future. Students who are accepted to Fairfield and want to secure their spot may be able to make confirmation deposits online, he says, and University College students may be able to register - and pay - for classes all in the same online session.

For her part, Coyle says she's been surprised by the range of class years represented by online donors. "We assumed it would be young alumni adopting this service, but it's been an interesting mix of younger and older individuals," she says. "It's also attracted people who hadn't given to the University in years, who actually stumbled upon the Web site."

In June, Coyle's office sent a targeted e-mail to alumni who had given gifts the prior year. The e-mail provided a direct link to the donation site. "For a week following, we received many donations online, which was very encouraging," she says.

Eventually, Coyle would like to enhance the site so donors can direct funds toward financial aid, capital needs such as science labs, or to specific academic departments. And she would like alumni to be able to make a donation, read about University news, register for an event, and pay for an event online, all during one session.

In fact, cyberspace correspondence with alumni is growing, thanks to a link between the online giving page and "Tell Us Your News," a form that prompts visitors to share news about a marriage, new baby or job, or recent academic achievement for publication in Fairfield Now. "We wanted the online giving to go part and parcel with 'Tell Us Your News,' and we've been hugely successful in terms of increased communication from alumni," Coyle says.

Coyle thinks use of the online giving site will increase via marketing efforts and word-of-mouth. But she doesn't expect major changes yet in the way the University connects with its donors. "It hasn't changed our direct marketing appeals," Coyle notes. "We're still doing the same number of mailings and telethons. The only thing that is changing is that we're mentioning the benefits of giving online to our donors."

In the meantime, Fairfield is positioned well in the place where academics and e-commerce meet. Says Coyle: "Among our Jesuit peers and like schools, we're ahead of the curve at this point."

Fulbright scholarship awarded to Lara Eckler '02

By Dana Ambrosini, Assistant Director of Media Relations

Class of 2002 alumna Lara M. Eckler has been awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to Germany, where she will study theater under one of the country's foremost theater historians.

The Fulbright is the most prestigious scholarship awarded by the U.S. government. The grant funds students to go abroad for one year after graduation to engage in independent research, study, and work.

Eckler is the only Fairfield University graduate to accept a Fulbright this year. Another student chosen to receive the award had to decline it. Since 1993, 29 Fairfield University students have been awarded Fulbrights.

Eckler will study at the Technische University as well as the Freie University in Berlin, where she will work under theater historian Erika Fischer-Lichte, head of theater at Freie. Eckler, who at Fairfield had a double major in German and theater, and a minor in communications, will explore how plays are brought to fruition in Germany. One of her goals is to translate a German play and get it produced in the United States.

Eckler's proficiency in both of her majors has enabled her to accomplish so much, said Katherine Kidd, Ph.D., director of the international studies program at Fairfield. "She's exceptionally competent in both areas, which is what makes her an excellent candidate for this type of Fulbright," Kidd said.

Her Fulbright is the first that has been awarded to a Fairfield University student for the purpose of studying theater, according to Martha LoMonaco, Ph.D., chair of the department of visual and performing arts and associate professor of the theater program.

"This is tremendous. This is a proud moment," said LoMonaco, who has worked closely with Eckler at Fairfield. "Lara is an exceptional person."

Fluent in German, Eckler interned last summer with the Berliner Ensemble in Berlin in the heart of the German theater world. In addition to writing and producing plays at Fairfield, Eckler has some professional theater experience, having operated the sound board for a play at Stamford Theatre Works. Her main interests are in writing plays and in stage management.

A University Fellows Scholar, Eckler also received the Mary Louise Larrabee Fine Arts Scholarship. She served on the board of Theatre Fairfield and as president of the German club and the University's chapter of Alpha Mu Gamma, a national foreign language honor society. Eckler is a member of Phi Beta Kappa and Alpha Sigma Nu, the National Jesuit Honor Society.

Photo by Jean Santopatre

Summer waterfront dining
These twin fawns found an irresistible lunch at Bellarmine Pond.

Photo by Jean Santopatre

$10 million gift propels University's campaign past $100 million mark

By Barbara D. Kiernan, Director of University Publications

How hard can it be to write about an anonymous gift? After all, there's no need to identify the donor. No need to talk about his or her reasons for making the gift. And no need to tie it to any past or present affiliation with Fairfield University.

Yet, when the gift is $10 million, and has the effect of moving Our Promise: The Campaign for Fairfield past its initial $100 million goal, it's hard not to want to shout the good news from the rooftop of Bellarmine Hall. If you remember, that rooftop is precisely where the public phase of the Campaign began - at least according to the Mission Possible video that helped launch the effort at the President's Dinner two years ago.

At the time, University President Aloysius P. Kelley, S.J. announced that leadership gifts raised in the quiet phase totaled a startling $75 million, or three-quarters of the goal. Eighteen months later, with some $97 million pledged and two years remaining in the campaign's alumni phase, the Board of Trustees elected to raise the goal to $125 million.

And now this. A $10 million gift that has propelled Fairfield well past its first goal and, when added to other recent gifts, has brought the campaign's ongoing success to $110 million. What this new leadership donor has requested - in addition to anonymity - is that the $10 million be placed in the general endowment to support the repayment of bond issues that have made some of the major campus construction possible.

Words can never express Fairfield's gratitude to this hidden benefactor, and so we simply offer our heartfelt thanks.

Fairfield alumnus Yacoviello '02 is at the top of his class

By Nancy Habetz, Director of Media Relations

John S. Madzula II (pictured left), representing the Gleason family, congratulates Brett J. Yacoviello '02, winner of the John and Veronica Gleason Award.

Brett J. Yacoviello '02 is proof positive that hard work pays off. The Trumbull resident managed to work about 15 hours a week while pursuing his bachelor's degree at Fairfield University, putting in extra time during the summer and winter breaks. When he completed four years earlier this year, he was at the top of his class with the highest academic standing, earning the University's prestigious Bellarmine Medal and the John and Veronica Gleason Award, which brings with it a monetary award of $1,000.

An accounting major, Brett worked at People's Bank freshman through junior years, followed by an internship that helped him to learn about accounting activities and team-building skills.

Enrolled in Fairfield's five-year BS/MBA program, Brett will continue his studies this coming year, adding the MBA to his accounting degree. He already has an internship with Ernst & Young lined up for January.

Business has become a greater focus, but he is looking forward to branching out into other areas, too. He says the tools learned in business can be applied to every area of life. "What's great about Fairfield," he adds, "is it gets you involved with so many aspects of life."

One life-changing event for Brett while studying at Fairfield was his selection sophomore year for a summer program to the Czech Republic. He was one of only five students from the United States who joined some 70 students from around the world. "The program had a great international flavor to it," he observes. "Covering more than the technical aspect, it presented the broader context of business and challenged values. It tried to bring out the best in each of us, encouraging us to be better role models."

The impact was substantial, Brett says, leading him to examine all aspects of his life. He took up yoga, began going to church regularly, and refocused his efforts academically. "It was an important summer for me," he notes.

As an undergraduate, Brett belonged to Beta Alpha Psi, the national honor society for accounting majors, and helped tutor younger accounting students. In addition to the Bellarmine Medal, he received the Connecticut Society of Certified Public Accountants Merit Award for the graduating student majoring in accounting with the highest academic standing, and the Charles F. Dolan School of Business Academic Achievement Award for the graduating student in the School of Business with the highest academic standing.

Photo by Jean Santopatre

Where does all my time go?

In September, we shed the more leisurely pace we adopted during the summer as we move back into the structure of the academic year. For those of us with children, our routine also embraces their school calendars and extracurricular activities. It can be disconcerting to move suddenly to a more frantic pace. The challenge, from a health standpoint, is to achieve some balance in these activities so that you do not develop unhealthy habits and a more stressful lifestyle.

Research on stress over the past two decades shows that it has both a direct and an indirect effect on our physical and mental health. From migraine headaches and back pain to heart attacks and strokes, stress can contribute to multiple physical health problems. Mental health problems can be subtle, from generalized anxiety and angry outbursts to panic attacks and nervous breakdowns. Stress also contributes to car accidents (driving too fast, not paying attention, and using a cell phone while driving) and to family dysfunction (unwarranted hostility, overprotectiveness due to feelings of abandonment, and abusive behavior).

The best way to deal with this change from a leisurely pace to a hectic one is to write down a family schedule of events. Begin (using a pencil!) by including those things that are a must - such as work, school, and worship. Then add in those activities that bring you the most fulfillment - such as choir, a book group, exercise. By this time your calendar will start to seem full.

Now add the activities that you and your family want to include, things like after-school sports, piano lessons, scouts, or social events. By this time, the calendar is crowded. At this time, add some time for family activities. Our family reserves Friday evenings. We usually get a pizza and rent a video, which for us is a perfect way to unwind from the week and spend time together. Finally, add to the schedule a few trips to extended family and any known events for the fall, such as concerts, shows, and dinners.

Next, ask each family member what activities he or she is willing to drop, out of all the items on the calendar, excluding those things you must do. (Your children will want to drop school unless you are specific about all of this!) Try to have every person eliminate at least one regularly recurring activity or try to combine activities, such as having multiple family members in various activities around the same time block. Be sure to factor in transportation time (be realistic, given the time of day and the possible traffic) and the possibility of carpooling.

Now look at that calendar for periods of relaxation and/or exercise. We tend to forget to include such things in our schedule. Include time to be alone with your children, to be alone with your spouse, and to be by yourself. Make sure that your children have enough free time to be kids.

What goals are you placing on hold because of a busy schedule? Are you planning for the sudden influx of activities that comes with the academic year? Try making a calendar and scheduling time to relax and spend time with your family. By creating a less stressful lifestyle, you will have a happier, healthier, and ultimately more productive fall semester.

Philip A. Greiner, DNSc, RN

Associate Professor of Nursing; Director, Undergraduate program; Director, Health Promotion Center

New digital printers provide cutting-edge photocopying technology

By Jill Kasiewicz Caseria, Editor

Analog copy machines have joined the ranks of the mimeograph and rotary telephone as elements of offices-past, now that a new fleet of 53 Canon digital imaging devices operate in departments across the campus.

These new machines produce a cleaner, crisper image using computer-enhanced technology. Analog copiers typically apply toner to paper by electrostatic charge with the aid of mirrors, lenses, and developing agents; originals must be on the photocopying surface for reproduction. Digital imaging devices are quite different: The machine scans an original and converts its images to binary code, which is stored in memory while the device makes copies. In other words, the operator can place a new document on the copier's glass while the device is producing the previous set of images. "By scanning the original, it's possible to get first-generation images all the time - and therefore a superior quality," says Arthur Payne, director of Printing and Graphic Services (P&GS).

Some of the new digital imaging devices are equipped with special "networking kits" that allow the machines to fax, scan, and print. What's more, by the end of September, some will be fully networked to faculty computers, which will eliminate time spent standing at the copier, while increasing savings on fax toner and desktop printer cartridges.

These networked printers will simplify the process to produce course materials and make the services of P&GS more accessible to the faculty, says Payne. For example, if an instructor finds an article in the library that would be appropriate to include in class materials, all that's needed is a scan on one of the library's Canon devices which will then send it electronically to the instructor's personal computer (PC). The instructor can then edit the material for the course packet from his or her office and produce a master set by printing it to the local Canon device. Or, the instructor can send the information electronically to Joanne Ference, electronic print technician at P&GS, who can format the file for reproduction. Soon, anyone will be able to send these files from off-campus sites to a P&GS server for reproduction.

If all of this scanning, copying, faxing, and printing sounds confusing, don't worry - help is on the way. When all devices are up and running, instructors will hold small group tutorial sessions to teach us how to use this new piece of office technology.

Summer office moves

Rita Duda, associate director of human resources, still conducted business while packing up the contents of her Loyola Hall office for the move to Dolan Commons.

Need an appointment with HR? A reprint done at the Print Shop? To see someone in Computing and Network Services? If so, go north - to the Dolan Campus.

In a series of moves designed both to enhance services and to underscore the centrality of the Ignatian Residential College to Fairfield's mission, the following offices have relocated and areas have been "re-purposed" during summer 2002:

Computing and Network Services
Thomas F. Dolan Commons, second floor
Campus mail address: Dolan Comm

Housing Operations
Gonzaga Hall, ground floor
Campus mail address: GZA 12

Human Resources
Thomas F. Dolan Commons, Lower Level
Campus mail address:
Dolan Comm LL4

Printing and Graphic Services
Thomas F. Dolan Commons, Lower Level
Campus mail address:
Dolan Comm LL3

Student Support Services
Gonzaga Hall, ground floor
Campus mail address: GZA 5

TRIO Programs
Southwell Hall
Campus mail address: SWL

School of Engineering
Dean's office, laboratories, classrooms
First floor, McAuliffe Hall (former location of Printing and Graphic Services)
Campus mail address: MCA

University College Classrooms
Dolan Hall West, ground floor (former location of Housing Operations) and Dolan House, first floor (former main office)

Save the Date: Bannow Dedication
Mark your calendar for the Bannow Science Center Dedication Ceremony on Thursday, Oct. 3, at 4:30 p.m. A reception and tours of the renovated facility follow the ceremony. For more information, contact the Office of Special Events at ext. 2660.

Photo by Jean Santopatre

Volleyball champ represents student-athlete voice in NCAA structure

By Patrick Moran, Assistant Sports Information Director

Her court numbers are impressive: She has led the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) in numerous assists (1,200); has ranked eighth in service aces (38); was named MAAC Rookie of the Year in 2000; was a second-team All-MAAC; and was named to the MAAC All-Tournament team. But what junior Kelly Sorensen will now do off the court will help student-athletes across the country. Recently selected to represent the MAAC on the NCAA's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), she and her peers will represent the student-athlete voice within the NCAA structure.

"This is a terrific opportunity for Kelly," says Senior Associate Director of Athletics and Fairfield SAAC advisor Alison Sexton, who nominated Sorensen. "She will do a great job and will have the chance to meet other student-athletes from around the country."

In July, Sorensen began her one-year term in Providence, R.I., at the summer meeting for representatives of each Division I conference. But this wasn't her first exposure to SAAC.

She became involved in the SAAC at Fairfield University after she was selected by Mitch Jacobs, former head volleyball coach, to represent volleyball. The Fairfield SAAC has been active in various community service projects, including Big Brothers/Big Sisters, the Make-A-Wish Foundation, and last spring's Rock and Jock softball game.

"The SAAC takes time," Sorensen says. "The Fairfield group meets for four to six days, five times a year, and we get legislation to read and understand."

Prior to being nominated for the national committee, she had already decided to pledge her commitment at the local level. "I would love to stay involved with the program," she says, explaining that representatives can stay on one year after graduation. "At the conference in July, I saw that SAAC reps really make a difference. I could see myself doing something like this for a career."

Sorensen's dedication to volleyball was evident last year following an accident in which she tore cartilage in her shoulder in two places. After undergoing surgery in October and months of rehabilitation, she is ready to get back on the court. Her return will help the Stags as they look to earn their sixth straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament. The team begins the home portion of its 2002 schedule against Central Connecticut State today at 7 p.m.

"The beginning of the season is going to be tough, since we are playing a lot of top teams," Sorensen says. "But with a lot of hard work and dedication we could be the best team ever in the history of Fairfield volleyball."

Photo by Jean Santopatre

Sports Shorts By Jack Jones, Director of Sports Information

Student-athletes receive pre-season honors

Although the fall sports season has barely begun, Fairfield University student-athletes are already receiving honors. Earlier this month, pitcher Mellissa Santos '03 was selected as the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) co-female student-athlete of the year, in recognition of her previous accomplishments in the classroom and on the diamond.

The men's soccer team, which placed a high 12th in last year's national poll, was picked second in the MAAC pre-season coaches' poll, just missing the top spot by four points. Sophomore Danny Attwell, senior Bryan Harkin, senior Justin Thompson, and sophomore Andy Uria earned All-MAAC pre-season honors. The women's soccer team collected third in its respective coaches' poll. Junior Maureen Miller and sophomore Meghan King both earned spots on the All-MAAC pre-season team.

The volleyball team secured the third spot in its coaches poll, as senior Laurie Brands received All-MAAC pre-season accolades. The football team secured third in its coaches poll. The field hockey team, the defending Patriot League champions, was voted fourth in the pre-season league poll.

Half-price season tickets now available

Basketball season ticket brochures are now available at various locations on campus and through the ticket office. University faculty and staff may purchase one season ticket at half-price; each additional ticket is full price. For additional information, call the ticket office at ext. 4103.

news Briefs

Fairfield University receives highest rating from Charity Navigator
Fairfield University has been given a four-star rating - the highest rating possible - from Charity Navigator. The Internet non-profit organization describes itself as "the only source in America that provides in-depth, objective analysis of the financial health of more than 1,100 of America's largest charities for free."

The Web site, www.charitynavigator.org, evaluates charities based on informational tax returns by examining two broad areas: short-term spending and long-term sustainability.

The organization examines seven performance categories: fundraising efficiency, fundraising expenses, program expenses, administration expenses, primary revenue growth, program expenses growth, and working capital ratio. In describing the Web site, Money magazine said it is "about separating well-run charities from well-intentioned money wasters."

Charity Navigator awards from zero to four stars and says the four-star rating is for an exceptional charity that "exceeds industry standards and outperforms most charities in its cause."

"We were pleased with the recognition by Charity Navigator of our efficiency as a
charitable organization and the assurance that this gives to our donors that their support is well-directed," says George E. Diffley, vice president for University advancement.

Fairfield's fundraising success is a credit to the alumni, friends, parents, corporations, and foundations that support the University, says Fredric C. Wheeler, associate vice president for development.

In addition to education, Charity Navigator rates non-profits according to the following categories: animals, arts / culture / humanities, the environment, health, human services, international, public benefit, and religion.

DSB Interactive Classroom gets a new name
In consultation with the alumni donors who made possible the creation of the Charles F. Dolan School of Business Andersen Interactive Classroom, the School has renamed the state-of-the-art facility the Alumni Interactive Classroom. "Given that, as an entity, the accounting firm Andersen no longer exists, and the difficult circumstances surrounding its demise," says Norm Solomon, dean, "we believed that the name change was the right thing to do. We are very pleased that Joe Berardino '71 (former Andersen CEO and a University trustee) most graciously understood our decision."

Staff Association introduces new officers
The Staff Association officers for the 2002-03 academic year are (pictured above, left to right) vice president Joe Martinelli (Telecommunications), treasurer Sharon Jones (Library), president Linda White (Arts and Sciences), and secretary Judy Vindheim (Admission). Not pictured is membership coordinator Rita O'Shea (Finance).

The Association organizes numerous social events and service opportunities throughout the year. In addition, its Dollars for Scholars program awards scholarships to Fairfield University students. Last year, five students each received a $1,000 scholarship.

Photo by Jean Santopatre

Sikorsky grant supports solar energy project
Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation has awarded a grant of $7,000 to Fairfield University's Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conversion and Use program.

The grid-connected photovoltaic project began in 2000 under the leadership of Evangelos Hadjimichael, Ph.D., dean of the School of Engineering, when the shingles of Townhouse 10 were replaced with approximately 800 photovoltaic cells. The cells soak in sunlight and convert it to electricity, which is then used to power Townhouse 10's appliances or is stored in batteries for later use. The residents of Townhouse 10 now receive approximately 55 to 60 percent of their energy from this "green" system.

"This photovoltaic project introduces students to power-electronics and showcases how solar energy works," says Hadjimichael. "And it provides our campus with a lab to train and educate students about transforming a living environment into its own source of energy."

Open VISIONS Forum: Fall 2002

September 30/Jacoby-Lunin Humanitarian Lecture

Benazir Bhutto

Benazir Bhutto, the first woman prime minister of an Islamic country, opens the series on Monday, Sept. 30, at 7:30 p.m. She will deliver the annual Jacoby-Lunin Humanitarian Lecture, which was created in 1951 by Jewish immigrant Frank Jacoby to promote causes of humanity and brotherhood. The lecture is presented in affiliation with the University's Carl and Dorothy Bennett Center for Judaic Studies.

After five years of self-imposed exile, during which she has lived alternately in London and Dubai, Oxford- and Radcliffe-educated Bhutto has said she plans to return to Pakistan for the upcoming elections on Oct. 10. Bhutto is credited with restoring some fundamental human rights during her two terms as prime minister. In July, Bhutto was reelected unopposed to head her Pakistan People's Party. However the ruling party of political rival Gen. Pervez Musharraf has promised to arrest Bhutto on corruption charges the moment she sets foot on Pakistani soil.

October 23

Dominick Dunne

Dominick Dunne, the best-selling novelist and Vanity Fair correspondent who has chronicled the criminal entanglements of the rich and famous, speaks on Wednesday, Oct. 23, at 7:30 p.m. Dunne was born in Hartford, Conn., to an affluent family. It was the murder of his young daughter, Dominique, that spearheaded Dunne's journalistic career during which he championed victims' rights and challenged the American justice system. As a television producer, he hosted star-studded parties in his Beverly Hills home, with a guest list that included Nancy and Ronald Reagan, Elizabeth Taylor, Truman Capote, and Audrey Hepburn, among others. Dunne has written several best-selling novels, including People Like Us, The Two Mrs. Grenvilles, and, most recently, Justice: Crimes, Trials and Punishments, which recounts the conviction on manslaughter charges of his daughter's killer, who served only two and a half years in prison. Dunne has covered the William Kennedy Smith, Menendez brothers, and O.J. Simpson trials for Vanity Fair.

November 10

Doris Kearns Goodwin

Doris Kearns Goodwin, author, NBC commentator, and Pulitzer Prize-winning historian, speaks on Sunday, Nov. 10, at 3 p.m. Goodwin was an assistant to Lyndon B. Johnson during the final year of his presidency and later helped compile his memoirs. In 1976, she published her first biography, Lyndon Johnson and The American Dream. Her second book, The Fitzgeralds & The Kennedys, was a New York Times bestseller. In 1995, Goodwin's biography of Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt won a Pulitzer Prize in history. She is now at work on a book about Lincoln and his cabinet and has written a memoir about her childhood as a Brooklyn Dodgers fan. She has consulted on several PBS documentaries about the presidents, as well as on Ken Burns' documentary, "The History of Baseball."

January 26

Ismail Merchant

Ismail Merchant, the Academy Award-nominated movie producer, speaks on Sunday, Jan. 26, at 3 p.m. Born in Bombay, India, Merchant was educated at New York University. His first film, a theatrical short titled "The Creation of Woman," was nominated for an Academy Award in 1961 and was entered in the Cannes Film Festival. That year, Merchant formed a partnership with James Ivory to produce, in India, English-language films for worldwide distribution. Since that time, Merchant Ivory Productions has produced three dozen films, including "Room With a View," "Howard's End," and "Remains of the Day."

Fairfield University's Open VISIONS Forum, now in its sixth season, is an outreach program of University College. All lectures are held in the Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts. To become a patron of Open VISIONS Forum, call University College at ext. 2688. For tickets, contact the box office at ext. 4010.

East Meets Jazz concert to open 2002-03 Quick Center season

Sandip Burman & Friends - East Meets Jazz, a concert fusing ancient Indian rhythms with modern jazz improvisation, will take place Sept. 21 at 7 p.m. in the Wien Experimental Theatre in the Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts. A second concert will begin at 9 p.m.

The concert will feature the Quick Center for the Arts' artist-in-residence Sandip Burman, a master of the tabla, a pair of Indian drums played with the fingers, palms, and heels of the hand in complex, often high-velocity Eastern rhythms. He will be joined by the expressive guitarist and composer Paul Bollenback, accomplished jazz saxophonist David Pietro, and other guests.

Born in Durgapur, India, Burman was just 6 years old when he took up the tabla as a student of tabla master Pandit Shyamal Bose of Calcutta. He quickly took an intense interest in his musical studies, developing a reputation for dazzling speed and spontaneous innovation while retaining tonal purity. As a young man, Burman played with India's most celebrated musicians, including legendary sitar player Ravi Shankar and sarod player Rajeev Taranath.

Burman came to the United States in the late 1980s, when the Calcutta ashram where he taught sent him to instruct students at its Los Angeles branch. Here he has collaborated and toured with many prominent musicians, including Bela Fleck, Jack DeJohnette, Steve Smith (Journey), Victor Bailey (Weather Report), Al DiMeola, Glen Valez, and many others. His career highlights reflect his eclectic spirit and include performances at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., House of Blues Chicago, the Telluride Bluegrass Festival, Ravinia Festival, and the Monterey World One Festival.

For tickets or more information, call the box office at ext. 4010.

German artists to exhibit paintings and sculpture at Lukacs Gallery

Danced Shoes - Undanced Shoes, a collection of paintings and painted cubes by German artists and sisters Suscha and Cora Korte, will be on exhibit at the Lukacs Gallery from Sept. 17 through Oct. 11. The Kortes will present a lecture on their art following an opening reception on Sept. 17 from 5:30 p.m. to 6 p.m.

Born in Flensburg, Germany, the Korte sisters have exhibited their work, separately and together, throughout the world, including Germany, Denmark, Poland, Italy, Egypt, Scotland, Belgium, and the United States.

Suscha Korte's paintings are striking trompe l'oeil treatments of plates. Her pictures present three plates of the same size with differing patterns. The patterns intend to evoke memories of coffee and cake at Grandma's house and other happy times, making an everyday item into a thing of beauty. The large works serve as both a display of painterly virtuosity and a thoughtful exploration of the relationship between painting and everyday objects.

Cora Korte also uses imagery of everyday objects, but from a completely different viewpoint. Her illuminated cubes attract the viewer with their warmth and light. In contrast to the meditative quality of her sister's work, Cora's cubes seem full of movement and disorder. The relationship between the images and scripts she paints on the cubes is for the viewer to make sense of, bringing up personal associations with everyday things portrayed such as lemons, a fleur-de-lis, or a director's chair.

The sisters' exhibition is aptly named. While shoes are ordinary, dance shoes are something special. Those that have been used, or "danced," show signs of wear and "tell" of joyful or sorrowful experiences. Those that are "undanced" wait in anticipation of their performance.

For more information and specific gallery hours, call ext. 2476.

Sal Sirugo's unique Abstract Expressionism on view at the Walsh Gallery

The works of Sal Sirugo, a hidden treasure of the American Abstract Expressionist movement, will be on display at the Thomas J. Walsh Gallery from September 19 through December 8. An opening reception for "Sal Sirugo: From the Intimate to the Infinite" will take place Thursday, Sept. 19 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., with a 6:30 p.m. lecture by exhibit curator Jeffrey Wechsler, chief curator of the Zimmerli Art Museum at Rutgers University.

Born in Sicily, Sirugo has been creating a highly original body of work representing a personal variation on abstract expressionism since the late 1940s. Known for his innovations in field painting, a way of painting that virtually dispenses with traditional composition, Sirugo rejects a signature style, preferring to evolve in several directions over more than five decades of work.

In the early 1960s, Sirugo joined the Tanager Gallery, one of New York City's first artist cooperative galleries. Admired by his fellow artists as a "painter's painter," he is known for his abstractions, landscapes, face-like images he calls "Heads," and striking circular forms he dubs "Eyes." While many of his contemporaries worked on huge canvases, Sirugo prefers tiny spaces: Most of his works are only a few inches in height and width.

Sirugo's experimental spirit extends to every aspect of his work, including his ever-changing technique. He has painted on canvas, writing paper, and vellum, sometimes applying his pigments with his fingers, sponges, or eye droppers. His works incorporate commercial paints and inks, as well as crayon, carbon paper, and even colors made from coffee and tea. The one thing that remains the same is a sense of wholeness and a mysterious, meditative quality that draws the viewer into his unique way of seeing.

Sirugo's work can be viewed Tuesdays through Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sundays from noon to 4 p.m. For more information, call ext. 2969.

Campus Currents is the official news publication of the Fairfield University community. It is published on the first Tuesday of every month. The editorial office is located in the Public Relations Dept., Bellarmine Hall 220. Telephone 254-4000, ext. 2556; fax: 254-4167. E-mail: campuscurr@mail.fairfield.edu.

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