Earlier this semester, nearly 200 faculty and staff took part in the Happiness Experiment. Everyone who registered received a jolt of sunshine in their inboxes three times a week. The uplifting emails were courtesy of the Wellness Initiative and encouraged participants to integrate components of happiness, gratitude and compassion into their daily lives.

“It’s good to focus on things that make us smile during turbulent times,” one participant wrote.

Said another, “The Happiness Experiment helped me combat my ever-present depression.”

Many agree that the experiment helped them take responsibility for their own happiness, leading to more fulfilment at home and work as well as in the community.

Gail Grozalis

Gail Grozalis, the initiative’s executive director, is not surprised by the results. She says that as COVID-19 wears on, the mental health of the University’s workforce is a top priority.

“We need to mindfully and intentionally make time for things that bring us joy and benefit our health. Mental health activities not only improve our mood and productivity, but also reduce stress and anxiety,” she says, adding that other similar programs are in the offing.

Since March, the Wellness Initiative has increased the scope of its mental health and emotional well-being programming. This is particularly true with Carebridge, the University’s faculty and staff assistance program. In addition to expanding its network of counselors who provide telephonic and video mental health support, Carebridge has uploaded numerous coronavirus-related webinars and has formed online support groups, both live and on-demand.

“All of these things help us cope with the simultaneous stressors caused by the pandemic,” Grozalis says.
To learn more about Carebridge’s suite of integrated, accessible and confidential services and resources, visit .

Information about the Wellness Initiative’s current and upcoming offerings is at .

Emotional well-being resources may be found at .

Theresa Chen

Music for People (MfP), a global pioneer in experiential, inclusive music education, will hold its first weekend retreat at Syracuse University.

The retreat will run Friday, April 17, from 6-9 p.m.; Saturday, April 18, from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; and Sunday, April 19, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Most of the activities will take place in Crouse College, home of the Setnor School of Music in the University’s College of Visual and Performing Arts.

The program is open to students and graduates of MfP’s Musicianship and Leadership Program (MLP) and experienced MfP players.

Syracuse University students are invited to a public workshop on Sunday, April 19, from 10-11:30 a.m. No music experience is needed. The workshop will cover improvisational games and activities that can be used in educational and clinical settings.

David Knapp

“We’ll set up two large spaces—one for free play and one for electives,” says Alina Plourde, director of MfP-Syracuse, adding that the electives will span Indian and steel band music as well as modal blues improvisation. “Attendees will have many opportunities to collaborate with one another, facilitate their own small groups and experiment with different styles of music.”

Plourde is an Eastman-trained oboist who teaches in the Setnor School. She says the retreat targets musicians of all ages and abilities, including singers; string, woodwind, brass and string players; percussionists; and those who play experimental or multicultural instruments.

Alina Plourde

“Attendees may bring as many [acoustic and electric] instruments as they want. An assortment of small percussion instruments and djembe drums, along with a piano, will be provided,” she says.

Special guests include Theresa Chen, a jazz piano instructor in the Setnor School; David Knapp, an assistant professor in the Setnor School and the School of Education specializing in multicultural music education and community music-making; and Shahzad James, a local tabla player.

Through a special arrangement with the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, MLP students can make studio recordings of themselves with MLP graduates.

Since Grammy Award-winning cellist David Darling co-founded it more than 30 years ago, MfP has acquired a worldwide following among music teachers, performers, arts therapists and wellness practitioners.

At the heart of MfP’s humanistic mission is free improvisation—a method of playing that is open-ended and devoid of rules.

“There are no wrong notes. Everything is fair game,” says Plourde, who oversees an MfP pilot program in a local homeschool cooperative. “Music for People techniques are used in classrooms, hospitals, community centers and healthcare clinics.”

MfP offers a variety of weekend and weeklong workshops as well as MLP, a three-year training program for aspiring MfP facilitators.

“Whether you’re classically trained or can’t read a note, Music for People enables you to improvise in almost any genre. It also helps you tap into your authentic voice, adding richness and depth to your music,” Plourde says. “Regardless of your skill or experience, you’ll get something out of the weekend.”

All events are free; however, registration is required. To register, visit 

For more information, contact Plourde, director of MfP-Syracuse, at alinaoboe@yahoo.com, or visit .

Alina Plourde, who teaches oboe in the Setnor School of Music in the College of Visual and Performing Arts (VPA), directs the Syracuse branch of the worldwide Music for People (MfP) organization.

MfP-Syracuse and a local homeschool cooperative called the Success Enrichment Group (SEG) are collaborating on a new course called the “International Music Laboratory Classroom.”

Beginning Feb. 5, the 12-week course will be offered every Wednesday in Fayetteville, tailored to students ages 5-6, 7-8 and 9-12. Activities include improvised singing, drumming, instrumental playing, dancing and creative movement.

“Age, background and skill level have nothing to do with self-expression,” says Plourde, an Eastman-trained teacher and oboist, who is a regional trainer for MfP’s Musicianship and Leadership Program (MLP). “There are no wrong notes because everyone has a story to tell.”

SEG Founder and Director Juliet Wall is excited about the course, saying that it is designed to foster creativity and innovation, encourage self-expression, promote pattern recognition, and boost brain function and connectivity. “There is long-standing research showing a strong connection between music participation and academic success,” she adds.

The “International Music Laboratory Classroom” will feature a rotating cast of MLP teaching artists, some with current or former ties to VPA.

One of them is soprano Laura Enslin, a retired VPA faculty member. “Music for People takes a mindful approach to creativity, beginning with ‘One Quality Sound’—a note or tone that expresses how we feel in the moment,” says the Eastman alumna. “For anyone, especially a child, the experience can be transformative.”

Increased self-confidence, enhanced communication skills and improved cognition are some of the benefits of MfP’s approach, she adds.

MfP has been a pioneer of inclusive, experimental music education since Grammy Award-winning cellist David Darling co-founded it more than 30 years ago. Today, MfP tools and techniques are embraced by performers, educators and wellness practitioners worldwide. More information is at www.musicforpeople.org.

MfP-Syracuse is the organization’s newest regional chapter, providing an array of learning and performing opportunities. Members include actor/singer Amy Zubieta ’09, G’20 and trombonist/pianist Nick Abelgore ’16, G’20, both of whom are MLP teaching artists.

“Having them on-site will add an extra layer of support and creativity, allowing for more differentiated instruction. These teaching artists will inspire our students to let loose their imagination and talent,” says Wall, whose courses are led by professionals and parent volunteers, including VPA graduate student Sabine Krantz, director of SEG’s high school choral program.

Part of the funding from the initial phase of the pilot program will go toward building MfP-Syracuse’s instrumental library. “The instruments will be used by MfP staff and teaching artists when they’re working with SEG homeschoolers,” says Plourde, who is organizing an MfP retreat at the University, April 17-19.

Adds Wall: “This means our students will have more opportunities to explore, create and succeed.”

The Syracuse University Brass Ensemble.

The (SUBE) is pleased to welcome to campus for the first “Horns and Harmonies” concert, featuring songs, carols and classics for the whole family.

Destined to become a holiday tradition, the concert is Saturday, Dec. 14, at 7:30 p.m. in Hendricks Chapel. Special guests include WCNY’s Bruce Paulsen, who will emcee the event and reprise his popular interpretation of “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch” from “How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” and organist Jared Shepard ’17, G’18, who is director of music ministries at The United Church in Fayetteville.

The concert is free and open to the public. Attendees are invited to bring food or personal care items to the Hendricks Chapel Food Pantry. For more information about the concert, contact Hendricks Chapel at 315.443.2901 or visit . Parking and accessibility information is at and .

“We are delighted to present both groups onstage for the first time,” says the Rev. Brian E. Konkol, dean of Hendricks Chapel. “‘Horns and Harmonies’ is a festive way to cap off the semester, while ushering in the holiday season.”

Under the direction of James T. Spencer, SUBE will highlight more than four centuries of brass masterworks, from the Baroque stylings of Giovanni Gabrieli to the joyful strains of Leroy Anderson’s “A Christmas Festival.”

Syracuse University Brass Ensemble director James Spencer and The Spirit of Syracuse Master Director Kay Crawford.

The 40-piece ensemble also will showcase its trademark versatility, with stirring renditions of “Adeste Fidelis,” Alfred Reed’s “Russian Christmas Music,” “When You Wish Upon a Star” from “Pinocchio,” music from “Frozen,” and more.

“This concert is for kids from one to 92,” jokes Spencer, also a Meredith Professor of Chemistry in the College of Arts and Sciences. “There’s nothing like virtuoso brass and percussion playing to capture the spirit of the season.”

The College’s ensemble-in-residence, SUBE is no stranger to Hendricks Chapel, having co-headlined, for the past 12 years, “Holidays at Hendricks,” which, in turn, grew out of the group’s annual December concerts in the chapel.

SUBE also performs at other University functions, including Commencement, convocation ceremonies, and building dedications and openings.

In 2018, the group traveled to Danville, Kentucky, to perform at the Great American Brass Band Festival, the premier event of its kind in North America.

Spencer, who has conducted SUBE for three decades, is excited to turn a page in the group’s lustrous history. “We’ve talked about collaborating with The Spirit of Syracuse for a long time. I’m glad it’s finally happening,” he says.

The Spirit of Syracuse Chorus. Photo by Jon B. Petersen Photography.

Fresh from its triumphant performance at the 2019 Sweet Adelines International (SAI) Competition and Convention in New Orleans, SOS brings a unique blend of barbershop harmony, costumes and choreography to the Hill.

The chorus’ program runs the gamut—from the high-octane excitement of “We Need a Little Christmas” from “Mame” and “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer,” to the hushed intimacy of “Do You Hear What I Hear?,” “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” and “Mary, Did You Know?”

Rounding out its set are the jazz-inflected strains of “The Man with the Bag” and the classically inspired “Sing Your Way Home,” based on the “Largo” from Dvorak’s “New World Symphony.”

SOS Master Director Kay Crawford says the 70-voice chorus is thrilled to partner with SUBE. “I’m certain that the harmony, joy and energy created by both groups in Hendricks Chapel will reverberate in the hearts of all whom attend. We look forward to many more exciting collaborations in the future,” she says.

Ranked 21st out of 600 SAI choruses in the world, SOS is a fixture on the women’s barbershop harmony circuit. Every year, the group hosts the Syracuse Area Youth A Capella Festival (Say-ACA-Fest), in conjunction with the Liverpool Central School District’s Fine Arts Department. SOS also is the founder of the Lakeside A Cappella Camp, which occurs every summer at Cazenovia College.

“Horns and Harmonies” includes several audience sing-alongs and a brief appearance by a hand-picked children’s choir.

The concert will be recorded for broadcast on WCNY-FM and WAER-FM. Dates and times are TBA.

Katherine Skafidas

Members of the University community will help the Society of New Music (SNM) kick off its 48th season with a program of ambitious yet audience-friendly chamber music.

SNM will present “Love Songs and Winners” on Sunday, Nov. 17, at 2:30 p.m. at St. David’s Episcopal Church, 14 Jamar Drive, DeWitt. The concert features selections by eight contemporary composers, including winners of SNM’s two Brian M. Israel competitions, performed by the Society Players.

Israel taught in the Rose, Jules R. and Stanford S. Setnor School of Music in the College of Visual and Performing Arts (VPA) from 1975 until his death in 1986 from leukemia. He was 35.

“Love Songs and Winners” also is dedicated to the memory of SNM board member Mary Ellen Brzozowski ’90, ’96, local arts supporter Richard Tuttle ’60 and SNM-commissioned composer Dexter Morrill, all of whom have died this past year.

Tickets are $20, as well as $15 for seniors and students, and $40 for families. Children 12 and under are free. For tickets or more information, visit or email snm@societyfornewmusic.org. Walk-ups are available.

SNM co-founder Neva Pilgrim hopes the concert will debunk some of the myths about contemporary classical music.

“A lot of people think new music is dissonant, inaccessible or irrelevant. That couldn’t be further from the truth, especially with this concert,” says Pilgrim, a former member of the Setnor voice faculty. “Audiences are continually amazed at how our music speaks to them, directly and powerfully.”

Israel was a prolific composer, conductor and pianist who was friends with Pilgrim. Through SNM, she has established two composer competitions in his memory: the $1,000 Brian M. Israel/Samuel F. Pellman Prize and the $750 Brian M. Israel Prize, in conjunction with the New York Federation of Music Clubs (NYFMC).

Pellman also was Pilgrim’s friend—a Hamilton College music professor who served on the SNM board and chaired SNM’s Israel prize competition. He died in 2017.

Julian Bennett Holmes

The 2019 recipient of the Israel/Pellman Prize is Julian Bennett Holmes, a doctoral student at the Manhattan School of Music, studying with Marjorie Merryman. The Society Players will perform Holmes’ “Trio” (2019) for violin, cello and piano.

This year’s winner of the NYFMC/Israel Prize is Paul Frucht, a Juilliard-trained composer who teaches in New York University Steinhardt’s Department of Music and Performing Arts Professions. SNM will present his string quartet “Rhapsody” (2018).

“These prizes underscore SNM’s mission, which is to present the sound of now. Our music embraces the past while looking toward the future,” Pilgrim adds.

Rounding out the evening are works by Morrill, Merryman, former Setnor School Visiting Artist and Pulitzer Prize winner John Corigliano, Reza Vali and previous Israel Prize honorable mentions Gity Razaz and Charles Peck.

Soprano Katherine Skafidas ’20, a voice performance major in the Setnor School, will perform Merryman’s “Elegiac Songs” (2015) with flutist Lana Stafford. Both songs are dedicated to the memory of the composer’s husband and feature text by Louise Glück, the Rosenkranz Writer-in-Residence at Yale University.

“The pieces address the delicacy of life and death,” says Skafadis, who minors in theater in VPA and music history and cultures in the College of Arts and Sciences. “Merryman deliberately sets Glück’s poetic enjambments to her music by connecting the musical line to the next stanza, often with compound rhythms that contrast between the voice and instrumentation.”

Skafidas won the 2018 Neva Pilgrim Award in the Civic Morning Musicals’ Competition for Singers.

The Society Players is an elite group of local musicians, specializing in contemporary music. In addition to Skafidas, those with ties to the University include:

• percussionist Rob Bridge, Syracuse University Marching Band drumline instructor;
• pianist Sar-Shalom Strong G’98, one of this year’s Israel competition judges and a former Setnor faculty member;
• Sonya Stith Williams, assistant concertmaster of Symphoria, who participates in the University’s Women’s Leadership Initiative; and
• cellist Gregory Wood G’05, a longtime member of Symphoria and the Setnor string faculty.

Since its inception in 1971, SNM has performed, commissioned and advocated new works by Central New York composers. SNM is the only year-round new music organization in the region and is the oldest nonprofit of its kind in the state, outside of Manhattan.

The Lake Placid native served on the University’s Board of Trustees for more than three decades. He also was a member of the Maxwell School Advisory Board from 1991-97, and supported various academic and athletic initiatives. Three of his seven sons—Brian L’04, Robb ’04 and Benjamin ’17—are University alumni.

J. Patrick Barrett

Barrett chaired the New York State Republican Committee from 1989-91, and was a delegate to the 1988 and 2004 Republican National Conventions. In 2010, he crossed party lines to co-chair Andrew Cuomo’s gubernatorial bid, and subsequently endorsed Democratic candidates in statewide and local races. The following year, Barrett became chair of the state’s Olympic Regional Development Authority, a post he held until his death.

Throughout his multifaceted career, Barrett was chair and CEO of Avis Inc.; executive vice president and CFO of Norton Simon Inc.; chair and CEO of CARPAT Investments, which he founded in 1987; and president of the regional telecommunications provider Telergy Inc. His leadership expertise also extended to Syracuse Executive Air Service Inc., an airplane charter company; Bennington Iron Works in Vermont; and PFF Vehicle Management Services in Maryland.

Barrett served on many other boards, including those of Coyne International Enterprises Corp.; Lincoln National Corp.; Adirondack Bank; Whiteface Club Cos.; the Syracuse SkyChiefs; Le Moyne College; St. Lawrence University; Georgetown University’s Walsh School of Foreign Service; and Sienna College, from which he earned a bachelor’s degree in economics. He lent his support to many causes and charities, including Hospice of CNY, the Dorothy Day House and Catholic Charities.

Titled “A Day of Improvisation,” the workshop is Saturday, Oct. 26, from 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. in OCC’s Academic II building at 4585 West Seneca Turnpike in Syracuse.

The event features six facilitators, including Mary Knysh, a world-renowned multi-instrumentalist, recording artist and educator, and Alina Plourde, an oboe instructor in the Setnor School of Music in Syracuse University’s College of Visual and Performing Arts (VPA).

“A Day of Improvisation” is open to the public, and costs $75 before Oct. 21 and $85 after Oct. 22. Family rates, scholarships and sliding scale tuition are available. For more information and to register, visit , or contact Plourde at alinaoboe@yahoo.com.

Co-founded in 1986 by cellist David Darling (Bobby McFerrin, Paul Winter Consort) and flutist Bonnie Insull, MfP is a nonprofit worldwide organization dedicated to music making and music improvisation as a means of self-expression.

MfP boasts satellite programs throughout North America and Europe, including a new one in Central New York.

“We believe any combination of people and instruments can make music together,” says Plourde, who regularly plays with Symphoria and other local groups, such as the Society for New Music and Tri-Cities Opera in Binghamton. “Whether you’re a professional performer, a teacher, a student, a dancer or someone with an interest in music-making, you’ll get something out of the workshop.”

“A Day of Improvisation” is open to vocalists and instrumentalists of all stripes, and seeks to provide inspiration and new ideas for composers, songwriters and music educators. Electives include singing, drumming, movement, visual art, chamber music playing and group facilitation.

Plourde extends a “special invitation” to people who do not read music and to classically trained musicians who want to explore other idioms, such as folk, rock, jazz or world music.

She also is excited to reunite with Knysh, an MfP teacher and trainer who travels the world, offering music improvisation seminars and drum circle facilitator trainings and performances.

In addition to working for MfP, Knysh has founded a company called Rhythmic Connections, which advances health, education and creative development through ethnic-influenced music improvisation activities.

“She is a cutting-edge facilitator who can work with groups of any age and experience,” says Plourde, who also teaches music at OCC and the Montessori School of Syracuse. “Her energy is contagious.”

Knysh and Plourde are joined by four other facilitators:

• Christy Clavio, a professional teaching artist and musician from Asheville, North Carolina, specializing in multicultural music;
• Jimbo Talbot, a Syracuse-based drum circle facilitator, sound therapist, vocalist and performer;
• Jessica King, contrabassoonist and second bassoonist of Symphoria who, along with Plourde, is a founding member of the New Leaf Ensemble improvisational collective; and
• Laura Enslin, a soprano soloist and recitalist and former VPA instructor, who is founder of the CNY Singing Garden voice studio.

Plourde says that while attendees are encouraged to bring their own instruments, they may experiment with any of the dozens of multicultural instruments at the workshop, ranging from mbiras, hand-pans and pianos to a variety of djembe drums.

“This is our third year offering the event. The feeling of community, the deep listening, the artistry and the beautiful music created on the spot amaze me every time,” she adds.

MfP offers seminars and workshops on both sides of the Atlantic, in addition to the three-year Musician and Leadership Program. The organization’s humanistic and inclusive philosophy (in which “there are no wrong notes,” Darling writes) is popular among performers, composers, music educators and expressive arts therapists.

Local TV news anchor Farah Jadran G’09 will serve as master of ceremonies for “Take the Stage,” FRP’s annual fundraiser, on Friday, Sept. 27, from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. at Eastern Hills Bible Church, 8277 Cazenovia Road, Manlius.

The program features nearly 30 student and professional performers, including singers Jason Kimmel ’20 and Andrew Tongue ’19, both affiliated with the Rose, Jules R. and Stanford S. Setnor School of Music in the College of Visual and Performing Arts (VPA). Rounding out the evening are a silent auction, a wine and beer tasting, and food and desserts.

Tickets are $50 and are available online or at the door. For more information, visit , or call 315.663.8390.

Deborah Cavanagh

FRP Founder and President Deborah Cavanagh says the event is designed to raise awareness of and support for the organization’s mission, which provides dramatic and musical performance opportunities for adults of all ages and abilities.

“We value access and opportunity,” says Cavanagh, also a licensed real estate agent. “FRP empowers a quickly growing segment of our community, giving adults the confidence they need to succeed onstage and in their daily lives.”

Emceeing the fundraiser for the second year in a row is Jadran, who recently joined CNY Central as the anchor of “CBS5 This Morning” and “CBS5 News at Noon.” Fresh from a four-year stint at NewsChannel 9 (WSYR-TV), the Newhouse alumna is president of the Vera House Board of Directors and co-founder of Syracuse Woman Magazine.

Farah Jadran

“Farah is more than a responsible journalist. She is a community pillar and role model, someone who cares deeply about our mission and wants to make Syracuse stronger,” Cavanagh says.

Eastern Hills Bible Church and Greenwood Winery & Bistro are the event co-sponsors. Donors include Cookies by Lis Fournier, Empire Brewing Co. and Wegmans.

Cavanagh founded FRP in response to her daughter, Amanda, and her best friend, Ellie, both of whom have special needs, as well as a passion for musical theater.

“As youngsters, they participated in community productions, but eventually opportunities dried up for them. I was surprised to find out how many other adults [with special needs] were in the same position,” Cavanagh says.

FRP roared out of the gate in 2016, immediately drawing record numbers of applicants and performing to packed houses.

Each year, FRP offers two semesters of classes, culminating with a fall cabaret and a full-scale spring musical, both at Redhouse at City Center. Past productions include “Shrek the Musical Jr.” (2019), “Wizard of Oz” (2018) and “Seussical” (2017).

Cavanagh attributes FRP’s success to its dedicated volunteers and professional artistic staff, the latter of which includes Director Christopher Rogers, Assistant Director and Choreographer Shannon Tompkins, Assistant Director Sean Egan and Music Director Kay Paulsen. Cavanagh’s son, Jason, is assistant music director.

Food Services staffer and FRP actor Joshua Nowlin (far right) with his sister, Laura Enslin, and the author.

FRP staffers emphasize collaboration and skill building, within context of a supportive, judgment-free environment. “This approach instills self-confidence, which, in turn, helps develop the whole person,” Cavanagh says.

Earlier this month, FRP launched (OVCE)—a chorus for people of all abilities, sponsored by DeWitt Community Church (DCC). Co-directed by Matthew Green and former VPA faculty member Laura Enslin, OVCE promotes inclusion, equity and diversity through live music.

Already booked to capacity, the group will debut on Thursday, Dec. 12, at DCC (time TBA).

“OVCE focuses on process, not product. All we ask is that you, as audience members, listen with your eyes and ears—and your hearts,” says Enslin, whose brother, Joshua, performs in both groups, as well as works in Syracuse University Food Services.

To make a tax-deductible gift to FRP, visit .

They include Latin dance instructors Samantha Marji ’13, G’18 and Roberto Perez ’07, the latter of whom is a Spanish teaching assistant in the College of Arts and Sciences.

Biboti Ouikahilo, Wacheva’s executive and artistic director, also teaches and performs on campus. He is a world-renowned African dancer, drummer and choreographer.

Located in the historic Westcott neighborhood, Wacheva will offer mini-classes in dance, drumming and fitness for people of all ages and abilities.

Admission is $10 in advance and $12 at the door. (Families of three or more are $30 in advance, $36 at the door.) Children ages 5 and under are free. Proceeds benefit Wacheva’s classes and public outreach programs.

To register online, visit . For more information, call 315.396.0748, or visit . The studio is at 117 Harvard Place, Syracuse.

Ouikahilo anticipates an afternoon of “dance, drum and fun” for the whole family. “The event is not just an expression of creativity; it is a celebration of our community’s rich diversity,” says Ouikahilo, who will teach mini-classes in African dance and drumming.

Joining him is Perez, who will lead mini-classes in cardio salsa, a type of high-energy dance that is popular at gyms and fitness clubs—and Wacheva. The Cuban refugee is founder of La Familia de la Salsa, the oldest and largest Latin dance organization in Central New York. “I want to be an ambassador of Cuban music. It was my mission when I came to the United States [in 2000],” says Perez, who also has taught in the School of Education’s Department of Exercise Science.

The open house includes mini-classes in Latin dance and ladies styling (taught by Marji); salsa footwork and dips (Kanat Bolazar); mindful movement (Anita Bueno) and Zumba (Ebony Pengel).

Each ticketholder may enjoy a delicious spread of food, and is eligible for various door prizes. Sponsors include Advance Cyclery, Boom Babies, Dunkin’ Donuts, Lowe’s Home Improvement, Recess Coffee, Salt City Hardware, Starbucks, Syracuse Cooperative Market and Wegmans.

Board president Paula Dodd says the open house reaffirms Wacheva’s mission—to promote the creative and educational development of children and adults. “All of our events involve people from different backgrounds, uniting together to share one another’s creativity and culture,” she adds.

Ouikahilo founded Wacheva in the Ivory Coast region of West Africa in 1994. (“Wacheva” means “unity” in his native Guro language.) He revived the organization in 2003, after relocating to Syracuse, and elevated it to nonprofit status.

Since opening doors in 2009, Wacheva has been synonymous with multicultural dance, drumming and fitness. The organization regularly hosts a wide range of classes, workshops and performances, spanning African dance and drumming, yoga, salsa and dance fitness.

Ouikahilo and his colleagues maintain a busy teaching and performing schedule, regularly appearing at schools, colleges and universities (including Syracuse) and headlining such events as the Great New York State Fair, the Westcott Street Cultural Fair, Syracuse’s Juneteenth Festival and Mayfest.

“Our goal is to offer low-cost classes that everyone can afford,” says Ouikahilo, a 17-year veteran of the Ivory Coast National Dance and Drum Company. “I like to think our work infuses the community with positive, creative energy—inviting people to step out of their comfort zones.”

Prior to Syracuse, Ouikahilo spent six years in New York City, teaching at Lehman College and the Djoniba Dance & Drum Centre. He eventually caught the attention of Jimmy Buffett, with whom he toured in 2000-01, and actor Bruce Willis, who featured him in the 2003 war-drama “Tears of the Sun.”

Today, Ouikahilo calls Syracuse “home,” and is optimistic about what the future holds.

“In addition to offering more opportunities for children and adults, Wacheva hopes to continue providing space for other organizations to host events. I see us as a community asset and resource—a proud partner of Syracuse University,” he adds.

Amanda Eubanks Winkler

London-based students, faculty, staff and alumni are invited to a showcase of Restoration Shakespeare at the historic Globe Theatre, co-led by Amanda Eubanks Winkler, associate professor of music history and cultures in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S).

The event is Wednesday, July 17, from 4-6 p.m. (British Summer Time) at the Wanamaker Playhouse, Shakespeare’s Globe (21 New Globe Walk, London). Free and open to the public, the program includes live performances of music and scenes from late 17th-century, Restoration-era adaptations of Shakespeare’s “The Tempest” and “Macbeth.” Tickets are free, but must be pre-booked through Eventbrite: .

The showcase is part of “,” a multinational, interdisciplinary project sponsored by the in the United Kingdom.

Eubanks Winkler co-leads the project with Richard Schoch, professor of arts, English and languages at Queen’s University Belfast in Northern Ireland.

In addition to the performances, the duo will facilitate a discussion with Will Tosh, lecturer and research fellow at Shakespeare’s Globe; Robert Richmond, stage director of the acclaimed 2018 production of “Macbeth” at the Folger Theatre in Washington, D.C. (funded in part by “Performing Restoration Shakespeare”); and Bob Eisenstein, “Macbeth”’s music director.

The performers are Kate Eastwood Norris, who portrayed Lady Macbeth in the Folger production of “Macbeth”; Emily Barber, who played Ariel in a recent workshop on “The Tempest” at Shakespeare’s Globe; and Dominic Brewer, who was Ferdinand in the “Tempest” workshop version.

“You’ll get a behind-the-scenes look at our production of the Restoration ‘Macbeth,” Eubanks Winkler says. “You also will gain insight into the benefit of embedding scholars into the entire rehearsal and creative process, as well as the value of performing these works today.”

A scene from the acclaimed 2018 production of “Macbeth” at the Folger Theatre in Washington, D.C.

“Performing Restoration Shakespeare” is an $800,000 project involving Syracuse University, the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, Shakespeare’s Globe and Queen’s University.

One of Eubanks Winkler’s goals with the project is to use multimedia and digital distribution to engage with a broad audience. “We’re creating an online repository of video documentaries about our project, so that others may be inspired to perform these compelling adaptations. We also discuss best practices for fostering scholar-performer collaboration,” she adds.

“Restoration Shakespeare” refers to adaptations of the Bard’s plays that were performed from 1660-1714, amid the restoration of the English monarchy.

“When theaters reopened after the English civil war, few new plays were available. As a result, theater companies presented Shakespeare in new, exciting ways,” says Eubanks Winkler, a scholar of 17th- and 18th-century English music and drama. “These extravagant adaptations were popular then, and still are today. Our performances of ‘The Tempest’ at the Globe and ‘Macbeth’ [at the Folger] have attracted wide press coverage and sold-out audiences.”

Sarah Workman

The College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) and the University’s reaffirm their commitment to faculty research with the joint appointment of Sarah Workman as assistant director of proposal development for the humanities.

In the college, Workman will elevate research achievement and recognition by helping faculty identify funding sources for their work. She also will assist them with writing grants and other proposals and with coordinating nominations for honorary awards.

As part of her appointment in the Office of Research, Workman will develop broader grant proposals across multiple colleges that connect with the humanities.

“Sarah will support the college’s strategic goals by positioning faculty for continued research success and recognition,” says Alan Middleton, associate dean of research and scholarship in A&S. “Drawing on her background as a researcher, educator and administrator, she will help them expand their ability to carry out scholarly work, promoting a culture of research on campus.”

Christina Leigh Docteur G’03, G’11, director of proposal support services in the Office of Research, says Workman brings a “uniquely honed skill-set” to humanistic inquiry. “Sarah is well-positioned to not only support humanities departments and programs, but also provide talent and insight to further integrate humanistic perspectives within a wide range of interdisciplinary research efforts across campus,” she adds.

Workman comes to A&S from Georgetown University, where she was a learning design specialist in the Center for New Designs in Learning & Scholarship (CNDLS). Among her accomplishments was overseeing a multi-year faculty-staff cohort that explored best practices for online teaching and hybrid learning. She also designed and taught courses for the writing and Jewish civilization programs.

Before joining CNDLS in 2016, Workman developed and taught first-year writing and literature courses at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she also earned a Ph.D. in English.

Workman is the recipient of many honors and awards, including a 2016 dissertation fellowship from the Carolina Center for Jewish Studies at UNC-Chapel Hill. Her research into women’s literature was anthologized in “A Quest of Her Own: Essays on the Female Hero in Modern Fantasy” (McFarland & Company, 2014).

Fluent in Spanish and proficient in Hebrew, Workman also has worked at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C., the Adam Institute for Democracy and Peace in Jerusalem (Israel), and Montgomery College in Rockville, Maryland.

She earned a master’s degree in English from Georgetown and a bachelor’s degree in English and Spanish from Cornell University.

FNSSI Director James Hewett

Arts and Sciences Dean Karin Ruhlandt announced that the (FEPAC) has awarded full accreditation to the .

Offered by the Forensic and National Security Sciences Institute (FNSSI) in A&S, the advanced track program prepares graduates for careers in forensic science, national security, teaching and research.

Ruhlandt says the award is a testament to FNSSI’s commitment to excellence. “FEPAC’s accreditation reinforces the value of an A&S degree, which is rooted in detailed theoretical knowledge and hands-on, practical experience. FNSSI graduates are smart, nimble and adaptable,” she adds.

The American Academy of Forensic Sciences established FEPAC more than 15 years ago, in response to the growing popularity of the field and the ensuing need for standardized training and education.

To earn full FEPAC accreditation, a program must have adequate classrooms and lab facilities; full-time, terminal degreed faculty with strong research portfolios; and positive relationships with external laboratories.

Syracuse joins more than 20 other U.S. institutions with FEPAC-accredited M.S. programs.

“The national recognition afforded by this accreditation enhances the research profile of FNSSI and the University, in general,” says FNSSI Director James Hewett. “FEPAC’s accreditation increases the chances of inter-institutional collaboration and external research funding, enabling our students to work with professionals in the field.”

Student research has been integral to the advanced track program since its inception. In fact, research is not just encouraged; it is required. “This makes us compliant with FEPAC, and has fostered a wide range of collaborations,” Hewett adds.

In the public sector, FNSSI works with the FBI, the Brookhaven National Laboratory, the New York City Office of Chief Medical Examiner, the New York State Police Crime Laboratory System and The Wallie Howard Jr. Center for Forensic Sciences in Onondaga County.

Private-sector collaborators include Menarini Silicon Biosystems, the Promega Corporation and NicheVision Forensics.

Michael Sponsler, FNSSI’s director of curricular programs, says FEPAC’s accreditation helps maintain and enhance the integrity of the Advanced Track program, while giving students the flexibility they need. “Allowing them to tailor the degree program to their career interests is important to us. It makes them more employable,” he says, noting that more than 90 percent of all FNSSI alumni work in their respective fields of study, spanning science, crime investigation and security.

In addition to the Advanced Track program, FNSSI offers master’s degrees in general forensic science, nuclear forensics, biomedical forensic science and medicolegal death investigation.

FNSSI students also may earn an M.S./J.D. in forensic science and law, as well as advanced certificates in medicolegal death investigation and in firearm and tool mark examination.

More information about FNSSI is at .

Kendall Coleman

Those hands. Meet senior Kendall Coleman, and they are hard to ignore—thick, muscular wrists, fleshy palms and slender fingers that exude confidence. Authority.

They are hands that have mercilessly attacked hundreds of football jerseys, including that of West Virginia quarterback Jack Allison, whom Coleman sacked three times in the 2018 Camping World Bowl, tying the Syracuse bowl record.

They are hands that clenched in agony in 2017, when Coleman tore his left labrum against Louisville, causing him to consider giving up playing.

They are hands that dance their way across Coleman’s keyboard, whether working on a research paper for Falk College or stringing together lines of poetry for his own enjoyment.

They are hands that tell stories.

“Inspiration can strike anywhere,” says the 6’3”, 252-pound defensive end and poet. “One time I got off the bus near Crouse College, as the sun was setting. The sky was beautiful, with lots of purples, pinks and blues. I had to take a picture, so I could write about what I saw.”

For all his success on the field, Coleman wrestles with his creativity in other ways. Since arriving at Syracuse in 2016, he has written scores of poems about all matter of subjects—love, loss, coming of age, the circle of life and the simplicity of beauty.

In keeping with his mobile persona, Coleman uses an app to write and store his work. “It’s nice because I don’t have to scroll as much. I also can call up music and photos on my phone for inspiration,” says the three-year letterwinner, giving his iPhone a perfunctory swipe.

During a meeting on South Campus, Coleman reveals how writing poetry helps him absorb scenes and navigate emotions. It also helps him unwind from a long day, which usually begins at 6 a.m. and includes morning conditioning sessions, followed by an internship in the Manley Field House weight room.

Whether analyzing an opposing offense or the 5-7-5 structure of a haiku, Coleman relies on instinct. Such proficiency has made him an intrepid pass rusher, teaming with senior Alton Robinson to form the No. 1 sack duo in the ACC, with 20 combined quarterback takedowns last season.

Coleman’s sixth sense also translates into the classroom, where he hopes to parlay his training in human development and family science into a career in coaching or athletic advising.

“Everything I do has a little bit of heart and a little bit of gut,” says Coleman, who also is eyeing the 2020 NFL Combine in his hometown of Indianapolis. “You can’t exactly teach intuition, but you can do things to improve it—from studying the stances of your opponent; to listening to your body, if it’s tired or injured; to experimenting with different rhythms and meters in writing.”

It took Coleman time to find his creative muse. Years, in fact. He traces his interest in poetry to a seventh-grade assignment, in which he had to write about a poet of his liking. Coleman initially chose rapper Common, but his mother, Nikki Coleman, disapproved.

“In those days, I didn’t think rappers were poets, nor did I think Common represented our family’s values,” recalls Nikki, speaking by phone from Indianapolis, where she is a pharmacist for Eli Lilly and Co. “My perspective has changed considerably since then.”

Fitting, if not prophetic, that she introduced Coleman to the jazz-tinged poetry of Langston Hughes—notably, his 1922 chestnut “Mother to Son.”

Nikki recites the opening lines, as if she were reading them to Kendall for the first time:

Well, Son, I’ll tell you:
Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.
It’s had tacks in it,
And splinters,
And boards torn up,
And places with no carpet on the floor—
Bare.

“I didn’t realize the impact that poem would have on Kendall. I think it gave him insight into parenting, as well as got him hooked on poetry,” says Nikki, who gave Kendall a volume of Hughes’ poetry for his 21st birthday in April.

Coleman pauses at the mention of “Mother to Son,” admitting the work struck him at a “core level.” He says it also showed him how music transforms into poetic verse.

“‘Rap’ actually is an acronym for ‘rhythm and poetry,’” explains Coleman, adding that modern-day rappers, such as J. Cole and Kendrick Lamar, are continuing what Hughes started. “I don’t think I’m talented enough to be a musician, but I do like to add my own lyrics to other people’s grooves.”

Coleman penned his first poem during his senior year of high school. Tasked with writing a term paper or creating a piece of art, he went rogue, insisting that a two-page original poem was “just as artistic” as a painting, photograph or piece of sculpture. “His father, sister and I were surprised by what he wrote,” recalls Nikki, who was a published poet in high school. “We didn’t know Kendall had it in him.”

Nor did his classmates, who began pestering him for poems.

Kendall Coleman in action against Clemson.

Coleman continued writing at Syracuse, while skyrocketing to gridiron success. (In 2016, he was the Orange’s first true freshman to start a season opener at defensive end in nearly 20 years.) Credit teammate Hernz Laguerre ’16 for giving Coleman his literary break. “One day, Hernz told me to show up at this place at two in the afternoon and to bring my résumé and a couple of poems,” Coleman remembers. “I hadn’t composed anything in a while, so I stepped outside and began writing about a tree I saw on campus.” The result was a tender ballad about Coleman’s friend Leah, whose name is Greek for “lemon tree.”

Turns out Laguerre was doing a favor for a friend, whose sorority needed contestants for a charity pageant. “I was nervous because I had never read my poems in public before, but it went OK,” Coleman says. “Someone came up to me afterward and said my writing reminded them of J. Cole’s. Talk about the ultimate compliment.”

Months later, Coleman shared his poetry at Remembrance Week 2017, honoring the memory of the 35 Syracuse students killed on Pan Am Flight 103. He was inspired to write an eight-line tribute, after a Remembrance Scholar visited one of his classes. “I was kind of blown away,” former teammate Cameron MacPherson ’16, G’18 told The Daily Orange, after witnessing Coleman’s performance.

Coleman recalls the 2017 season with mixed emotions, as injuries took their toll on him. Days after tearing his labrum, he informed his parents he was quitting the team. They issued an ultimatum: Stay at Syracuse and play football, or come home and enroll in community college. “Giving up was not an option,” Nikki says.

Although the path to recovery was “long and hard,” the experience made him a well-rounded player. “Being sidelined gave me a different perspective of the game. I began to see it through the eyes of a D-line [defensive line] coach,” says Coleman, who also became obsessed with health and fitness. He currently is interning under the watchful eye of Corey Parker, assistant athletics director for Olympic sport strength and conditioning.

Coleman says rehab forced him to slow down—to become more observant and keenly aware. As a result, poetry began spilling out of him, as if emanating from some divine or supernatural source. Ideas that used to take days to develop came together in a matter of hours or minutes. Impressive, considering Coleman has never taken a creative writing class or attended a poetry workshop.

Nikki thinks rehab helped Kendall “connect the dots” on multiple levels—as a poet, a student-athlete and a person. “There’s a lot of unconscious bias about African American football players—that they’re big, scary or dumb. People are surprised to find out that Kendall really is a teddy bear. He loves to cook and make origami. His faith is very strong,” she says, noting his longtime involvement with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.

Coleman says he will need plenty of faith to surpass last year’s personal best, which included 32 tackles (23 solo), 12 of which were for a loss. He also led the ACC in sacks per game (0.83) and tied for second in the conference with 10 sacks. Until then, he is riding the “wave of excitement” of summer training. “From top to bottom, this is the most athletic team I’ve ever played on at Syracuse. Competition is high, our work ethic is strong, and everybody wants to win,” he grins, extending his hand for a final, well-executed handshake. “Now that’s something to write about.”

Mind of the Rich
By Kendall Coleman ’20

If it doesn’t make money, it doesn’t make sense.
Help the poor? What for? They’re not tryna help me stay rich.
Give them a sweepstake instead and let them play rich.
Let them see and feel this lifestyle, but never let them get a grip.
Knowledge and hope are their biggest weapons.
Man, I pray for my sake they never become equipped.

A graduate-student clinician works with a child in the Stuttering Research Lab.

The at Syracuse University will present Speaking Orange, its annual fluency camp for kids who stutter.

The camp will run Wednesday, June 26, from 3-6 p.m. and Thursday and Friday, June 27-28, from 9 a.m. to noon at the Gebbie Clinic (621 Skytop Rd.) on South Campus.

The cost is $140 per person—$120 for anyone registering on or before Tuesday, June 18. For more information, call 315.443.4485 or visit . Walk-ups are welcomed.

Co-organizer Victoria Tumanova says Speaking Orange is for elementary school-aged children who stutter, as well as their parents, other family members and legal guardians.

“We will explore what happens when we stutter, how to be more assertive when speaking and how to develop healthy attitudes about communication,” says Tumanova, assistant professor of communication sciences and disorders (CSD) in the College of Arts and Sciences.

She and co-organizer Anita Lightburn will focus on the so-called ABCs of stuttering—affective, behavioral and cognitive factors.

Assisting the duo will be graduate-student clinicians, supervised by Lightburn.

“We will engage in activities that promote awareness of and monitoring of one’s self and others while speaking,” says Lightburn, an assistant teaching professor of speech-language pathology in the Gebbie Clinic. “For instance, we will study Speech Helpers [parts of the body that produce speech] to understand how we talk and what happens when our speech is interrupted.”

She and Tumanova also will present role-playing scenarios to help campers “initiate, participate and advocate” for themselves.

Speaking Orange culminates with a capstone activity, highlighting each camper’s attitudes and emotions about speaking.

“What children learn about speech is informative. What they learn about stuttering is intriguing. The experience of encountering other children who stutter is invaluable,” Lightburn says.

Stuttering is a communication disorder in which the flow of speech is broken by repetitions (“li-li-like this”), prolongations (“liiiiike this”) or abnormal stoppages of sounds and syllables.

Experts believe stuttering is triggered by various factors, including genetics, child development, neurophysiology and family dynamics.

According to The Stuttering Foundation, more than 70 million people worldwide stutter, 3 million of whom are in the United States. About five percent of all children go through a period of stuttering that lasts six months or more.

While there are no miracle cures for stuttering, speech therapy offers many benefits, says Tumanova, director of Syracuse’s Stuttering Research Lab. “Speech therapy helps children understand what happens when they stutter. It teaches them how to improve their fluency by gaining control over their speech, and helps them become effective communicators,” she adds.

Founded in 1972, the Gebbie Clinic is a state-of-the-art educational, clinical and research facility. In addition to serving as a training site for CSD graduate students, the clinic offers affordably priced audiology and speech-language services to the public.

Christopher Anderson

Karin Ruhlandt, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S), announced that she has promoted to director of graduate and undergraduate recruitment.

Previously associate director of undergraduate recruitment, he succeeds Denny Nicholson, who is the University’s new assistant dean of admissions.

Anderson brings 14 years of experience to the position, in which he will direct admissions efforts for undergraduate programs in A&S and the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, as well as graduate programs in A&S.

“Chris is a passionate proponent of the liberal arts and of how they can help students forge their own path to a rich and successful life,” Ruhlandt says. “His vision, professionalism and drive will ensure A&S and Maxwell maintain a diverse, academically strong and intellectually curious student body.”

In his new capacity, Anderson will implement a comprehensive recruitment plan to meet enrollment targets for more than 50 undergraduate degree programs in A&S and Maxwell. He will represent both units at local, regional, national and international recruiting functions, as well as support central enrollment management planning and execution.

His graduate portfolio encompasses more than 40 advanced degree and Ph.D. opportunities in A&S, including programs in forensic science, applied statistics, speech-language pathology and audiology.

“Students have a wide variety of graduate programs from which to choose, making A&S more desirable and competitive than ever,” says Anderson, who joined the College in 2007, after two years in central admissions.

His personalized approach to recruitment owes to the belief that applicants are students, not statistics.

“A&S and Maxwell want students who thrive in a liberal arts environment—ones who make a difference on campus and engage with the community. My job is to make sure we’re a good fit for students, and they’re a good fit for us,” he says.

Anderson’s efforts over the past decade have helped increase the selectivity of both units’ undergraduate programs.

This year, A&S and Maxwell have received more than 15,000 applications, nearly double from 2009, with over one-third of the pool coming from students of color. Of those, the average admitted student GPA and SAT score are 3.7 and 1315, respectively. “I hope to preserve the positive momentum we have attained in our recruitment efforts, quantitatively, and qualitatively,” he says.

Anderson estimates that at Syracuse, he has reviewed nearly 11,000 applications, conducted more than a thousand college interviews and organized over 230 recruiting events on-campus and in the field.

Cristina Marchetti

Professor Emerita has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences, in recognition of her original research into soft and living matter.

The theoretical physicist is part of a 100-person cohort, 40 percent of whom are women—the most elected in any one year to date.

In March, Marchetti was awarded the Leo P. Kadanoff Prize from the American Physical Society (APS), where she is a Fellow and an editor of Physical Review X. The former Kenan and Distinguished Professor also is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Scott Freeney ’97 working with a student.

Hannah, a first-year student in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S), can’t decide on a major.

Sitting across from her advisor in a cozy, book-lined office in the Hall of Languages, the 19-year-old admits she’s at a crossroads. “I’m good at science, but I’ve been writing poetry since junior high,” she confides. “It’s so hard to decide.”

smiles and nods. He’s heard this before. “What’s the rush?” the former Syracuse football star asks. “Exploring is one of the best things you can do as a student. The more you explore, the more versatile you become. Employers like that in a graduate.”

Freeney should know. A top linebacker from Clarke Central High School in Athens, Georgia, he played for Syracuse in the mid-nineties, a heady time in the program’s 130-year history. Freeney reinvented himself in the early 2000s, spending six years as the team’s academic coordinator.

Today, the Syracuse native brings the same winning mentality to in A&S. He works with hundreds of undergraduates such as Hannah, analyzing the Xs and Os of college life and beyond.

Yet, the gridiron is never far from Freeney’s thoughts, given his recent induction into the  (AAHOF).

“This induction is a big deal for me,” admits Freeney, who spent most of high school near the University of Georgia, a perennial SEC juggernaut. “Syracuse is my home, but Athens has a special place in my heart.”

Freeney used football to find purpose in life. Born and raised in Syracuse, he and his siblings lived with their mother, Adelle, not far from a low-income housing project on the East Side.

After a year at Henninger High School, Freeney moved to Athens to be with his father. The chance to play for Billy Henderson, one of the winningest coaches in Georgia prep history, sweetened the deal. “Coach Henderson and his staff [at Clarke Central] helped make me into the person I am today,” Freeney says. “Without them, I wouldn’t have been able to play D-1 ball, much less gotten into an institution such as Syracuse.”

Freeney thought about enlisting in the Army or Marines after high school, but Mark Whitley, who coached track and football at Clarke Central, had other plans for him.

The two bonded during Freeney’s senior year, when things got tough at home. Whitley virtually adopted Freeney, taking him under his wing and giving him a place to stay. He reminded Freeney of his natural abilities, which included an unquenchable work ethic. “I had no choice but to do well in school and in football,” Freeney recalls.

Freeney was a prize of Syracuse’s 1992 recruiting class.

At 6-3 and 235 pounds, Freeney was imposing, but fast on his feet. His instincts as a high-level playmaker made him one of the top defensive ends in the Southeast. They also earned Freeney a spot on the 1991 roster of the USA Today All-USA High School Football Team, and netted him the Gatorade State High School Player of the Year award. Then the phones began to ring.

Entertaining multiple offers, Freeney jumped at the opportunity to return to Syracuse. His physicality lifted the Orange to three bowl victories, notably a nailbiter against Colorado in the ’93 Fiesta Bowl and a 41-0 trouncing of Clemson in the ’96 Gator Bowl. “It was a magical time,” recalls Freeney, a four-year letter winner. “While I was there, Coach Pasqualoni produced a handful of NFL Draft selections, including wide receiver Marvin Harrison and quarterback Donovan McNabb [for the 1996 and ’99 drafts, respectively].”

“Scott is kind of my role model,” Freeney’s next-door neighbor told The Post-Standard in 1993. “I see a lot of kids going down to the corner and doing wrong things. He is going to college. He’s going to be somebody.”

Freeney fulfilled his neighbor’s prediction, eventually trading his cleats for a clipboard. He was a graduate assistant at St. Cloud State and then Purdue, leading the Boilermakers to back-to-back Alamo Bowl victories and an appearance in the 2000 Outback Bowl, losing, ironically, to Georgia in overtime.

“He coached at a high level, right out of Syracuse,” Mark Whitley recalls. “I wanted to hire Scott, but the college ranks already had their hooks in him.”

Freeney found his way back to Syracuse in 2002. As the team’s academic coordinator, he helped student-athletes remain focused on and off the field.

The “Gentle Giant” (as Whitley called him) stressed the importance of character—on the field, in the classroom, in the community. Despite his size, Freeney was all about brains over brawn. “Good football players are usually good scientific thinkers,” says Freeney, who earned a master’s degree in higher education from Purdue. “They have no choice, given the stop-and-go structure of the game.”

During Freeney’s tenure, Syracuse frequently earned high marks from the American Football Coaches Association, including three honorable mentions for the coveted Academic Achievement Award. Many footballers also became regulars on the BIG EAST Honor Roll.

Freeney left SU Athletics in 2008. For the next decade, he served in various positions on campus while raising a family. Today, the father of three works from a slightly different playbook.

In A&S, he stresses the value of a liberal arts education—critical thinking, creative problem solving and teamwork. Not too different from what he used to hear in the locker room and on the sidelines.

“Scott’s extraordinary career as a student-athlete, followed by his professional success, is inspiring,” says Steve Schaffling, assistant dean of student success in A&S. “He gives students the tools they need to take control of their education. Scott helps them realize their potential and, in the process, find their purpose.”

Advisees agree, praising Freeney for his genuine interest in and concern for them as individuals. Says one student, “I don’t think you’ll find a more patient or understanding advisor. Scott Freeney always asks about me and my studies—wants to know how I’m doing. He wants to see me succeed.”

Freeney takes the praise in stride. “I just like helping students find their way,” he says self-effacingly.

“He makes me feel like a winner,” Hannah smiles.

Deborah Pellow

, professor of anthropology in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) and the Maxwell School, is the 2019 recipient of the William Wasserstrom Prize for the Teaching of Graduate Students.

A&S Dean Karin Ruhlandt conferred the prize on her at the Graduate School Doctoral Hooding Ceremony on Friday, May 10.

The prize memorializes William Wasserstrom, a noted English professor at Syracuse, who died in 1985. “Deborah Pellow embodies his approach as a graduate seminar leader, research and dissertation director, advisor and role model,” Ruhlandt says.

A multidisciplinary scholar, Pellow specializes in urban studies, the anthropology of space and place, and feminism, with emphasis on West Africa.

She is the author of five books, including the forthcoming “Living Afar, Longing for Home: The Role of Place in the Creation of the Dagomba New Elite”—drawing on more than four decades of research in Ghana, the past 15 years of which have been spent in the country’s Northern Region.

Douglas Armstrong, professor and chair of anthropology in A&S and Maxwell, notes the “strong bond” between Pellow and her graduate students. “It is a relationship characterized by intensive mentoring and impressive dedication,” he says.

Armstrong also mentions Pellow’s “open-door policy,” in which she invites students into her home for a delicious meal or quiet place to study. Pellow’s Thanksgiving Dinner, in fact, is a departmental tradition. “People come for the food, but stay for the conversation,” he adds.

Many of Pellow’s students have found their calling in academe. Fritz Lampe G’03, G’06, for example, teaches anthropology at Northern Arizona University.

“Deborah’s fieldwork experience, intellectual perspective and comfort in entertaining new data sets, collaborative relationships and ethnographic voice [have] created space for lively conversations,” says Lampe, also a campus pastor. “Her commitment to giving back to the department, the University and professional societies has inspired me to do the same.”

Other former students echo these sentiments. Richard L. Warms G’84, G’87, professor of anthropology at Texas State University, regards Pellow as an “ideal intellectual sparring partner”—someone who encourages students to “think deeply and challenge received ideas.”

Anthony Kwame Harrison G’99, G’04, the Gloria D. Smith Professor of Africana Studies, as well as associate professor of sociology and Africana studies at Virginia Tech, praises her “unwavering guidance, wisdom and love,” all of which have influenced his own professional trajectory.

For Pellow, the Wasserstrom Prize joins other honors from Syracuse, including A&S and Maxwell’s 2016 Faculty Advisor of the Year award.

Robert A. Rubinstein, Distinguished Professor of Anthropology and professor of international relations, considers Pellow a friend and colleague. “To say Deborah is involved in the life of the University is almost an understatement. Recognition for her decades of dedicated service to and care for doctoral education is richly deserved,” he says.

“” (Common Ground Research Networks, 2019) contains interviews with 16 people, including a waitress, an exotic dancer, a choir director and several store owners and store clerks.

Harvey Teres

Teres will read from, discuss and sign copies of his book on Friday, May 3, at 7 p.m. at the YMCA’s Downtown Writers Center (DWC) at 340 Montgomery St., Syracuse. The event is free and open to the public, and is part of the DWC’s Visiting Author Reading Series.

“Conversations with Beauty” attests to what Teres calls the “unseen power of the aesthetic experience”—from former Berkeley, California, mayor “Gus” Newport reflecting on the role of beauty in organizing under-served communities, to Syracuse business owner Janet Lutz reveling in the “sisterhood” of quilting, to local salesman Anthony Frisiello responding to the sublimity of a Thomas Kinkade painting, to Manlius Art Cinema owner Nat Tobin championing high-quality films.

An expert in 20th-century American literature and culture, Teres says beauty triggers myriad responses in people. “Some responses are moral or political in nature, others are religious or spiritual. It is a territory of human experience that remains uncharted, even by the media and the academy,” he adds.

The anticipated follow-up to his book “The Word on the Street: Linking the Academy and the Common Reader” (University of Michigan Press, 2010), “Conversations with Beauty” considers people’s responses to beauty as solitary individuals and as part of a community of shared sensibilities.

With the possible exception of Newport, all of Teres’ subjects are relatively unknown. They are mostly local, middle- or working-class people who value the arts, but do not rely solely on them for income.

Teres spent more than 15 years on this oral history project. He met some of his subjects through chance encounters or word of mouth; others he actively pursued.

For all of them, opening up about their personal experiences with beauty was a first.

Jean Fahey, for example, describes how selling ballet shoes has enhanced her appreciation of Degas, renowned for his drawings and paintings of dancers. “Degas gets it right,” the dance supply store owner tells Teres. “Lots of artists and photographers think they can do it, and they don’t. They miss something. It may not be something that you could explain to them, but it’s in the line. If they can’t feel it, they’re not going to get it right.”

For Marshall Blake ’70, listening to opera cultivates empathy, enabling him to be a better labor organizer. “You know the cliché about the Italian guy hearing opera and crying? Until I became interested in opera, I never got it. Then I found tears running down my cheeks listening to ‘Vissi d’arte’ from [Puccini’s] ‘Tosca,’” he says during his interview.

Other examples abound, including a person breaking out in a “happy dance” in front of a sculpture, a husband-wife team restoring old cars and a community organizer using art to transform an inner-city neighborhood.

“Most of our conversations about beauty are not about us, but rather are about other people or places, such as the attractiveness of a celebrity or a stunning sunset. I am interested in the important, permanent effects of beauty on ourselves,” says Teres, who made his literary debut with “Renewing the Left: Politics, Imagination and the New York Intellectuals” (Oxford University Press, 1996).

Since joining the English faculty in 1993, Teres has held various faculty and administrative positions, including director of the Jewish Studies Program and inaugural faculty representative to the Syracuse University Board of Trustees.

He began his teaching career at Princeton in 1986, after earning a Ph.D. at The University of Chicago.

“English professors need to engage with the public and listen to what our fellow citizens have to say about literature, culture and the aesthetic experience,” Teres says. “Projects such as this one shed light on our own experiences, while providing insight into our own vital, perennial concerns.”

Karan Mahajan

Indian American novelist Karan Mahajan will close out the on Wednesday, April 24.

Known for writing that is “smart, devastating and enviably adept in its handling of tragedy” (The New York Times Book Review), Mahajan will participate in a Q&A session from 3:45-4:30 p.m. and then read some of his original work from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Both events take place in Gifford Auditorium of Huntington Beard Crouse Hall, and are free and open to the public.

For more information, contact Sarah Harwell G’05, associate director of the M.F.A. Program in Creative Writing, at 315.443.2174 or scharwel@syr.edu.

This year’s Don MacNaughton Reader in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S), Mahajan is the author of two acclaimed novels: “The Association of Small Bombs” (Viking, 2016), a National Book Award finalist and one of The New York Times’ “10 Best Books of 2016,” and “Family Planning” (Harper Perennial, 2008), a finalist for the International Dylan Thomas Prize that has been published in nine countries.

Mahajan is a Fellow of the Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center for Scholars and Writers at The New York Public Library, where he is working on a novel about return-migration to India. The bestselling author also is assistant professor of literary arts at Brown University.

The Connecticut-born author spent his formative years in New Dehli, India, returning to the United States as an adult. In addition to earning an M.F.A. in creative writing from The University of Texas at Austin, he has worked as an editor in San Francisco and an urban planner in New York City.

Mahajan’s work has appeared in many publications, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and The New Yorker.

Granta magazine named him one of the “Best Young American Novelists” of 2017.

Based in A&S, the Carver series takes its name from the poet and short story writer who taught at Syracuse in the 1980s.

Peter Balakian

(POC) in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) celebrates National Poetry Month with a joint reading by Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Peter Balakian and up-and-comer Lauren Sanderson.

The duo will read and discuss their work on Thursday, April 18, at 6 p.m. at the POC Gallery, located on the ground floor of the Nancy Cantor Warehouse, 350 W. Fayette St., Syracuse. Free and open to the public, the event is part of POC’s “Cruel April” poetry series. For a complete schedule, visit .

Balakian is the author of seven books of poems, notably “Ozone Journal” (The University of Chicago Press, 2015), winner of the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry. The Armenian-American poet also is the author of two memoirs and has had his work translated into more than a dozen languages.

Based at Colgate University, he is the Donald M. and Constance H. Rebar Professor of the Humanities in the Department of English.

Lauren Sanderson accepting an award at Colgate University. (Photo by Mark DiOrio.)

“Poetry should never be editorial,” says Balakian, noting the challenge of mixing art and politics. “Poetry must be faithful to the richness of language, poetic form and the complexity of experience. The political sphere should deepen a writer and make his or her work larger, richer and morally resonant.”

Sanderson also has ties to Colgate, where she earned a bachelor’s degree last year in English, with a creative writing emphasis. Also a nationally ranked student-athlete, the Ontario (Canada) native makes her literary debut later this year with a volume of poetry titled “Some of the Children Were Listening” (Write Bloody Publishing).

“She [was] an unusual student, one with real leadership qualities who contributed greatly to the intellectual life of the student body,” Balakian says.

“Cruel April” coincides with the release of the 12th volume of “Corresponding Voices” (POC, 2019). The award-winning poetry collection is co-edited by two A&S colleagues: Jules Gibbs G’12, a poet and part-time instructor in the Department of English, and Tere Paniagua ’82, executive director of the Office of Cultural Engagement for the Hispanic Community and a Spanish instructor in the Department of Languages, Literatures and Linguistics (LLL).

Volume 12 of “Corresponding Voices”

In the book’s preface, Gibbs channels the late Pedro Cuperman, the eminent Argentine scholar who founded POC and taught in A&S. “‘Corresponding Voices’ is a continuous, meaningful text, with relatively loosely defined borders, where translation and dialogue with other poets occupies a central role,” Gibbs quotes him as saying.

She adds: “When I recall Pedro’s sense of the multivocal and multivalent, of boundary crossing as marks of transgression, the title snaps back into place. ‘Corresponding Voices’ offers an untidy, more expansive notion of correspondence, one that is ever-opening and reconfiguring.”

Paniagua agrees, noting the new dimensions that “Corresponding Voices” continues to open, verbally and visually. “I am proud of the way we bring poets from different backgrounds together to form a dialogue. It’s exciting and gratifying,” she says.

This year’s volume features poetry and photography by Rachel Eliza Griffiths, as well as cover art by Michael Burkard, a renowned poet and retired associate professor of English in A&S.

A&S and the at Syracuse University co-sponsor “Cruel April,” with support from LLL and the New York State Council on the Arts.

Theo Cateforis

Is rock dead? “Not if you’re really listening,” says , associate professor of music history and cultures in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S).

The author of the perennial seller “” (Third Edition: Routledge, 2019), Cateforis may be one of the genre’s greatest evangelists. He also is the new president of the U.S. chapter of the International Association for the Study of Popular Music (IASPM).

“Rock has historical and cultural value that’s worthy of study. For students curious enough to dig, they will find all sorts of great, new music out there,” says the former drummer, who recently hosted a visit by Anthony DeCurtis, longtime contributing editor for Rolling Stone.

A&S caught up with Cateforis, who teaches in the Department of Art and Music Histories, for a backstage look at the excitement.

1. Why do you think your book [now in its third edition] is so popular?
Rock has a long history that interests people, especially undergraduates. I am proud to see many colleges and universities using my book as part of their courses on rock music and American popular music.

My goal with this edition was to keep the contents in step with the times. Most of the new readings deal with recent changes in the industry, such as the rise of Spotify, royalty issues, the impact of social media, the dearth of rock stars and the crisis facing electric guitar manufacturers in an age where rock is no longer king.

2. What are you working on now?
I am researching the history of alternative rock, most immediately for a chapter in a forthcoming edited collection. Ultimately, I want to do a book-length study [on alt-rock], examining its musical and cultural impact during the 1990s.

3. How has the field changed from when you started out?
As a graduate student in the early ’90s, I could count on one hand the number of music historians who had written dissertations or full-length studies on rock or popular music. Now, it’s a commonplace and widely accepted subject within the discipline. Popular music studies is one of the fastest growing areas of scholarly pursuit among academic music societies.

4. How does IASPM fit into all this?
The first conference I ever attended as a graduate student was for IASPM. It was an eye-opening experience to meet so many scholars of popular music. That is one of our most important functions—providing a venue for those studying popular music to connect and network with one another.

It also was through our in-house publication, The Journal of Popular Music Studies, that I published my first article [about the post-punk group Sonic Youth]. I cannot stress enough how important IASPM has been to my career.

5. If you could meet any musician, who would it be?
The legendary bluesman Robert Johnson, who died under mysterious circumstances in 1938. I would ask him if he really sold his soul to the devil in exchange for his prodigious [guitar playing]. He might find it interesting or amusing to know that such a myth has circulated about him.

Avinay Bhat

Ph.D. candidate Avinay Bhat studies neutrinos—tiny, elusive particles that hold clues about the origin of the Universe. As a member of the (HEP) research group, he also builds components for a major experiment at Fermilab, a U.S. Department of Energy physics lab near Chicago.

“The components are for the Short-Baseline Near Detector [SBND], one of three particle detectors in Fermilab’s Short-Baseline [SBN] Program,” says Bhat, who has worked at Fermilab since November.

SBN focuses on neutrino oscillation, the process by which neutrinos change types, or flavors, as they hurtle through space and matter close to the speed of light.

Neutrinos come in three flavors, but SBN is searching for evidence of a fourth, known as the sterile neutrino. “Proving its existence would change the way we look at elementary physics,” says Bhat, adding that sterile neutrinos do not emit light or energy.

The College of Arts and Sciences recently spoke with Bhat about his innovative work in the Department of Physics.

I’m told that massive stars do not go gently into that good night—that they explode in a supernova, whose energy is carried away by a burst of neutrinos.
These explosions are called core-collapse supernovae, which give birth to neutron stars and black holes. I study neutrinos from these events.

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Due to their low energies, supernova neutrino interactions are difficult to reconstruct in MicroBooNE, where I do physics analysis….“MicroBooNE” is short for “Micro Booster Neutrino Experiment,” a multinational project in which hundreds of scientists study neutrino interactions.

Say more about core-collapse.
The core of a giant collapsing star is incredibly dense. When energy from a star’s nuclear reaction cannot hold its mass, gravity causes the outer layers of the star to fall inward. Thus, the core experiences a collapse.

During the collapse, almost 99 percent of the star’s binding energy is released in the form of neutrinos, which travel in all flavors and in all directions.

Fermilab, outside of Chicago (Photo courtesy of Reidar Hahn/Fermilab)

And you detect these neutrinos in MicroBooNE—
The neutrinos arrive in MicroBooNE before the light [from the core-collapse supernova] reaches telescopes on Earth. Therefore, we can tell astronomers where to point their telescopes in the sky, in time to observe a supernova explosion.

What else do you do at Fermilab?
In addition to MicroBooNE physics analysis, I do SBND hardware installation. Both projects fall under the realm of experimental neutrino physics.

Would you elaborate?
Because neutrinos have no charge and very little mass, they rarely interact with other particles. In fact, most of them pass through Earth undetected.

Neutrinos occasionally collide with atoms. When that happens, we study their interactions to learn more about the properties of neutrinos and their role in the Universe.

With SBND, [postdoc] Pip Hamilton and I have been working on the APA wiring effort.

For those keeping score, an APA [anode plane assembly] is a large, rectangular frame on a liquid-argon particular detector. Each APA contains nearly 15 miles of delicate wire, which records signals created by neutrino collisions.
Right. Pip and I spent most of last year at the Wright Lab [at Yale] doing wiring. In November, we finished our second APA and shipped it to Fermilab.

Have you always liked detector design and development?
While I was working on my master’s degree, I was involved with a semester-long project at INO [the India-Based Neutrino Observatory]. It was there I learned about basic neutrino physics and particle detection, using various detectors. For these reasons, I chose to focus on neutrinos at Syracuse.

Posdoc Pip Hamilton (foreground) and Bhat work on part of an anode plane assembly, or APA, at Yale University.

What else should we know about neutrinos?
After photons, they are the most abundant particles in the Universe. We, in fact, swim in a sea of neutrinos.

Not long ago, the Standard Model [a theory describing how particles and forces relate to one another] determined that neutrinos were massless. Now we know that they not only have mass, but also change “flavor” from one type of neutrino to another. Neutrinos have a tendency not to interact with matter.

What’s your goal with this research?
To answer some big questions. I want to know what role neutrinos play in supernova explosions….Can supernova neutrinos help verify the existing neutrino oscillation and core collapse models? What can they tell us about neutrino mass hierarchy?

Do you foresee any applications?
Our knowledge of neutrinos is small, so the immediate focus is on basic research. As with most basic research, we have no idea where we will end up.

An analogy is the discovery of the electron in 1897. Back then, nobody knew that the flow of electrons created electricity—knowledge that has changed the course of history. Likewise, neutrino detectors currently monitor nuclear proliferation activity. As we learn more [about neutrinos], the possible applications in science and technology are far-reaching.

How do you like working with Associate Professor Mitch Soderberg?
His involvement with multiple neutrino experiments has enabled me to get much-needed experience in both hardware installation and physics analysis. Mitch is supportive and understanding, and his expertise has contributed greatly to my growth as a doctoral student. We’re already thinking about postdoc interviews.

Jessica Arb Danial G’16

Today, the museum has reached more than two-thirds of its $17 million goal—success she attributes to her liberal arts training in the (AMH).

“The Everson is proud to spearhead one of the biggest capital campaigns of its kind in the region,” says Danial, who, at 38, is the youngest board chair in the museum’s 122-year history. “Central New Yorkers believe in the importance of arts and culture.”

A&S recently caught up with the mother of two, who also is an art collector and a philanthropist, to talk about museum activism and social responsibility.

Why do we need good arts leaders?
Part of the Everson’s mission is to contribute toward a more vital, inclusive society, an exciting effort alongside a historic period of broader investments and revitalization in downtown Syracuse.

We foster a safe urban core through increased pedestrian activity, while broadening interest in downtown living.

How so?
We effect positive change through targeted community partnerships, educational activities and social programs. They include our Teen Art Council, as well as free or reduced admission days.

We also have increased the number and types of classes we offer; expanded our summer youth camps; provided hands-on activities for school tours; and added social events, such as First Fridays [an evening of art, music and art-making].

Danial holding her son at the dedication of her eponymous education center. (Photo courtesy of the Everson Museum of Art)

How have you put your AMH training to work?
I am thrilled to be part of “The Everson. First and Forever,” the most historic and ambitious fundraising campaign in the museum’s history. I also am keenly aware of the Everson’s immense cultural and educational potential for Syracuse.

I have learned that by establishing a strong fiscal foundation, we can better connect with the community, promote demographic and artistic diversity, and inspire curiosity and lifelong learning.

Gender equality is alive and well at the Everson.
It is. I work closely with President and CEO Elizabeth Dunbar—the first time that two women have been at the helm of the museum.

Philanthropy also is important to you, as evidenced by the newly renovated and newly named Danial Family Education Center, which opened in January.
I believe strongly in the Everson—its mission and the arts being part of every child’s education and life. As a family, we subscribe to the belief that the arts provide the foundation for lifelong learning, creativity and critical thinking.

By investing in the Everson and its new education center, we are investing in the future of our community’s children. I especially want to instill a sense of community and civic pride in my two boys.

If you could meet any artist, dead or alive, who would it be?
I would love to meet Frida Kahlo. Some may think we have romanticized her pain, both in tragic love affairs and physical trauma, but I have such admiration for how she transformed her suffering into hope and beauty. She is truly an inspiration. I would relish the opportunity to hear her side of her tragedies, art and loves. She’s timeless.

Do you collect art?
I try to collect work by young, emerging artists. As I’ve begun collecting art more seriously, my personal mission statement has helped me focus on new acquisitions.

The Books in the Humanities Reception represents work done by authors and editors in 12 schools and colleges, as well as SUArt Galleries. (Photo courtesy of Skylines/Shutterstock.com)

Looking for something new to read? Don’t miss the fourth annual , featuring works by more than 60 University authors and editors from across campus.

Organized by the Syracuse University Humanities Center in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S), the reception is Wednesday, April 17, from 4:30 to 6 p.m. in the Goldstein Alumni and Faculty Center. Free and open to the public, the event features a wide variety of fiction and nonfiction titles that were published last year. Books will be available for sale, and many of the authors will be on hand to sign copies.

A complete list of submissions is available on the Syracuse University Libraries’ page.

For more information, contact the Humanities Center at 315.443.7192 or visit .

A&S Dean Karin Ruhlandt considers the event a fitting recognition of faculty contributions to their respective fields. “This is a joyous occasion to celebrate creative work in the humanities, ranging from monographs to poetry, from short stories to biographies. A&S faculty are leading the way in illuminating the human experience,” she says.

Humanities Center Director Vivian May agrees, noting that the event captures a broad range of faculty research interests. “It exemplifies the humanities footprint on campus,” says May, adding that the submissions span a dozen schools and colleges on campus, as well as the Syracuse University Art Galleries.

A&S sponsors the reception, with additional support from the University’s Office of Research, the Syracuse University Bookstore and Syracuse University Libraries.

“This year’s submissions convey significant scholarship and accomplishments, and high levels of research productivity by colleagues in A&S and across campus,” says John Liu, the University’s vice president for research and professor of biology in A&S. “The breadth and depth of these publications are a barometer of the great work being conducted in the humanities at Syracuse.”

Located in the Tolley Humanities Building, the Humanities Center cultivates diverse forms of humanities scholarship, sponsors a range of dynamic programming and partnerships, highlights the humanities as a public good and underscores the relevance of the humanities for addressing enduring questions and pressing social issues.

Presented by the Humanities Center in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S), the series explores the role of storytelling through an interdisciplinary lens. More information is at .

A&S recently caught up with a few of this month’s organizers—Osamah Khalil, associate professor of history, Anneka Herre, program director of the Urban Video Project (UVP), and Phil Memmer, executive director of the Arts Branch of the YMCA—to discuss their programming.

Osamah, tell us about your transnational symposium, “,” on April 11-12.

Osamah Khalil

We will address the theme of “Stories” by examining how authoritarianism has been experienced and resisted through a range of expressions, from text and film to art and activism, over the past seven decades.

Our topics will range from Japanese-American internment during World War II, to the end of the Cold War, to current debates over immigration. In addition to different kinds of authoritarianism, we will explore why it endures.

You’ve assembled a terrific lineup.
Thank you. Participants include Syracuse faculty and graduate students, as well as scholars from Cornell and the U.S. State Department [Associate Professor Jeremy Wallace and historian James Graham Wilson, respectively].

Urban Video Project will screen “Culture Capture: Terminal Addition” on the Everson Museum Plaza from April 11-May 25.

Anneka, you have invited the New Red Order [NRO], a rotating and expanding cast of visual artists and performers, to campus. Tell us about them.
Our three guests—Adam and Zack Khalil, as well as Jackson Polys—are core contributors to the NRO. [April 16-18], they will discuss and premiere their film “Culture Capture: Terminal Addition,” commissioned by LightWork for UVP and shot in and around Syracuse.

The NRO is a “public secret society” that challenges European settler and colonialist tendencies with what they call “sites of savage pronouncement.”

American history told through a Native lens, as it were.
Their project is about many stories. They include stories that we, as a country, built on settler-colonialism, tell ourselves about our own history, specifically the way we have consigned Indigenous peoples to a historical past.

Phil, you regularly team up with Syracuse Symposium for a mini-residency by a renowned writer. What should we know about this year’s visitor, Laure-Anne Bosselaar, on April 25?

Laure-Anne Bosselaar

She’s an acclaimed poet whose four books demonstrate how the unique particulars of one’s life stories—the horrors of anti-Semitism, the pain of childhood neglect and abuse, the grief of losing a spouse—can, through the filter of art, shimmer with universal truths.

Her latest book, “These Many Rooms” [Four Way Books, 2019], draws on the sudden loss of her husband, noted poet Kurt Brown. Like her previous volumes, it shows how the particulars of any individual’s story have the potential to become universal through artful retelling.

Her own life story is rather unique—born in Belgium, raised by a convent of “abusive nuns.”
Laure-Anne describes the family that briefly raised her as “virulent anti-Semitism.” Her stories from these difficult times permeate her first three books of poems, which show how early emotional and physical deprivation can be overcome by intelligence, humor, curiosity and determination.

[Pulitzer Prize-winning poet] Charles Simic says that Laure-Anne writes “wise poems about memory—poems whose art lies in their ability to make these memories ours, too.”

Rounding out Syracuse Symposium is a (April 23-24) by Michelle Caswell and Samip Mallick, co-founders of the South Asian American Digital Archive (SAADA) in Philadelphia.

“They will address how institutional archives have historically served as sites of white privilege and supremacy, thus disadvantaging the stories of marginalized communities,” writes organizer Tarida Anantachai, a librarian in Syracuse University Library’s Learning Commons in Bird Library. “Their programs will explore the embedded oppressions within archival practices and how community-based archives such as SAADA have countered these structures and amplified the experiences of historically underrepresented communities.”

Layli Long Soldier

The continues with a program by poet Layli Long Solider on Wednesday, April 3.

Long Solider will participate in a Q&A session from 3:45 to 4:30 p.m., followed by a reading of her original work from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Both events take place in Gifford Auditorium of Huntington Beard Crouse Hall and are free and open to the public.

For more information, contact Sarah Harwell G’05, associate director of the M.F.A. Program in Creative Writing in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S), at 315.443.2174 or scharwel@syr.edu.

Long Solider is an Oglala Lakota poet, writer and artist who teaches at Diné, a tribal college in northeastern Arizona. She is renowned for her debut collection of poetry, “Whereas” (Graywolf Press, 2017), inspired by the Congressional Resolution of Apology to Native Americans, or S.J. Res. 14., from 2009-10.

“’Whereas’ confronts the coercive language of the U.S. government in its responses, treaties and apologies to Native American people and tribes. It also reflects that language in its officiousness and duplicity back on its perpetrators,” writes Long Soldier, a National Book Award finalist, who won the 2017 National Book Critics Circle Award and the 2018 PEN/Jean Stein Book Award.

The Santa Fe resident also is the author of the chapbook, “Chromosomory” (Q Avenue Press, 2010), editor of the literary journal Drunken Boat and poetry editor for Kore Press. Her poems have appeared in POETRY Magazine, The New York Times, The American Poet, The American Reader, The Kenyon Review Online and BOMB.

An accomplished artist, Long Soldier has participated in several shows, including “Whereas We Respond” and “Pté Oyate,” both of which recently debuted at the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota.

She earned an M.F.A. in creative writing at Bard College.

Each year, the Carver Reading Series presents 12-14 prominent writers who, as part of their mini-residencies, interact with members of an undergraduate creative writing course, led by TAs in the M.F.A. program.

The series takes its name from the legendary poet and short-story writer who taught at Syracuse University in the 1980s.

“Burning the Bride,” a Mithila painting from Susan S. Wadley’s personal collection, on display at ArtRage.

The Ray Smith Symposium—in conjunction with , whose theme this year is “Stories”—continues with eight events under the heading “Stories We Are Told, Stories We Tell.”

The series, which explores the role of storytelling in Indian culture, is led by Susan S. Wadley, the Ford-Maxwell Professor of South Asian Studies in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) and the Maxwell School, in partnership with the South Asia Center (SAC).

All events are free and open to the public, and take place at the ArtRage Gallery (505 Hawley Ave., Syracuse), unless otherwise indicated. For more information, contact Emera Bridger Wilson G’17, G’22, associate director of and outreach coordinator for SAC, at elbridge@maxwell.syr.edu �ǰ���315.443.2553.

“The Ray Smith Symposium [based in A&S] moves to connect the University with the broader campus community by involving ArtRage and a cross-section of Syracuse faculty,” says Wadley, a veteran anthropologist. “It’s the public humanities at its best.”

Wadley also is co-curator of an exhibition at ArtRage titled “.” Running from April 16-May 18, the show includes Mithila artwork from northern India, where she has carried out field research for more than a decade. “They’re from my personal collection and include several never-before-seen paintings,” says Wadley, who is retiring from Syracuse this summer.

Indian dancer-activist-choreographer Mallika Sarabhai (third from left) in “The Colours of Her Heart.” (Photo courtesy of Magic Dust Photography)

The schedule is as follows:

Saturday, April 6
Opening Reception: “” art exhibition
7 to 9 p.m.

Wednesday, April 10
Literary Performance: “,” presented by Arthur Flowers, associate professor of English
7 to 9 p.m.

Friday, April 12
Dance-Drama Performance: “,” co-directed by Mallika Sarabhai and Yadavan Chandran. Co-sponsored by SAC, the six-person work features choreography by Sarabhai (also one of the performers) and music by Samia Malik.
7 to 9 p.m.
Everson Museum of Art, 401 Harrison St., Syracuse
Free for Everson members; $8 for non-members

Tuesday, April 16
Lecture: “,” presented by Coralynn Davis, professor of women’s and gender studies and of anthropology at Bucknell University.
6 to 8 p.m.

Susan S. Wadley

Wednesday, April 24
Gallery Talk: “,” featuring Wadley and Geraldine Forbes, Distinguished Teaching Professor Emerita of History at SUNY Oswego.
7 to 9 p.m.

Thursday, April 25
Seminar: “,” co-facilitated by Jason Zencka, an award-winning author and journalist, and Florencia Lauria, a Ph.D. student in English at Syracuse University.
7 to 8:30 p.m.
Registration required; R.S.V.P. at info@artragegallery.org by April 22

Sunday, April 28
Interactive Dance: “,” a family-friendly, interactive program, led by Sudha Raj G’85, G’91, a teaching professor of nutrition science and dietetics in Falk College, who also is an authority on Bharatanatyam, an ancient form of Indian classical dance.
3-5 p.m.

Wednesday, May 8
Screening: “” (“Blood Leaves Its Trail),” with a talkback with Wadley.
7-9 p.m.

One of the signature offerings of the Ray Smith Symposium is “From Gods to Social Justice.” In addition to Mithila paintings (created by women from the region), the exhibition features Patua scrolls. On loan from Geraldine Forbes’ personal collection, the scrolls are made by men from the Bengal region of India and can be several feet long.

Both types of painting, Wadley says, tackle such contemporary themes as violence against women, female infanticide, political corruption, climate change and war.

Patua painting also figures prominently in Arthur Flowers’ performance, based on his 2013 graphic novel by the same name. Onstage will be the original scroll that Patua artist Manu Chitrakar created for Flowers’ book.

Wadley notes that “[Flowers] will use Manu’s scroll to turn Dr. King’s historic journey into a truly universal legacy.”

Support for these events comes from the Ray Smith Symposium (A&S), the Syracuse University Humanities Center (A&S), the South Asia Center (A&S, Maxwell and the U.S. Department of Education), the Department of Art and Music Histories (A&S) and the Department of Anthropology (Maxwell).

Additional support for “The Colours of Her Heart” comes from the Ford-Maxwell Professorship (Maxwell), the Department of Women’s and Gender Studies (A&S), the Indian Community and Religious Center, the Everson Museum of Art and the University’s chapter of the Society for the Promotion of Indian Classical Music and Culture Amongst Youth.

The Ray Smith Symposium takes its name from the Auburn, New York, native, who, after graduating from Syracuse in 1921, became a highly respected educator and administrator.

Syracuse Symphony alumnus William “Bill” Harris conducts and plays with Bones East.

Bones East, a Syracuse-based, 24-piece trombone ensemble, will present a Palm Sunday concert at DeWitt Community Church (DCC).

On Sunday, April 14, the group will perform from 1 to 2 p.m. in the sanctuary of DCC at 3600 Erie Blvd., Syracuse. Open to the public, the concert features traditional and contemporary favorites, including compositions and arrangements by local resident Tom Camp.

Several members have ties to Syracuse University, including soloist David DiGennaro ’90 and guest conductor William “Bill” Harris, a veteran of the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra, who teaches low brass in in the College of Visual and Performing Arts.

“Dave is a Setnor alumnus and a former student of mine,” beams Harris, also professor of music emeritus at Onondaga Community College. “It’s always a pleasure to work with him.”

Moreover, guest conductor Mark Anderson is a master’s student in the Setnor School’s conducting program, and Clifford Crain and Jim D’Addario also play in the Syracuse University Brass Ensemble, based in the College of Arts and Sciences.

The concert is free; however, a $5 donation supporting DCC’s organ fund is encouraged. For more information, contact Rob Enslin at 315.559.8115 or rmenslin@syr.edu.

David DiGennaro ’90 is a music teacher at Homer High School.

“We’re thrilled to partner with DeWitt Community Church on this special springtime concert,” says Camp, affectionately known as Bones East’s “staff arranger.” “Whether you’re an experienced musician, a beginner or someone who appreciates fine playing, the concert offers something for everyone. The sound is nothing short of majestic—the perfect accompaniment to the holidays.”

Bones East will present more than two centuries of music, including “Achieved is the Glorious Work” from Haydn’s oratorio “The Creation; the “Adagio” from Saint-Saëns’ Symphony No. 3 (“Organ Symphony”); and “Make Our Garden Grow” from Bernstein’s operetta “Candide,” featuring soloists Pete Sanborn, a retired military bandsman, and Jim Peer, assistant director of brass instruction for the Oswego City School District.

The program includes three Camp originals: “Latine Ossium”; “For Those Who Have Gone Before”; and “Reflective Journey,” featuring DiGennaro as soloist. The group also will present Camp’s arrangements of the Scottish folksong “Durisdeer”; “Briny Ballads”; and the U.S. Navy Hymn, “Eternal Father, Strong to Save.”

Rounding out the program are low-brass chestnuts by Vaclav Nelhybel, Tommy Pederson and Josef Rheinberger.

The late Howard Kelley founded Bones East in the early 1980s, around the same time he and his wife, Gayle, formed the Skaneateles Community Band. Since then, Bones East has sported a core group of about 15-20 trombonists—semi-pros, students and retirees, mostly—who play for the joy of it.

The group frequently plays to packed houses throughout the City of Syracuse and Central New York. Recent engagements include the Moravia Music Boosters Club and “Frühling Posaunen” (“Spring Trombones”) in Ithaca, where Bones East shared the stage with trombone choirs from Eastman, Penn State and Ithaca College.

The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) in Switzerland is the world’s biggest, most powerful particle accelerator.

Syracuse University’s Sheldon Stone helps discover matter-antimatter asymmetry in charmed quarks

Physicists in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) have confirmed that matter and antimatter decay differently for elementary particles containing charmed quarks.

Distinguished Professor says the findings are a first, although matter-antimatter asymmetry has been observed before in particles with strange quarks or beauty quarks.

Quarks are elementary particles that are the building blocks of matter.

Stone and members of the college’s (HEP) research group have measured, for the first time and with 99.999-percent certainty, a difference in the way D⁰ mesons and anti-D⁰ mesons transform into more stable byproducts.

Mesons are subatomic particles composed of one quark and one antiquark, bound together by strong interactions.

“There have been many attempts to measure matter-antimatter asymmetry, but, until now, no one has succeeded,” says Stone, who collaborates on the Large Hadron Collider beauty (LHCb) experiment at the CERN laboratory in Geneva, Switzerland. “It’s a milestone in antimatter research.”

The findings may also indicate new physics beyond the Standard Model, which describes how fundamental particles interact with one another. “’til then, we need to await theoretical attempts to explain the observation in less esoteric means,” he adds.

Every particle of matter has a corresponding antiparticle, identical in every way, but with an opposite charge. Precision studies of hydrogen and antihydrogen atoms, for example, reveal similarities to beyond the billionth decimal place.

Sheldon Stone

When matter and antimatter particles come into contact, they annihilate each other in a burst of energy—similar to what happened in the Big Bang, some 14 billion years ago. “That’s why there is so little naturally occurring antimatter in the Universe around us,” says Stone, a fellow of the American Physical Society, which has awarded him this year’s W.K.H. Panofsky Prize in Experimental Particle Physics.

The question on Stone’s mind involves the equal-but-opposite nature of matter and antimatter. “If the same amount of matter and antimatter exploded into existence at the birth of the Universe, there should have been nothing left behind but pure energy. Obviously, that didn’t happen,” he says in a whiff of understatement.

Thus, Stone and his LHCb colleagues have been searching for subtle differences in matter and antimatter to understand why matter is so prevalent.

The answer may lie at CERN, where scientists create antimatter by smashing protons together in the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), the world’s biggest, most powerful particular accelerator. The more energy the LHC produces, the more massive are the particles—and antiparticles—formed during collision.

It is in the debris of these collisions that scientists such as Ivan Polyakov, a postdoc in Syracuse’s HEP group, hunt for particle ingredients.

“We don’t see antimatter in our world, so we have to artificially produce it,” he says. “The data from these collisions enables us to map the decay and transformation of unstable particles into more stable byproducts.”

HEP is renowned for its pioneering research into quarks, of which there are six types, or flavors. Scientists usually talk about them in pairs: up/down, charmed/strange and top/bottom. Each pair has a corresponding mass and fractional electronic charge.

In addition to the beauty quark (the “b” in “LHCb”), HEP is interested in the charmed quark. Despite its relatively high mass, a charmed quark lives a fleeting existence before decaying into something more stable.

Recently, HEP studied two versions of the same particle. One version contained a charmed quark and an antimatter version of an up quark, called the anti-up quark. The other version had an anti-charm quark and an up quark.

Using LHC data, they identified both versions of the particle, well into the tens of millions, and counted the number of times each particle decayed into new byproducts.

“The ratio of the two possible outcomes should have been identical for both sets of particles, but we found that the ratios differed by about a tenth of a percent,” Stone says. “This proves that charmed matter and antimatter particles are not totally interchangeable.”

Adds Polyakov, “Particles might look the same on the outside, but they behave differently on the inside. That is the puzzle of antimatter.”

The idea that matter and antimatter behave differently is not new. Previous studies of particles with strange quarks and bottom quarks have confirmed as such. What makes this study unique, Stone concludes, is that it is the first time anyone has witnessed particles with charmed quarks being asymmetrical: “It’s one for the history books.”

HEP’s work is supported by the National Science Foundation.

Larry Blumenfeld

is a cultural journalist, music critic and longtime contributor to The Wall Street Journal. As this year’s Jeanette K. Watson Distinguished Visiting Professor in the Humanities Center, he will explore “Jazz in Troubled Times” through a series of lectures, workshops, public discussions and musical performances. Everything is free and open to the public. For more information, visit .

The College of Arts and Sciences recently caught up with Blumenfeld to discuss his residency, which runs from March 25-April 5 and covers the “ongoing relevance and resonance” of jazz culture.

What is “jazz culture”?
There are many possible interpretations, but jazz culture begins and ends with music. For our purposes, it refers to shared patterns of behavior and values that both give rise to bodies of music and draw from them in a functional way. It speaks of many of the things we like to—and need to—discuss right now, such as race, gender, ethnicity, class, cultural heritage and a sense of purposeful community.

How is jazz still relevant?
A century ago, jazz was a brand-new style of music. Fifty years later, it was mainstream music. The radio played it. People danced to it. Musicians earned a living performing it, and sometimes achieved popular stardom. Those days are gone.

While tastes have changed, jazz is still very much alive, but in different ways. Just as Miles Davis, John Coltrane and a long legacy of musicians mined repertory and contemporary influences against the backdrop of activism and experimentalism, today’s jazz artists are reimagining the concept of jazz for their lives and times. Though it may not have the mainstream appeal it once had, the music binds a vital community and connects it to an important history.

Pianist Jason Moran will perform in Hendricks Chapel on April 5. “He personifies the relevance of jazz culture,” Blumenfeld says.

What are some examples?
Proof of jazz’s relevance is all around us, from Spike Lee’s Oscar-winning film [“BlacKkKlansman”] to Henry Threadgill’s recent Pulitzer Prize [for his composition “In for a Penny, In for a Pound”].

Just as jazz culture was indelibly tied to the Civil Rights Movement, it now reflects the Black Lives Matter and Me Too movements. Its connections to other styles of music—pop, rock, hip hop, electronica, classical music—are sometimes obvious and other times less so, but they remain essential. I would argue that jazz, more so than other genres, continually updates and reinvents itself.

Talk about your theme, “Jazz in Troubled Times.”
Jazz is a century old. Troubled times are far older. We’re living in a troubled time now.

Jazz is music, but it exists within a humanistic perspective. It also is inherently multicultural. Since the 1920s and ’30s, jazz has been a conduit for political action, social justice and spiritual healing. It also has coincided with some of the darkest hours of our nation’s history and has helped us through those times.

The main lectures of my residency will focus on two areas. One is the role of jazz culture in the recovery of New Orleans, since the 2005 floods that resulted from levee failures after Hurricane Katrina. The other is the impact of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians [AACM], a collective founded in Chicago more than 50 years ago that has been grounded in jazz tradition and has affected all corners of musical life.

Saxophonist Yosvany Terry will explore the “centrality of Cuban tradition to jazz culture” in a concert at La Casita on March 29.

You have histories with both.
I am working on a book drawn from my research and reporting in New Orleans since 2005. I have studied the ongoing struggles and contributions of brass bands; the Mardi Gras Indians; Social Aid and Pleasure Clubs; and jazz musicians of all stripes. I am convinced that jazz culture has shaped the city’s recovery process. I also am concerned about the role of culture in what is now a “new” New Orleans. There are larger lessons and metaphors to that story that tell us a lot about the identity of jazz and our country.

AACM emerged in Chicago in the ’60s, in response to many rapid changes in the city and our society, in general. Since then, AACM has supported the growth of composers, performers and educators who understand the traditions of jazz and African American culture but also look beyond categories and styles. AACM focuses on individual realizations. It does great work for children and developing musicians, often embracing other art forms, such as dance, theater and painting.

I probably will touch on elements of jazz criticism and musicology, but that’s not the purpose of my visit. My focus is on how jazz culture fosters notions of activism, spiritual growth and a sense of community, in a deeply personal and intersectional way. We appreciate jazz—I appreciate jazz—as music, first and foremost. But isn’t it also the voice of a community, or of several communities?

Bassist Linda May Han Oh will lead a jazz listening party in 114 Bird Library on April 4.

I imagine your guests will help answer that question.
Bassist Linda May Han Oh will lead a listening party [in 114 Bird Library on April 4] that constructs a jazz history from music composed or played by female musicians. She and I will also discuss a changing perspective when it comes to gender and jazz that affects how we consider the past, and what opportunities women have in the jazz field moving forward.

Saxophonist Yosvany Terry, who teaches at Harvard University [and whose visit includes a concert at La Casita Cultural Center on March 29], will explore the centrality of Cuban tradition to jazz culture in the United States. Often in spite of the politics, there is an exciting flow of culture between both countries.

My visit will conclude with my public conversation with pianist Jason Moran, followed by a solo-performance [in Hendricks Chapel on April 5]. I have known him for most of my career and marvel at how he consistently reimagines jazz culture and its connections to wider worlds. His solo-piano work is a thing to behold, and it should sound glorious in the chapel.

Jason’s approach comes out of the jazz-piano tradition, but it embraces and embodies other streams of music, too. He is a widely accomplished musician, composer and visual artist who, for me, personifies the relevance of jazz culture.

When Ed Mitzen ’89 was filling out his college application some 35 years ago, he had one goal in mind—getting into medical school. That all changed after high school graduation, when his father unexpectedly died.

With offers on the table from Cornell and Syracuse, the Albany native trusted his instincts. “As an 18-year-old kid who liked college sports, Syracuse made more sense to me,” says Mitzen, a successful high school athlete. “More importantly, the University gave me the financial support I needed.”

Ed Mitzen ’89

The death of his father, a biochemist, left Mitzen feeling adrift, but not without acquiring a taste for science. He decided to major in biology in the (A&S). “I struggled to keep a 2.8 GPA,” admits Mitzen, owner of a health care marketing agency in Saratoga Springs, New York, called . “I knew I wouldn’t become a doctor.”

The rigors of undergraduate research, combined with a sense of civic responsibility gained from presiding over the Pi Chapter of the Psi Upsilon fraternity, ignited Mitzen’s entrepreneurial spirit. He worked as a pharmaceutical sales rep in Albany and a pharmaceutical product manager in Rochester, before earning an M.B.A. from the Simon Business School at the University of Rochester.

In 1997, the 30-year-old aspiring business owner returned to New York to start his first company: CHS. “I formed an ad agency without ever having worked for one,” laughs Mitzen, who launched Palio Communications two years later.

In 2006, the biopharmaceutical juggernaut Ventiv Health acquired Palio, CHS and other companies for $220 million, providing the seed money for Fingerpaint, which Mitzen opened in 2008.

Today, almost everything he touches reflects an unwavering commitment to “family, employees and philanthropy.” For instance, Ed and his wife, Lisa, regularly volunteer at Code Blue Saratoga, a temporary homeless shelter, located in a church basement near his office. “The shelter holds about 40 to 60 people. There is only one bathroom and no laundry facilities. We barely have room for food and supplies,” says Mitzen, who also serves on multiple boards.

In February 2017, the couple made headlines by offering to pay for the construction of a permanent Code Blue shelter. When done, the two-story home will provide beds for up to 100 people, a full kitchen, showers, a dining room and a food pantry. The home also will contain a drop-in center, where guests can meet social workers and other support staff during the day.

Despite delays over zoning and other land-use regulations, the project is moving forward.

“Lisa and I have gotten to know many of the [shelter’s] guests. Some of them deal with mental health or substance abuse issues,” says Mitzen, Saratoga Living magazine’s “2018 Person of the Year.” “Most of them can’t catch a break because they have lost their jobs, homes or families.”

Fingerpaint’s 10th anniversary gathering in Arizona in 2018.

Bill McEllen, who runs Fingerpaint’s New York and New Jersey offices, says the Code Blue project exemplifies Mitzen’s people-first philosophy. “By ferociously protecting the core values he believes in, Ed creates the greatest good for our clients and the communities in which we live. People-over-profits is an enduring business model,” he adds.

Indeed, Mitzen, 51, is part of a new wave of socially conscious business leaders.

McEllen marvels at how his boss fosters a happy, engaged work environment—from paying 100 percent of his employees’ health care, to contributing to their student loan repayment programs, to giving each of his 230 workers a four-week paid sabbatical every five years. “Ed is good about recognizing his employees’ successes,” he says, citing, as an example, the company’s recent 10-year anniversary—an all-expenses-paid, three-day celebration in Scottsdale, Arizona.

For Mitzen, “health and wellness” is not just business; it is a way of life. “Lisa and I have all that we need, including a loving family and a circle of good friends. I simply treat people the way I want to be treated,” he says.

The approach is paying off, given Fingerpaint’s 77-percent growth over the past three years. The agency, which has additional offices in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Arizona, also is a fixture on Inc.’s list of the fastest-growing U.S. companies and Medical, Marketing & Media’s list of the top-100 health care agencies.

Mitzen is aware, however, of some of the misconceptions about the health care industry. “I don’t apologize for what I do because it helps save lives,” he says.

On any given day, Fingerpaint might be pitching a story about a medical device that treats traumatic brain injuries; doing media buys for various cancer treatment and chemotherapy patient products; or branding innovative solutions for patients with central nervous system diseases, such as schizophrenia, major depressive disorder or multiple sclerosis.

Mitzen’s involvement with science and medicine also has inspired him to reconnect with his alma mater. In addition to joining the A&S Dean’s Advisory Board, he recently hosted a Syracuse fundraiser with M. Lisa Manning, associate professor of physics in A&S, and Shikha Nangia, assistant professor of biomedical and chemical engineering in the . “They were great because a lot of what they do has huge implications for biomedicine,” he recalls.

Just as Syracuse took a chance on him, Mitzen hopes to mold the next generation of thinkers, scientists and leaders. In addition to several Syracuse graduates, he recently has hired Kevin Mann, a longtime adjunct professor in the .

“My company is looking for people who are personable. Do you get along with others? Are you energetic? Do you look me in the eye when I shake your hand?” Mitzen asks. “I want to know what kind of person you are—and who you want to become.”

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������԰�é�پ���ԲԱ�, one of Haiti’s greatest living writers and artists, will visit Syracuse University, March 25-26.

The author of more than 40 books in Haitian and French, he is a Nobel Prize candidate, a commander of the Order of Arts and Letters in France, and a UNESCO Artist for Peace.

������԰�é�پ���ԲԱ� will headline multiple lectures, readings and book signings, as well as a film screening and an art exhibition. All events are free and open to the public.

For more information, contact Jean Jonassaint, professor of French and Francophone studies in the Department of Languages, Literatures and Linguistics (LLL) in A&S, at 315.443.5382 or jjonassa@syr.edu.

“[������԰�é�پ���ԲԱ�] is not only a major Haitian writer, but he is probably the Haitian writer,” Jonassaint told The New York Times, which has dubbed ������԰�é�پ���ԲԱ� the “father of Haitian literature.”

He will focus part of his visit on “Dézafi” (1975), his first novel in Haitian Creole, inspired by living under brutal Duvalier rule in the 1950s and ’60s. Last year, The University of Virginia Press published an English translation of the novel by Asselin Charles, with an afterward by Jonassaint.

The schedule is as follows:

Monday, March 25

• A Q&A with ������԰�é�پ���ԲԱ� about “Dézafi” from 2:15-3:35 p.m. in the Peter Graham Scholarly Commons (114 Bird Library). The session is part of “Translingual Francophone Authors” (FRE 400/600), taught by Genevieve Waite, assistant teaching professor and French language coordinator in LLL.
• A discussion about the challenges of writing and translating “Dézafi” with ������԰�é�پ���ԲԱ� and Charles, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the Graham Scholarly Commons. Booksigning to follow.

Tuesday, March 26

• A reading of “Dézafi” by ������԰�é�پ���ԲԱ� and Charles in French and English, from noon to 2 p.m. in the Community Folk Art Center (CFAC) at 805 East Genesee St., Syracuse. The program includes a light lunch and booksigning; reservations are required. R.S.V.P. at jjonassa@syr.edu by March 20.
• A screening of and talkback with ������԰�é�پ���ԲԱ� about “Une étrange cathédrale dans la graisse des ténèbres” (“A Strange Cathedral in the Fat of Darkness”), a documentary about the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, from 2:30-4:15 p.m. in the CFAC Blackbox Theater. Panelists include Charles; Jonassaint; and Nicole Wallenbrock, a visiting assistant teaching professor of French and Francophone Studies in LLL.

The University of Virginia Press, 2018

Lewis will address “Chicago and the Black Arts Movement” from 5-7:15 p.m. today in the Peter Graham Scholarly Commons (114 Bird Library). The event is free and open to the public.

For more information, contact Casarae Gibson, assistant professor of AAS in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S), at clgib100@syr.edu or 315.443.4426.

“Professor Lewis will discuss the significance of the Black Arts Movement [BAM], which refers to a group of politically motivated black artists, writers, dramatists and musicians who flourished between 1965 and 1975,” says Herbert Ruffin, associate professor and chair of AAS. “The movement was particularly strong in Chicago, where organizations such as Third World Press [the largest independent, black-owned press in the United States] helped establish a new ‘black aesthetic’ through culturally progressive and politically charged publications and activities.”

At Washington State, Lewis teaches contemporary American literature, as well as humanities courses steeped in popular culture.

He has written extensively about American literature; masculinity; African American studies; and popular culture, including music and sports. His books include “Conversations with Toni Cade Bambara” (University Press of Mississippi, 2017) and “Ballers of the New School: Race and Sports in America” (Third World Press, 2010).

“He is interested in a range of topics, from diversity in positions of power and leadership to racial stereotypes sustained in contemporary culture,” says Gibson, adding that Lewis earned a Ph.D. in English from Saint Louis University.

She considers BAM one of the most important chapters in African American history. In addition to laying the foundation for modern-day spoken word and hip-hop, BAM inspired the black studies movement, leading to the formation of academic programs, departments, centers and institutes across the country.

John L. Johnson (Photo courtesy of Special Collections Research Center)

A&S recently caught up with two young alumni who embody the versatility of a liberal arts education. Megan Phan ’17 is a Seattle-based health resource specialist who recently won the . Jacob Urban ’18 is an analyst for British Petroleum (BP) in Chicago, with an interest in clean energy. Both were Remembrance Scholars and members of the Renée Crown University Honors Program, an all-University program in A&S.

Megan Phan

Megan, describe your path from a double major in chemistry and neuroscience to a career in public health care?
Syracuse, particularly the Honors Program, exposed me to interdisciplinary study. That, along with clinical and public health endeavors I pursued throughout college, shaped the way I thought about medicine and its impacts on society. Becoming a physician and working with medically underserved populations seemed like my next natural goals.

How do you like working at Neighborcare Health, which helps those with little or no health insurance?
I enjoy positively impacting people’s health, whether through medical or dental screenings, health education presentations or other community outreach efforts where health resources are lacking.

Some of the challenges I face stem from the cultural and linguistic diversity of our patients. I have to adapt to unfamiliar environments, individualize my approaches to patient communication, overcome ideological and communicative barriers, and challenge my own assumptions about others’ abilities and experiences. I will certainly carry all I’ve learned through community health work into my medical education.

What are some misconceptions about your work?
Healthcare is not that simple. For instance, it’s difficult for people to access healthy foods if they live in a food desert or do not have reliable transportation. In a similar way, it’s difficult for people to take their medications if they cannot afford them or their insurance does not cover them.

I know many patients who work several jobs to take care of their families, so it’s easy for personal care to become a low priority. Some also grapple with past or ongoing traumas related to poverty, domestic violence, refugee resettlement or a death in the family, all of which can act as barriers to healthcare access. Through all this, I’ve learned the importance of social determinants of health in medical practice.

Social responsibility is also important to you, Jacob. Was it a byproduct of your liberal arts training?
Certainly. I was part of the Syracuse University Center for Fellowship & Scholarship Advising Young Research Fellows Program, where I analyzed the federal government’s Renewable Fuel Standard. I also brainstormed solutions for how Congress might achieve its energy goals in the future.

Jacob Urban

Today, you’re part of BP’s Trader Development Program [TDP]. What’s that like? 
Last summer, I interned at BP. At the end of the internship, I was fortunate enough to receive a full-employment offer in TDP, a three-year program that trains energy traders.

Energy traders buy and sell energy products, such as jet fuel, renewable diesel and gasoline. Though we have a profit motive, we are interested, first and foremost, in making sure society accesses the energy products it needs in a safe and timely manner.

How did your Syracuse education—a finance degree from Whitman and an Integrated Learning Major [in Energy and Its Impacts] degree from A&S—prepare you for this line of work?

The Integrated Learning Major [ILM] helped me understand physics and public policy, as opposed to just the financial markets. The ILM gave me the interdisciplinary background needed to understand the origins of our current energy problems and the ability to seek solutions to them.

Syracuse also taught me that learning happens everywhere, not just in the classroom. As a student, I was a research assistant for Gregory Zuckerman, a Special Writer at The Wall Street Journal, known for such books as “The Frackers” and “The Greatest Trade Ever.” His mentorship was a dream come true because it taught me a lot about journalistic principles. It also affirmed my desire to become a problem solver in the energy industry. It is my core belief that the most pressing challenges facing humanity are energy related.

Indeed, learning happens everywhere.
Phan: My brother died from SIDS [sudden infant death syndrome] before I was born, but his loss permeates my work. The same is true of Rick Monetti [a Syracuse student who died in the Pan Am Flight 103 terrorist bombing in 1988], whom I represented as a Remembrance Scholar. These experiences remind me that one’s humanity is never truly lost—it lives on through loved ones and other people whose lives they have touched.

Terrance Hayes (Photo by Becky Thurner Braddock)

The continues with a program by poet Terrance Hayes, the Richard Elman Visiting Writer, on Wednesday, March 20.

Hayes will participate in a Q&A session from 3:45 to 4:30 p.m., followed by a reading of his original work from 5:30-6:30 p.m. Both events will take place in Gifford Auditorium of Huntington Beard Crouse Hall and are free and open to the public.

For more information, contact Sarah Harwell G’05, associate director of the M.F.A. Program in Creative Writing in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S), at 315.443.2174 or scharwel@syr.edu.

Hayes is author of (Penguin Random House, 2018), a finalist for both the National Book Award and National Book Critics Circle Award in Poetry. The collection also was one of The New York Times Critics’ Top Books of 2018.

Last fall, Hayes released (Wave Books), a 2018 National Book Critics Circle Award finalist for Criticism.

The 2014 MacArthur Fellow has published five other award-winning collections, including (Penguin, 2010), winner of the National Book Award.

Chancellor of the Academy of American Poets, Hayes is a member of the core graduate faculty of New York University’s Creative Writing Program. He has served as poetry editor for The New York Times Magazine and guest editor of The Best American Poetry, in which his work frequently appears.

Says poet Cornelius Eady, regarding Hayes’ verse: “First you’ll marvel at his skill, his near-perfect pitch, his disarming humor, his brilliant turns of phrase. Then you’ll notice the grace, the tenderness, the unblinking truth-telling just beneath his lines, the open and generous way he takes in our world.”

Each year, the Carver Reading Series presents 12-14 prominent writers who, as part of their mini-residencies, interact with members of an undergraduate creative writing course, led by TAs in the M.F.A. program.

The series’ namesake refers to the legendary poet and short story writer who taught at Syracuse University in the 1980s.

Leonard S. Elman ’52, a retired New York City attorney and charter member of the A&S Dean’s Advisory Board, supports Hayes’ professorship. The A&S alumnus endowed a visiting writer fund in memory of his brother, Richard ’55.

Susan Hill

Syracuse Symposium continues its yearlong exploration of “Stories” with three events in March.

On March 5, Susan Hill, associate professor of history at the University of Toronto (UT), will discuss “” from 3-4:30 p.m. in the Peter Graham Scholarly Commons (114 Bird Library).

The following day, she will participate in a with Philip P. Arnold, associate professor and chair of religion, and Scott Manning Stevens, associate professor and director of Native American and Indigenous studies. (Both professors are in Syracuse’s College of Arts and Sciences.) The program is from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at The Skä·noñh—Great Law of Peace Center (6680 Onondaga Lake Parkway, Liverpool).

On March 21, Andrew Saluti G’09, assistant professor of design in the College of Visual and Performing Arts (VPA) and coordinator of VPA’s Museum Studies program, will moderate a at the William H. Seward House Museum (SHM) in nearby Auburn. Joining him are Jeffrey Ludwig, SHM’s director of education, and Peter Hyde, owner of his eponymously named design firm in New York City. The event is from 6:30-8 p.m. in the auditorium of the Nancy Cantor Warehouse (350 West Fayette St., Syracuse).

For more information, call the Humanities Center in A&S at 315.443.7192, or visit .

A&S recently spoke with all three organizers about their events.

In addition to directing UT’s Centre for Indigenous Studies, Susan Hill is author of “The Clay We Are Made Of” [University of Manitoba Press, 2017]. What else should we know about her?
Stevens: Dr. Hill’s work stands tall in the field of Indigenous history. She has a Ph.D. in Indigenous studies from Trent University—one of the oldest, best regarded programs of its kind in Canada.

Dr. Hill was raised and lives in Canada’s Six Nations of the Grand River. Her formulation and articulation of a Haudenosaunee historiography in her published essays and in “The Clay We Are Made Of” make her a leading figure in the Haudenosaunee intellectual community.

Arnold: Her lecture will focus on the gap between written and oral accounts of the first contact between French Jesuits and the Onondaga people—something that occurred near here in 1654. She’ll tell the Indigenous side of the story.

Phil, how does First Contact relate to your role as founding director of Skä-noñh, the Haudenosaunee heritage center at Onondaga Lake?
Arnold: Skä-noñh is located on the site of a 17th-century French Jesuit mission. We will re-narrate  local history from the Onondaga perspective.

Stevens: Dr. Hill synthesizes information from traditional oral histories, wampum belts and document-based archives. The result is a distinctly Haudenosaunee historical perspective, offering a corrective to settler histories.

Andrew, your event uncovers a different period of local history. 
Our program, “Designing Stories of Abolition and Coalition,” looks at how exhibition design affects our interpretation of history. We will focus on a new exhibition at SHM that links William Seward [U.S. Secretary of State from 1861-69], his family and his home in Auburn to the Underground Railroad.

Would you say more about the exhibition?
It recognizes our community’s role in the abolitionist movement. The exhibition also invites us to have difficult, yet important conversations about where we’ve come from and who we are today.

There is archival evidence of the Seward House being not only a stop on the Underground Railroad, but also the home, for a while, of Margaret Stewart, possibly the daughter or niece of Harriet Tubman.

What is “exhibition design”?
It refers to the way we consume the information presented—the way we interpret and experience it. Exhibition design ranges from the way labels are type set, to the complete transformation of an environmental space.

From 6-7 p.m., Anderson will participate in a panel discussion with moderator Tanisha Jackson, CFAC’s executive director, and James Gordon Williams, an assistant professor of African American studies and an authority on Prince’s music. Afterward, Anderson will lead a master class for musicians of all instruments and abilities until 8:30 p.m.

Both events are free and open to the public, and are presented in honor of Black History Month. For more information, contact CFAC at 315.442.2230, and include any accessibility accommodation requests.

In addition to primary funding from the Syracuse University Humanities Center and CNY Jazz, Anderson’s visit is co-sponsored by the Department of Art and Music Histories in A&S, CFAC, the Goldring Arts Journalism Program and A&S.

Artist Spencer Stultz ’17 utilizes portraiture to interrogate the complexities of life.

Spencer Stultz ’17, a master’s candidate in Pan African studies, will celebrate the opening of her first one-woman exhibition at the Community Folk Art Center (CFAC) on Friday, Feb. 22, from 5 to 7 p.m.

Titled “A Time for Joy and a Time for Sorrow,” the show uses portraiture to explore notions of identity, spirituality and experience. The exhibition runs until Saturday, March 23, in honor of both Black History Month and Women’s History Month.

The (AAS) in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) is co-sponsoring Friday’s reception and the exhibition, which are free and open to the public.

CFAC is at 805 E. Genesee St., Syracuse. For more information, call 315.442.2230 or visit .

“Spencer is a gifted painter, utilizing portraiture to interrogate the complexities of life,” says CFAC Executive Director Tanisha M. Jackson. “Art is a lens through which she conceptualizes topics that are integral to the human experience.”

In AAS, Stultz resides at the nexus of contemporary art and community development. She is an academic consultant for fullCIRCLE, an all-University program in the Office of Multicultural Affairs (OMA) that helps undergraduates adjust to college life.

Stultz is a master’s candidate in Pan African studies in A&S.

After transferring to Syracuse from Howard University, Stultz received a bachelor’s degree in political science from A&S and the Maxwell School, with a minor in AAS and painting in the College of Visual and Performing Arts.

As an undergraduate, she won the Winston Fisher Seminar’s business plan competition, served as a peer mentor in OMA and tutored student-athletes in the Stevenson Educational Center.

“I am interested in how contemporary black visual art affects community and social activism,” says the Columbus, Ohio, native. “Just as my own identity and experiences drive the work I create, I hope to expand the conversations we have around issues of bias, race and identity.”

Founded in 1972 as a launching pad for African diaspora artists, CFAC has grown to support Latino, Native American and women artists. The center is a longtime partner of AAS, offering public exhibitions, artist talks, classes and workshops, particularly in art, dance and movement.

Recognizing the careers of Professors Susan S. Wadley and Ann Grodzins Gold, the event includes guest panelists Kirin Narayan (Australian National University), Joyce Flueckiger (Emory University), Corinne Dempsey G’96 (Nazareth College) and Priti Ramamurthy G’95 (University of Washington).

The discussion is free and open to the public, and takes place from 7 to 9 p.m. in the Dr. Paul & Natalie Strasser Legacy Room, 220 Eggers Hall. For more information, contact the Humanities Center in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) at 315.443.7192 or visit .

Wadley and Gold also are involved with “,” running from April 6-May 18 at ArtRage Gallery, 505 Hawley Ave., Syracuse. The opening reception for the exhibition, which represents two painting styles from eastern India, is Saturday, April 6, from 7 to 9 p.m.

A&S recently caught up with both professors, who have enjoyed prolific careers in A&S and the Maxwell School.

Susan S. Wadley

Sue, you hold multiple positions, including the Ford-Maxwell Professor of South Asian Studies. What will you miss most about Syracuse, when you retire in June?
Wadley: I love teaching ANT 185, Global Encounters: Comparing World Views and Values Cross Culturally. It’s an introductory course focusing on war, organ transfers, surrogate mothers and global tourism. It usually attracts about 200 students.

I also will miss the Coronat Scholars Program, of which I am founding director. This fall marks our 16th incoming class.

Most of all, I’ll miss my great graduate students.

Is it true, Ann, that you’ve already retired?
Gold: Officially, my first day [of retirement] was Jan. 1, 2019. I spent it with my husband in an Indian ashram, which he has been visiting since the ’60s.

I miss everyone at Syracuse—my colleagues, my students, our wonderful staff, the vital interdisciplinary conversations. I’ve had a fortunate career here.

You were the Thomas J. Watson Professor of Religion, in addition to being an anthropology professor. How do you define ethnography?
Gold: There are many definitions, but, to me, it means writing based on living in a place, as part of a community or even as part of another family.

India must seem like a second home to you.
Gold: Fieldwork depends on interpersonal relationships, and there are risks of them souring, of unfulfilled expectations. The rewards of incorporation—into a community and a family—and of learning whole worlds from people seem to outweigh the risks. The work is worth the struggle.

Wadley: Our fieldwork is very basic—no electricity nor amenities. Through our research, we’ve gained major insights into how women live their daily lives.

Ann Grodzins Gold

You’ve assembled a remarkable panel, some of whom have Syracuse connections.
Gold: Corrine [Dempsey] was my first graduate advisee. I have enjoyed seeing her work take remarkable, new directions. Corrine’s latest book is about spirit work in Iceland.

Wadley: My memory is that her doctoral dissertation and first book grew out of a course that I taught.

Priti [Ramamurthy] and I worked closely together when she was a student and later in her various roles at Syracuse, including associate director of the South Asia Center [in the Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs] and a faculty member in the Department of Women’s and Gender Studies [in A&S].

Gold: Although I never taught Priti, we are now friends and colleagues.

I feel like we’ve known Kirin [Narayan] and Joyce [Flueckiger] forever—our work is closely intertwined. Our shared reliance on intimate ethnography and many forms of narrative is pivotal to our enduring sense of connection.

How will you spend retirement?
Wadley: Gardening, when the weather is nice. Also quilting, which is my second love. Grandchildren and more.

Gold: I am figuring it out as I go along.

The panel discussion is co-sponsored by the Department of Religion (A&S), the Department of Anthropology (Maxwell), the South Asia Center (Maxwell), the Humanities Center (A&S) and the Ray Smith Symposium (A&S).

Larry Blumenfeld

Larry Blumenfeld, cultural journalist, music critic and longtime contributor to The Wall Street Journal, will serve as the at Syracuse University, March 25-April 5.

Blumenfeld’s residency, titled “Jazz in Troubled Times: The Relevance and Resonance of a Culture,” will explore the convergence of politics, activism and the arts, while rethinking the nature of jazz as an enduring culture.

The Humanities Center in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) supports the annual Watson Professorship in partnership with a faculty host—this year’s is Eric Grode, assistant professor in the Newhouse School and director of the Goldring Arts Journalism Program.

Blumenfeld will headline eight scholarly and artistic events, drawing on his extensive fieldwork in New York City, New Orleans and Havana. The schedule includes public discussions with performances by saxophonist Yosvany Terry and his quartet (March 29) and pianist Jason Moran (April 5), as well as a listening party co-curated by bassist Linda May Han Oh. (April 4).

Jason Moran

All events are free and open to the public. For more information, including a complete schedule, contact the Humanities Center at 315.443.7192 or visit .

Humanities Center Director Vivian May looks forward to Blumenfeld’s residency, saying it will underscore how jazz culture influences—and is influenced by—social change.

“Larry’s work embodies public humanities scholarship,” says May, also a professor of women’s and gender studies in A&S. “He will explore jazz’s deep resonance as an art form; its improvisational power to bridge arts and activism; and its continued relevance as framework for understanding questions of inequity, identity and community in turbulent times.”

Undergirding Blumenfeld’s visit is jazz’s alleged resurgence. In the WSJ, he wrote, “Reports of jazz’s death have been ill-advised. So, too, have tales of [its] resurrections.”

Linda May Han Oh (Photo by Shervin Lainez)

Against this backdrop, the former Jazziz editor in chief will examine “America’s classical music” through a multicultural lens. Emphasis will be on how questions of race, gender, ethnicity, class and cultural heritage are intertwined.

One of Blumenfeld’s lectures will draw on his extensive study of cultural recovery in post-Katrina New Orleans—also the basis for his forthcoming book from the University of California Press. “Jazz has been a powerful conduit for political action, social justice and healing,” he says, recalling his time along the Gulf Coast in the wake of the deadly 2005 hurricane.

Another lecture will stem from his research into the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM), a Chicago-based nonprofit that, for more than 50 years, has championed original music spanning avant-garde jazz, classical and world music. Blumenfeld considers the AACM the “clearest driving force of any new jazz aesthetic,” responsible for erasing borders between genres and disciplines.

Among the beneficiaries of AACM’s aesthetic—and the consistent foci of Blumenfeld’s scholarship—are Moran, the Kennedy Center artistic director for jazz, who teaches at the New England Conservatory (and whose artwork is on view this fall at the Whitney Museum of American Art), and Terry, a leading proponent of Afro-Cuban jazz, who is both a senior lecturer on music and director of jazz ensembles at Harvard University.

Yosvany Terry

Terry and Moran will precede their performances at La Casita Cultural Center and in Hendricks Chapel, respectively, with interdisciplinary discussions about jazz culture.

“How do you write about something being created in front of you?” Grode asks. “How do you harness art for the greater good?

“Larry has spent decades answering these questions, and music lovers of all stripes will benefit enormously from hearing what he’s learned, through workshops, roundtables, lectures, performances and a public listening session of recordings made by female musicians throughout jazz history.”

The listening party co-led by Oh, who teaches bass at The New School, involves The Diane Arthur Belfer Audio Laboratory and Archive in Syracuse University Libraries’ Special Collections Research Center.

Blumenfeld adds that, with all the recent talk about walls, jazz stands as a metaphor for and a document of this nation’s multicultural truth.

“Its aesthetic demands and develops an elevated, open-minded exchange of ideas that opposes caricature and fundamentalism,” says the Brooklyn resident, who also curates a music series for Spoleto Festival USA and presents the popular “Jazz and Social Justice” series for the National Jazz Museum in Harlem. “Jazz is not in need of a revival; it is a culture through which we summon spiritual energy, humanistic focus and political power—the stuff of real transformation.”

Sigird Nunez (Photo by Marion Ettlinger)

The continues today with a program by novelist Sigrid Nunez, the Spring Visiting Writer in Syracuse’s top-ranked M.F.A. Program in Creative Writing in the College of Arts and Sciences.

The 2018 National Book Award winner will participate in a Q&A session from 3:45-4:30 p.m. and then will read some of her original work from 5:30-6:30 p.m. Both events take place in Gifford Auditorium of Huntington Beard Crouse Hall, and are free and open to the public.

For more information, contact Sarah Harwell G’05, associate director of the M.F.A. program, at 315.443.2174 or scharwel@syr.edu.

Nunez will draw mostly from “The Friend” (Riverhead Books, 2018), centering on a lonely woman who inherits, after the suicide of a friend, his Great Dane.

The New York Times describes the bestseller as a “sometimes acerbic meditation on loss and love,” highlighting the author’s interest in animals. “The Friend” also explores isues of sexual harassment and assault.

The New York City native is the author of five other novels, as well as “Sempre Susan” (Riverhead, 2014), a memoir of her friendship with writer Susan Sontag.

Each year, the Carver Reading Series presents 12-14 prominent writers who, as part of their mini-residencies, interact with members of an undergraduate creative writing course led by TAs in the M.F.A. program.

The series’ namesake refers to the legendary poet and short story writer who taught at Syracuse in the 1980s.

Prince (left) with Marcus Anderson, who was the late artist’s sideman from 2012-16 and played on his final studio album, “HIT N RUN Phase Two.”

The Syracuse University Humanities Center has announced acclaimed saxophonist Marcus Anderson will visit campus on Monday, Feb. 25, in honor of Black History Month.

A veteran of Prince’s backing band, the New Power Generation, Anderson currently tours with CeeLo Green and runs his own coffee label line.

The artist-entrepreneur will participate in a  with James Gordon Williams, assistant professor of African American studies in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) and an authority on Prince’s music; Tanisha Jackson, executive director of the Community Folk Art Center (CFAC); and Eric Grode, assistant professor in the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications and director of the Goldring Arts Journalism Program.

Afterward, Anderson will lead a master class from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at CFAC, 805 E. Genesee St., Syracuse. Registration is required. Call 315.442.2230 by Monday, Feb. 18, and include any accessibility accommodation requests.

“During his visit, Marcus will reflect on the current state of the music business, including how contemporary music can promote social and cultural understanding,” says Vivian May, director of the Humanities Center and professor of women’s and gender studies in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S). “We’re also excited about his master class, which is open to singers and instrumentalists of all ages and backgrounds. Come play or just watch.”

Both events are free and open to the public. For more information, call the Humanities Center at 315.443.7192 or visit .

On Sunday, Feb. 24, CNY Jazz will present Anderson as part of its popular Cabaret Series at 5 p.m. at the Marriott Syracuse Downtown, 100 E. Onondaga St., Syracuse. For tickets and more information, call 315.479.5299 or visit .

In addition to primary funding from the Humanities Center and CNY Jazz, Anderson’s visit is co-sponsored by the Department of Art and Music Histories in A&S, CFAC, the Goldring Arts Journalism Program and A&S.

Anthony DeCurtis (Photo by Francesca DeCurtis)

Syracuse Symposium continues its yearlong excursion into “Stories” with a program by , bestselling authors of biographies of musicians Lou Reed ’64 and Joni Mitchell, respectively.

Both authors will discuss their respective books and rock biographies, in general, on Tuesday, Feb. 19, from 5 to 6:30 p.m. in the Peter Graham Scholarly Commons, 114 Bird Library. Theo Cateforis, associate professor of music history and cultures in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S), will moderate the discussion. Afterward, DeCurtis and Yaffe will sign copies of their books, which will be available for sale.

Cateforis also will host a session with DeCurtis on “The Music and Life of Lou Reed” in conjunction with Cateforis’ course Rock Music/HOM 378 on Feb. 19 from 2 to 3:20 p.m. in the Peter Graham Scholarly Commons.

Both events are free and open to the public. For more information, call the Humanities Center in A&S at 315.443.7192 or visit .

“As a fellow author, I admire Anthony’s and David’s ease of prose. They have a wonderful sense of flow,” says Cateforis, author of “The Rock History Reader” (Routledge), the third edition of which was published last month. “It is tremendously difficult to engage a reader, but they make it look easy.”

A contributing editor for Rolling Stone for more than 35 years, DeCurtis is author of four books, including “Lou Reed: A Life” (Little, Brown and Company, 2017) and “The Soundtrack of My Life” (Simon & Schuster, 2013), with music legend Clive Davis. DeCurtis also is a distinguished lecturer in the creative writing program at the University of Pennsylvania. His many honors include a 1988 Grammy Award for “Best Album Notes” for the Eric Clapton “Crossroads” box set and three ASCAP Foundation Deems Taylor/Virgil Thompson Awards.

DeCurtis says his liberal arts education, which includes a Ph.D. in American literature from Indiana University-Bloomington, has helped him identify with Reed, long considered one of rock’s most singular and influential artists.

“Lou saw himself as a writer,” says DeCurtis, adding that the Velvet Underground leader earned a bachelor’s degree in English at Syracuse University. “Growing up in Greenwich Village, I had a firsthand relationship with many of the worlds in which Lou moved, even the most marginal, underground ones. This, coupled with my teaching and research interests, has helped me comprehend and render this aspect of his creative life and identity.”

David Yaffe (Photo by Ellen M. Blalock)

Like DeCurtis, Yaffe is a seasoned journalist and scholar—a humanities professor in A&S, who writes about music for such periodicals as The Nation, Harper’s Magazine and The New York Times. He also is author of three books, notably “Reckless Daughter: A Portrait of Joni Mitchell” (Sarah Crichton Books, 2017).

Yaffe notes similarities between Reed and Mitchell, suggesting they are musical polymaths, as remarkable as they are complicated. The difference, however, is that Mitchell is alive and Reed is not—giving “Reckless Daughter” a sense of urgency.

“Both of them walked into pop music and transcended whatever limitations it was thought to have,” says Yaffe, winner of an ASCAP Foundation Deems Taylor/Virgil Thompson Award and a Roger Shattuck Prize for Music Criticism. “They were untrained musicians who were as original as anyone could have been.”

Cateforis admits that writing about celebrities, dead or alive, can be challenging. He references the opening chapter in “Reckless Daughter,” in which Yaffe details how Mitchell “turned on him” after interviewing her for The New York Times in 2007. “You constantly risk offending or overly flattering your subject,” says Cateforis, newly elected president of the U.S. chapter of the International Association for the Study of Popular Music.

Theo Cateforis

Conversely, DeCurtis probably would have never considered writing a book about the “prickly and combative” Reed, were he still alive. “With Lou’s passing [in 2013], the challenge then falls to reconstructing the artist’s life through the eyes and memories of others, while still maintaining a critical distance,” Cateforis adds.

In addition to primary funding from the Humanities Center, both events are co-sponsored by A&S, the Department of Art and Music Histories (A&S), the Department of English (A&S) and the Goldring Arts Journalism Program in the Newhouse School.

Adela C. Licona

, this year’s Syracuse Symposium keynote speaker, finds the euphemistically termed “tender-age facilities”—in reality, prisons for migrant babies and children—wholly reprehensible.

The University of Arizona (UA) professor, artist and activist believes the oft-repeated phrase masks extreme cruelty and violation. “I seek to unmask such violence, using socially engaged art to intervene and offer shared outrage,” she explains.

Humanities Center Director Vivian May is an ardent supporter of Licona’s work, having invited the scholar to participate in the symposium’s yearlong foray into “Stories.” “Adela shows how the humanities and creative arts give us tools to confront our complicity in violence, while combating inhumane ways of thinking and being in the world,” says May, professor of women’s and gender studies in A&S.

An outspoken critic of Trump’s zero-tolerance immigration policy, Licona makes creative projects that highlight the long and brutal history of state violence against families and children. Such projects, she says, help raise public awareness of, deepen collective engagement in and spur action around issues of social justice.

Licona insists the public humanities—and the liberal arts, in general—play a key role in questioning and combating Trump’s policy, which, to date, has “divided more immigrant children than have been counted from their parents or caregivers.”

“I first heard the term ‘tender-age facility’ last summer, when the current administration began separating and incarcerating children in isolation from those with whom they were traveling,” says Licona, who holds multiple appointments at UA, including associate professor of English and vice chair of the Ph.D. minor in Social, Cultural and Critical Theory. “Children and adults have died at the hands of ICE [the United States’ Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency] and in the context of ‘tender-age facilities’ and ‘transgender migrant pods.’ It’s urgent to ensure people understand there is nothing ‘tender’ about them.”

On Thursday, Feb. 21, Licona will discuss “,” an original participatory art project that directs attention to the United States’ flawed immigration system and long histories of forced separations and incarcerations. The event is 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in Maxwell Auditorium. The following morning, Licona will present a on a type of coalitional community engagement she calls “borderlands activism.” Both events are free and open to the public.

A&S recently caught up with Licona to discuss how “Stories” can help contextualize histories of cruelty inflicted on migrant and refugee children and their families.

“TENDER R/AGE :: RABIA TIERNA”

You have said that Audre Lorde, who wrote that our silence does not protect us, was the inspiration for “RABIA TIERNA” [Spanish for “Tender Rage”]. How has your creative project evolved?
It began as a crowdsourcing call to friends to send in photos of themselves as children. Like many project participants, I lived a cage-free childhood, and have always known that caging people was wrong. This project has become a collective outcry against what is happening to children and other migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border.

As someone studying textual and visual rhetoric, I contemplate new ways of seeing, being and relating. Therefore, “TENDER R/AGE” is a collaboration of socially engaged art that intervenes into the horrors of U.S. policy regarding migrants and asylum seekers. At its inception and especially as the project circulates online and as a site-specific exhibition, it becomes relational and coalitional, with distinct localities and other movements for social justice broadly defined.

Family separations are nothing new in the United States.
We have a long, brutal history of them. From slavery and government boarding schools to internment camps, the United States has incarcerated and killed many children through imposed or enforced separations.

We are witnessing the proliferation of a for-profit industry that is unfolding before our eyes, but also stays purposely obscured from us. “Tender-age facilities” are prisons. They are a multi-billion dollar industry in the United States.

This proliferation is taking place in what I call a “regime of distortion,” where the current administration cultivates fear and suspicion through dehumanizing and criminalizing rhetorics. This brings me to the role of the humanities.

That role is—
Formulating tough questions beyond the how, how many and why of any given practice—in this case, issues of migration and asylum.

We can sketch the most pressing issues of our time with data, but the ethical, moral and human rights dimensions [of these issues] must be interrogated and reimagined through a creative and critical humanistic approach. It’s at times like these that I look first to the poets among us.

(Sakhorn/shutterstock.com)

What do you say to people who think illegal border-crossers deserve punishment?
Rather than seeing these separations as a form of punishment, I see them as enactments of simultaneous torture—for the child and the adult. I believe the cries of the children we have heard from the prisons are a call to collective action. They are calling us to do something.

I am fortified by the many writers, thinkers, artists, scholars and music makers who turn their creative and critical attentions toward imagining a world of broad justice, one free from domination. They include [writer] Octavia Butler, who didn’t shy away from the ugliest truths about humanity; [cultural theorist] Gloria Evangelina Anzaldúa, who reminded us that the pen can be used as a sword in the fight for social justice; and [writer] Toni Morrison, who believes writing helps civilizations heal.

I hope my time at Syracuse inspires meaningful conversations and that, together, we might imagine new strategies and practices for collectively being.

Christopher Kennedy

The first event of the 2019 , featuring poet Christopher Kennedy G’88, has been rescheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 6.

The director of Syracuse’s top-ranked M.F.A. Program in Creative Writing will read original selections from 3:45-4:45 p.m. in Gifford Auditorium of Huntington Beard Crouse Hall. The event is free and open to the public.

Kennedy was originally scheduled to read on Jan. 30, but extreme winter temperatures forced the University to cancel his event, along with the rest of its evening classes and activities.

For more information about the reading, contact Sarah Harwell G’05, associate director of the M.F.A. program in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S), at 315.443.2174 or scharwel@syr.edu.

The author of five books of poetry, Kennedy will highlight his latest, which is titled “Clues from the Animal Kingdom” (BOA Editions, 2018). Fellow professor George Saunders G’88 calls the collection a “moving portrait of the human heart examining itself.”

Adds writer-publisher Dave Eggers: “There is joy and dread here, in every carefully considered line.”

Kennedy admits that while some of poems are decades old, most of the collection dates from 2007-16. “I tend to save old poems and scavenge from them when I’m stuck working on something newer,” he recently told Poets & Writers magazine. “It’s all coming from the same source, and can be reshaped to resolve whatever dilemma I’m facing.”

Kennedy’s “singular and deeply pleasurable prosetry”—to quote Eggers—permeates the rest of his canon, including “Encouragement for a Man Falling to His Death” (BOA Editions, 2007), which won the Isabella Gardner Poetry Award. The A&S English professor also has co-translated the acclaimed “Light and Heavy Things: The Selected Poems of Zeehan Sahil” (BOA Editions, 2013) for the Lannan Translation Series.

The Wednesday afternoon series continues with novelist Sigrid Nunez, a visiting writer at Syracuse (Feb. 13); novelist Jonathan Dee, assistant professor of English (Feb. 27); poet Terrance Hayes, the Richard Elman Visiting Writer (March 20); Layli Long Soldier, an Oglala Lakota poet, writer and artist (April 3); and novelist Karan Mahajan, the Don MacNaughton Reader (April 24).

Each year, the Carver Reading Series presents 12-14 prominent writers who, as part of their mini-residencies, interact with members of an undergraduate creative writing course, led by TAs in the M.F.A. program.

The series’ namesake refers to the legendary poet and short story writer who taught in A&S in the 1980s.

Nu Rho Psi is an independent, nonprofit, grass-roots organization consisting of more than 80 chapters and 5,100 members. The invitation-only society encourages professional interest and excellence in neuroscience scholarship.

Faculty advisor Katharine “Kate” Lewis says New York Delta is a testament to the “strength, breadth and depth” of neuroscience-related curricula and research at the University.

“It shows we have a concentration of talented neuroscience faculty and students,” says Lewis, professor of biology and director of the Neuroscience Integrated Learning Major (ILM) in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S). “Charter decisions take into account the number of high-achieving students and faculty affiliated with a successful neuroscience research program, the strength and breadth of the [program’s] neuroscience curriculum, and the enthusiasm of faculty and students for sustaining a chapter over many years.”

Biology Professor Katharine “Kate” Lewis is the chapter’s faculty adviser.

New York Delta currently is accepting applications for membership. The chapter is open to graduate students in the Interdisciplinary Graduate Neuroscience Concentration (I-GNC) and to undergraduates in the Neuroscience ILM. Faculty members and alumni of either program also may apply. For more information, contact Lewis at kelewi02@syr.edu. A downloadable application form is available at .

Upcoming New York Delta events include NightLab: Brainfreeze on Friday, Feb. 1, from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Milton J. Rubenstein Museum of Science & Technology (MOST) and the chapter’s inaugural induction ceremony, scheduled for later this semester.

Lewis considers Nu Rho Psi a “springboard for collaboration and networking” among people interested in the brain and nervous system.

“Chapter members are members for life, once they are elected. Members also are eligible for competitive travel awards, enabling them to participate in regional and national meetings, as well as other opportunities fostering social and intellectual interaction,” she says. “Our newly elected officers are planning a variety of brain-awareness activities for chapter members and the public alike.”

Chapter officers are all A&S undergraduates: President Gabriela Susana ’19, Vice President Julia Riley ’20, Secretary Taylor Sorice ’20 and Membership Director Elaine Marji ’20.

The Faculty for Undergraduate Research founded Nu Rho Psi in 2006 to develop national and regional networks for the enhancement of undergraduate neuroscience education, research and faculty development.

Christopher Kennedy

The kicks off spring semester with a program by poet , professor of English and director of the top-ranked M.F.A. Program in Creative Writing in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S).

On Wednesday, Jan. 30, Kennedy will participate in a Q&A session from 3:45-4:30 p.m. and then read some of his original poetry from 5:30-6:30 p.m. Both events take place in Gifford Auditorium of Huntington Beard Crouse Hall, and are free and open to the public.

For more information, contact Sarah Harwell G’05, associate director of the M.F.A. program, at 315.443.2174 or scharwel@syr.edu.

Each year, the Carver Reading Series presents 12-14 prominent writers who, as part of their mini-residencies, interact with members of an undergraduate creative writing course, led by TAs in the M.F.A. program.

The series’ namesake refers to the legendary poet and short story writer who taught at Syracuse in the 1980s.

Kennedy, who has authored five books of poetry, expects the reading to highlight his latest collection, “Clues from the Animal Kingdom” (BOA Editions, 2018). Fellow professor George Saunders G’88 calls the book a “moving portrait of the human heart examining itself.”

Adds writer-publisher Dave Eggers: “There is joy and dread here, in every carefully considered line.”

Kennedy admits that while some of poems are decades old, most of the collection dates from 2007-16. “I tend to save old poems and scavenge from them when I’m stuck working on something newer,” he recently told Poets & Writers magazine. “It’s all coming from the same source, and can be reshaped to resolve whatever dilemma I’m facing.”

The A&S professor’s “singular and deeply pleasurable prosetry”—to quote Eggers—permeates the rest of his canon, including “Encouragement for a Man Falling to His Death” (BOA Editions, 2007), which won the Isabella Gardner Poetry Award. Kennedy also has co-translated the acclaimed “Light and Heavy Things: The Selected Poems of Zeehan Sahil” (BOA Editions, 2013) for the Lannan Translation Series.

The Wednesday afternoon series continues with novelist Sigrid Nunez, a visiting writer at Syracuse (Feb. 13); novelist Jonathan Dee, assistant professor of English (Feb. 27); poet Terrance Hayes, the Richard Elman Visiting Writer (March 20); Layli Long Soldier, an Oglala Lakota poet, writer and artist (April 3); and novelist Karan Mahajan, the Don MacNaughton Reader (April 24).

Avinash “Avi” Thakur

Avinash “Avi” Thakur, a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Physics in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S), recently made headlines with his role in the development of a novel class of nanomaterials that could possibly improve cancer detection.

The announcement—courtesy of a paper he co-authored with physics professor Liviu Movileanu in (Springer Nature, 2018)—probed the real-time measurement of protein interactions at the single molecular level, using a genetically modified hole, or nanopore. The online version quickly became the journal’s top-ranked article, marking the culmination of a six-year student-mentor relationship.

“This paper is the result of an amazing journey with many obstacles and detours,” says Movileanu citing Thakur’s drive and persistence. “Avi is an inspiration to other graduate students, as well as talented undergraduates pursuing careers in fundamental science and medical biotechnology.”

The Indian-born student is unmoved by the praise, saying A&S—and Movileanu’s lab, specifically—affords him opportunities to design his own projects and experiments.

“I came here because I wanted to grow as an independent researcher,” says Thakur, who expects to earn a Ph.D. in May. “By working with other departments on campus—including biology, chemistry, and biomedical and biochemical engineering—I have helped design something that could potentially transform into a technology. This work may benefit drug discovery [in medicine, biotechnology and pharmacology] and protein-based diagnostics.”

A&S recently caught up with Thakur—whose expertise combines protein engineering, design and application—to discuss his time in A&S.

Your background includes biochemistry and biotechnology. How did it prepare you for Syracuse University?
With my training in biotechnology, I learned about next-generation applications of protein engineering in various fields, including diagnostics and therapeutics. With biochemistry, I learned the tools and techniques that would help me develop, design and validate new protein engineering approaches.

Such as nanobiosensors?
Yes. I design and develop barrel-like sensors that are 100,000 times thinner than a human hair. These sensors detect proteins and transduce [convert] that detection into an electrical current as an output.

We think our sensors have a role in existing flow cells and microfluidic devices, enabling high-throughput drug screening against protein targets of interest.

So that I understand correctly—you create a hole in a biological membrane, through which you shoot an electric current. When a protein goes in or near the hole, the current’s intensity changes, enabling you to identify the protein’s properties and identity, right?
Indeed. Our sensor is capable of detecting and quantifying proteins in a clinical sample-like condition, such as blood serum, with great accuracy.

PPIs [protein-protein interactions] occur everywhere in the body, but are hard to detect with existing methods because they last only a millisecond. Our real-time techniques may help diagnose disease in which a protein is a biomarker [a measurable indicator of a disease state].

Liviu must be an inspiring mentor.
I like his positive approach to problem solving. He has taught me not to get too disappointed with failure or setbacks. The physics department also is pretty chill. The people are friendly.

What are your short-term plans?
I will defend my thesis in February. Afterward, I want to do postdoctoral training to enhance my skills as an independent research scientist. Post-training, I would like to be a research group leader in industry or academia.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever gotten?
Believe in yourself, your friends, your family and your work. When you do that, great things happen.

Thelma Bonzek ’43 and Bob Newman

Soon after retiring from public teaching, Thelma Bonzek ’43 treated her former Syracuse professor Robert “Bob” Newman to lunch.

The duo (along with their respective spouses, Joe Bonzek and Katherine Hughes ’91, ’07) rekindled their affiliation over coffee and sandwiches, while espousing the merits of individualized education—a contrast to the more prevalent one-size-fits-all model.

“I wanted to say ‘thank you’ to Dr. Newman for leading the way for me to teach,” says Bonzek, who spent the last 15 years of her career teaching kindergarten at what is now the Seymour Dual Language Academy in Syracuse. “That lunch blossomed into a friendship that has continued to this day.”

That was more than 20 years ago. Since then, the association has outlived Bonzek’s 66-year marriage to Joe, who died of cancer in 2012.

As Newman, 91, adapts to life with advanced-stage Parkinson’s, Bonzek wonders when she and Katherine will have only each other.

“People of integrity, compassion and caring need to be honored,” says Bonzek, speaking by phone from the city’s West Side, which she has called home since 1929. “Dr. Newman was a super professor who believed each child is a special human being and should never lose his or her sense of wonder. He was a hero to me and many others.”

Anyone who has set foot in or driven by The New School—a modest, two-story dwelling on Jamesville Road, which winds its way through the hushed suburb of DeWitt—has Newman to thank. He started the school’s predecessor, the Syracuse Institute of Enabling Education (SIEE), in 1970, while serving on the faculty of the University’s School of Education (SOE).

Newman conceived SIEE as an alternative elementary school, where teachers, parents and children could function as a collaborative unit.

His approach was not necessarily new, explains Mary Cunningham G’05, who co-founded The New School in 1988, following a decade-long teaching stint in SIEE. “In the ongoing argument over which was primary [the child or the curriculum], Bob believed the child came first. He was a man who had the courage of his convictions,” she says, adding that he drew inspiration from the reformist writings of John Dewey, Jean Piaget, Lev Vygotsky and Carl Rogers.

Newman came to Syracuse in 1965 as the free school movement was gaining momentum. His previous experience included serving as a principal at The University of Chicago Laboratory Schools (co-founded by Dewey in 1894) and teaching in a one-room schoolhouse in the hills of Northern California.

Bob Newman and Katherine Hughes ’91, ’07

Hughes, who teaches part-time in the Community Folk Art Center, says the latter experience was particularly formative for her husband because it made him switch up his game. “His students in California ranged in ages from six to 14, so he had no choice but to individualize his curriculum. This became the basis for all his teaching from then on,” she adds.

In the late ’60s, Newman received a grant to launch a graduate program in SOE for mid-career workers interested in careers in teaching. Bonzek, a pianist and area music educator, was one of his students. She says his signature style worked on adult students, too.

“There were about 35 of us, and we paid $45 each to enroll,” says Bonzek, a self-proclaimed “devout Christian feminist.” “Dr. Newman demonstrated many of his techniques in a special classroom at the Seymour School, where I was fortunate enough to get hired.”

The associate professor then helped launch SIEE, which, according to Cunningham, viewed teachers as “co-learners and partners” with students. By local standards, the approach was radical—allowing each child’s passions and interests to dictate his or her learning outcomes. Newman so believed in the institute’s mission that he enrolled his two daughters there.

SIEE addressed other hot-button issues, including teacher stress, burnout and attrition. It was a space, Newman maintained, for students and teachers alike to stretch themselves, intellectually, artistically and socially.

“Bob didn’t just believe in these ideas; he turned them into reality. With tenacity, courage and skill, he worked with some of his University student-teachers to bring these ideas to life,” says Cunningham, now The New School’s educational consultant. “He wanted school walls to be permeable, allowing each child to experience the wider world.”

As proponents of experimental education know, schools such as SIEE have ebbed and flowed in popularity, owing to various political, economic and socio-cultural factors. In 1982, Newman took early retirement from the University and turned his attention to other projects, including consulting and writing. His best-known books are “A World Where We’re All in This Together” (Split Oak Press, 2013) and “Building Urban Little Schools: Where Children Succeed with Dignity” (Brookline Books, 1999).

Newman also handed Cunningham the keys to the SIEE kingdom, from which emerged The New School. Thirty years on, the school flourishes—a testament to Newman’s unwavering belief in critical thinking, active citizenship and lifelong learning.

“He has created a legacy that lives on through many people,” Cunningham says.

Adds Bonzek: “I know because I’m one of them. Thank you, Dr. Newman, for all you have done for us.”

Tanisha M. Jackson

The College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) has announced the appointment of Tanisha M. Jackson as executive director of the (CFAC) and professor of practice in the (AAS).

Jackson comes to A&S from The Ohio State University (OSU), where she was assistant director of The Frank W. Hale Jr. Black Cultural Center.

Concurrently, Jackson was an adjunct assistant professor of Africana studies at the University of Cincinnati (UC), specializing in eLearning strategies, and a visiting assistant professor of Africana studies at The University of Toledo (UT).

“The College proudly supports CFAC, which provides access and opportunity for a range of visual and performing artists,” says A&S Dean Karin Ruhlandt. “I look forward to collaborating with Tanisha, who is a big-picture thinker with a clear vision of the arts and humanities for the campus community. CFAC plays a major role in showcasing diverse cultural perspectives, offering critical engagement for students and the community.”

Jackson will oversee all CFAC operations: curating exhibitions, developing cultural programs and research initiatives, maintaining collections, coordinating public outreach and managing fundraising.

She also will teach one AAS course per semester on African diaspora art and culture.

“I am committed to building on the foundation laid by my predecessors, notably Interim Executive Director Kal Alston, and showcasing the transformative power of art from the African diaspora. CFAC provides a nexus between the campus community and the people of African descent in the surrounding region,” says Jackson, who has more than 15 years’ experience in consulting, research and instruction in nonprofit and for-profit settings.

At OSU’s Hale Center, Jackson supervised a staff that included nearly a hundred student workers. She also co-designed curricula for an accredited course on black cultural centers; developed and maintained records; and helped organize lectures, screenings, exhibitions and performances.

It was at OSU that Jackson earned multiple degrees, including a Ph.D. in art education and an M.A. in African American and African studies. She also earned an executive MBA degree from UT.

“My background as an educator, curriculum designer and content writer has led to organizational growth and to increased productivity and performance,” says Jackson, citing additional experience with OSU’s University Exploration program and Center for the Study and Teaching of Writing. She also worked for Crane R&D—a Columbus-based, minority-owned consulting firm—developing STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics) curriculum and activities for scholastic and collegiate clients.

Founded in 1972 as a launching pad for African diaspora artists, CFAC has grown to support Latino, Native American and women artists. The center offers public exhibitions, artist talks, classes and workshops (particularly in art, dance and movement), and is a longtime academic partner of AAS.

Gabriela González G’95 delivering a TED Talk.

��ǰ���, life is a honeymoon—to quote a recent country hit. No sooner had the renowned physicist returned from her own honeymoon than she and her husband, fellow Argentinian theorist Jorge Pullin, moved the party to Syracuse in 1989. Swapping modest digs in Central Argentina for similar ones in Central New York, the newlyweds found themselves at the future epicenter of gravitational-wave astronomy.

At Syracuse, Pullin worked as a postdoc, while González chipped away at a Ph.D., mastering the finer points of spacetime measurement—a mathematical model supporting Einstein’s general theory of relativity, which posits that Earth’s rotation warps space and time.

Spacetime also underpins González’s prize-winning research into gravitational waves, which are invisible “ripples” caused by the collisions of dense, massive objects, such as black holes.

From 2011-17, González was spokesperson of the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) Scientific Collaboration, an international community of researchers that hunts for gravitational waves. González’s involvement with LIGO led to her induction into both the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, as well as her inclusion on Nature magazine’s 2016 list of 10 people who matter in science.

González beaming at the 2016 announcement of LIGO’s detection of gravitational waves.

“Jorge and I like to think we have proven Einstein wrong, since he said his theory was not to blame for people falling in love,” jokes González, who, along with Pullin, is on the physics faculty at Louisiana State University. “When I was at Syracuse, I never thought that learning how to measure spacetime would make scientific history. It’s rewarding to do what you love.”

The College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) recently caught up with González, who admits that her honeymoon is far from over.

González flanked by David Howard Reitze (left) and Peter Saulson, physics professors at Florida and Syracuse, respectively. All three are former LIGO spokespeople. (Photo courtesy of the National Academy of Sciences)

What have we learned about gravitational waves since their detection three years ago?
They are not as rare as expected. Nature is very generous, and large black holes [whose primordial collisions give off gravitational waves] seem to find each other a lot. Our study of gravitational-wave astronomy has begun with a bang.

A Big Bang, literally [as gravitational waves offer clues about the early universe]. What’s next for gravitational-wave research?
A year ago, I would have said it was detecting a collision of neutron stars with electromagnetic counterparts. We saw that, however, in August of 2017, much earlier than expected.

The next big thing could be the discovery of a periodic signal from a rotating star in our galaxy, or, if I had to dream, a signal of unknown origin.

You are close to Peter Saulson [the Martin A. Pomerantz ’37 Professor of Physics in A&S], who, like you, was a spokesperson for the LIGO Scientific Collaboration. What have you learned from him?
Peter joined the Syracuse faculty in 1991, not long after I started my doctoral research there. In fact, I was his first Ph.D. student at Syracuse. He showed me that spacetime is not just mathematical abstraction; it is something real and measurable.

Peter is part of a strong group of researchers who are enthusiastic about these measurements. His passion is inspiring. At Syracuse, he was a caring advisor who patiently taught me a lot about conducting experiments.

You recently were elected to membership in the National Academy of Sciences. What does that say about your work? 
At first, I didn’t feel like I belonged to this esteemed group of people, which advises the federal government on scientific matters. After I joined, I began to appreciate the broad spectrum of their activities, particularly in areas of science literacy and diversity.

Did you know Stephen Hawking?
I spoke at a public symposium for his 75th birthday at the University of Cambridge [in July 2017, less than a year before his death.] Dr. Hawking not only delivered a moving public talk, but also said he liked mine.

Afterward, he gave me a copy of his autobiography, with his thumbprint on one of the pages. The page was from a chapter in which he discussed trying to make, albeit unsuccessfully, a gravitational-wave detector in the Seventies. We had a good laugh over it.

How do you feel about being a role model for young women and Latinas?
I want to show them that not all physicists are geniuses—or are male, gray haired, or eccentric. Most of them are fairly normal people.

We need to make sure young boys and girls don’t buy into the “mad scientist” stereotype. Instead, they need to understand that contributions to science—or any field, for that matter—require curiosity and hard work. This approach has served me well.

Yuksel Sezgin

A Syracuse University professor has received a National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) fellowship, supporting research into the complex interplay between democracy and Muslim Family Laws (MFLs) in non-Muslim-majority countries.

, associate professor of political science in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs and the College of Arts and Sciences, will use the $60,000 fellowship to work on a book-length comparative study of the democratization of Islamic laws in Greece, Ghana, India and Israel.

Under contract with Cambridge University Press, the book will be the first of its kind, empirically answering the question: “Can MFLs and democracy co-exist within a non-Muslim-majority country?”

For more than a thousand years, MFLs have regulated familial relations among Muslims, influencing marriage, divorce, custody and inheritance.

There are currently 53 countries—35 Muslim and 18 non-Muslim-majority ones—that formally integrate MFLs into their national legal systems.

Sezgin is focusing on Greece, Ghana, India and Israel because they are the world’s only non-Muslim-majority countries that are considered functioning democracies and formally integrate MFLs into their legal systems. These four “test cases,” he says, may hold clues to how Islamic law could flourish within other democratic frameworks.

“Most scholars suggest that various aspects of state-enforced MFLs, such as underage marriages, polygyny and unilateral male divorce, are irreconcilable with democracy and the rule of law because they violate basic human and women’s rights,” says Sezgin, a scholar of comparative religious law, who also directs the Middle Eastern Studies Program in A&S and the Maxwell School. “I believe it is possible to reform MFLs and render them compliant with these rights, provided certain institutional and political prerequisites are met.”

Drawing on field research he conducted in all four countries from 2012-16, Sezgin has accumulated a treasure trove of ethnographic and archival data supporting his argument.

He says that while the four countries identify certain aspects of MFLs as “problematic,” their non-Muslim governments lack the moral authority to amend such religious laws: “As a result, they delegate the task of reforming Islamic laws to their civil judiciaries. These civil courts, however, don’t always bring about direct changes to MFLs.”

Sezgin thinks his book will appeal to general readers and academics alike, especially students and scholars of socio-legal studies, area studies, gender studies, Islam and comparative religion.

As with most of his work, this book likely will attract readers from the United States and the broader Muslim world—areas with deep-seated convictions about the other.

“In systems where Muslims are allowed to choose between civil and religious laws, there is considerable evidence of respect for and compliance with human and women’s rights. Likewise, jurisdictions whose courts enjoy legitimacy among Muslim citizens, court-initiated reform in Muslim law is more successful,” Sezgin says. “Perhaps this book will provide a roadmap to understanding.”

An artist’s conception of a stream of neutrinos hitting Earth.

Physicists in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) are playing an important role in a multinational neutrino experiment that could lead to major breakthroughs in the study of the universe.

, associate professor of physics, oversees a group of researchers in A&S studying neutrinos—tiny, elusive particles that hold clues about the origin of the universe. His group has led the U.S. effort to build two major components for an experiment at the Department of Energy’s , a high-energy particle physics laboratory near Chicago.

The components have been shipped to Fermilab, where they await installation into the Short-Baseline Near Detector (SBND), one of three particle detectors in the Short-Baseline Neutrino (SBN) program.

“Unlocking the properties of neutrinos may explain how the universe works and why matter exists at all,” Soderberg says. “The technology we develop to perform our research could benefit areas such as homeland security, industry and workforce development, to name a few.”

Mitch Soderberg

With the SBND project, Soderberg’s group makes important contributions to SBN detectors, having previously helped build components at Syracuse for the MicroBooNE detector. The SBN program focuses on neutrino oscillation—the process by which neutrinos change flavors, or types, as they hurtle through space and matter at essentially the speed of light.

The Standard Model, which explains how fundamental particles interact with one another, posits that neutrinos occur in three flavors. SBN is searching for evidence of a fourth flavor, called sterile neutrinos.

Soderbeg hopes confirming the existence of these infinitesimally small, sterile particles will help him and other scientists answer questions about the universe that the Standard Model cannot.

“While really big questions, such as ‘Why is there more matter than antimatter in the universe?,’ are driven more by intellectual curiosity than practical application, they stretch our understanding of the way the universe functions,” he says. “Perhaps along the way we will devise new technologies that have applications beyond the realm of particle physics.”

Eric Schiff, professor and chair of physics at Syracuse, is excited about the research, saying the existence of “ghostly” sterile neutrinos might explain phenomena such as dark matter—invisible material that makes up 25 percent of the universe, but does not emit light or energy.

“Every particle physicist on Earth would love to be part of the team that does an experiment with results beyond the Standard Model. If found, sterile neutrinos would be just this type of experiment,” he adds.

Laura Enslin

Singers interested in using mind-body awareness to improve their vocal technique and overall performance are encouraged to register for a series of public workshops presented by CNY Singing Garden, a Syracuse-based private voice studio.

Soprano Laura Enslin and tenor Daniel Fields ’17, professional singers and certified yogis affiliated with Syracuse University (SU), will co-lead a trio of Sunday afternoon workshops called Yoga for Singers. The series runs Jan. 6, Jan. 13 and Feb. 3 from 3-5 p.m. at DeWitt Community Church (3600 Erie Blvd.).

Yoga for Singers is open to all singers (preferably ages 14 and up), regardless of musical or yogic experience. Admission is $50 for one workshop, $85 for two workshops and $110 for all three. College students are eligible for a 10 percent discount, but must present a student identification card upon arrival.

Space is limited, and registration is required. To register or get more information, visit , or call Enslin at 315.436.2970.

Daniel Fields

“This is an opportunity to see how the science of yoga can be incorporated into a vocalist’s daily practice,” says Enslin, CNY Singing Garden’s founder who also teaches voice and yoga at SU. “The science is used to balance prana, which refers to the life force given to us at birth—our first breath. Yogic practice builds good breath management, while reducing stress and performance anxiety.”

Fields agrees, saying increased focus also promotes expressive and authentic singing. “These time-honored techniques help you tap into your higher potential, whether you sing onstage, in church or in the shower,” he adds.

Yoga for Singers is the brainchild of Fields, who earned a bachelor’s degree in voice performance from the Rose, Jules R. and Stanford S. Setnor School of Music in SU’s College of Visual and Performing Arts (VPA), and Enslin, who teaches voice in VPA.

The duo takes a trifecta approach to their work, combining the mental, physical and spiritual aspects of singing.

The first workshop, “Free the Body: Authentic Movement for Singers,” is Jan. 6 in DCC’s Miller Commons. The program uses expressive ritual movement and dance to help integrate one’s mind, body and spirit. Special emphasis is on the vocal technique of intoning and on a unique physical and spiritual practice called JourneyDance.

Fields, a certified JourneyDance facilitator, says no dance experience is required. “It’s not about learning steps; it’s about rediscovering your natural intuitive movement,” he explains.  “JourneyDance invokes a physical and emotional transformation.”

The next workshop, “Free the Mind: Mindfulness and Energy Awareness for Singers,” is Jan. 13 in the DCC parlor. The session explores how mindfulness techniques, including meditation, pranayama (ancient breathing exercises and techniques) and energy work, can unlock one’s vocal potential.

“Sound is a form of energy associated with the vibrations of matter,” says Enslin, who has taught musical theater and jazz and commercial music at SU for more than 12 years. “If parts of your body are blocked, the vibrations cannot freely flow. This workshop shows you how to clear such tension, while keeping your instrument in tip-top shape.”

The final session, “Free the Spirit: Yoga for Singers,” is Feb. 3, also in the DCC parlor. Singers will acquire a basic, daily yoga routine that increases vocal strength, flexibility and stamina and reduces jaw, tongue and neck tension. Each participant should wear loose, comfortable clothing, and bring a yoga mat.

“We’ll explore a variety of basic asanas [poses] and pranayama that can be incorporated into your daily vocal warm-ups,” says Fields, a rising star on the regional concert circuit who regularly performs with the Society for New Music.

Like Fields, Enslin is a critically acclaimed soloist, recitalist and teacher. She previously taught voice in Rochester, New York, at Nazareth College and the Eastman School of Music, earning a master’s degree from the latter.

Enslin recently founded CNY Singing Garden to offer private lessons, workshops and small-group classes to singers of all ages and backgrounds.

“Singing is not an elitist endeavor, but, rather, is one’s birthright,” she says. “Each person’s voice is as unique as a fingerprint, and deserves to unfold, blossom and share its beauty with others. Through mind-body awareness, we singers can heal ourselves and ultimately the world around us.”

Nina V. Fedoroff ’66

Nina V. Fedoroff ’66 has built a career on defying the odds. From working her way through college as a single mother to being the first to clone and characterize maize transposons (bits of DNA that hop from place to place), the intrepid molecular biologist thrives on risk-taking—preferring the road less traveled to the well-beaten path.

It was in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) that Fedoroff became hooked on the work that would define her career. “Syracuse gave me a solid foundation in science and in both writing and thinking clearly,” says the biology and chemistry major who, decades later, received the University’s George Arents Pioneer Medal.

At SU, Fedoroff’s favorite mentors were not just scientists, such as zoology professor Roger Milkman. They also were artists and humanists, including Fernando Molina and William Wasserstrom, professors of philosophy and English, respectively. “They gave me opportunities, above and beyond the classroom, to develop the critical thinking and writing skills so important in scientific research,” she says.

After earning a Ph.D. at Rockefeller University, Fedoroff blazed a trail in molecular biology, first in DNA sequencing and later in plant research, becoming a champion of genetically modified (GM) crops. A decade and a half of her career was spent as a Willaman Professor of the Life Sciences at Penn State, where she founded the Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences. Today, the National Medal of Science winner remains a sought-after science advisor, author and .

A&S recently caught up with Fedoroff—a longtime member of the National Academy of Sciences and a former science and technology adviser to the U.S. Secretary of State—to discuss genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and how they can help solve some of the world’s most pressing problems.

Fedoroff is co-author of the landmark book “Mendel in the Kitchen” (Joseph Henry Press, 2004) and is a regular contributor to The New York Times.

There seem to be popular myths and misconceptions about GMOs. Would you set the record straight about what GMOs are—and are not?
About 40 years ago, new molecular methods for the improvement of crops, animals and microorganisms came into use in agriculture and were considered quite novel. People thought they were so novel that we needed to develop procedures for monitoring them. These concerns gave rise to an elaborate regulatory system, compliance with which costs many millions of dollars.

As these methods have continued to develop and our knowledge of genetics grows, it has become more and more difficult to distinguish between the kinds of genetic changes that happen spontaneously in nature, the kinds of changes that breeders induce using chemical and radiation mutagenesis [a process by which genetic information is changed, resulting in a mutation], and the kinds of changes made using molecular methods.

As a result, it is becoming difficult to defend the definition of a GMO as somehow distinct from organisms modified by older, unregulated methods. As well, no evidence of hazards attributable to the use of molecular methods has emerged after some four decades of research and widespread use of genetically modified crops and microorganisms.

What does the current CRISPR controversy teach us about the GMO debate?
That we must reexamine the regulatory apparatus we’ve built around agriculture out of unfounded fears about GMOs.

Until now, regulators have regulated on the basis of the molecular process by which an agricultural organism was modified. Such organisms could be identified by molecular tests because they had bits of added DNA. The new gene editing methods, of which CRISPR/Cas is the most popular, can make changes that are indistinguishable at the molecular level from those that arise spontaneously in nature and those that can be induced using chemical and radiation mutagenesis.

Since earlier kinds of genetic modifications and procedures used in agriculture were never regulated—and did not give rise to any health or environmental disasters—why are we continuing to regulate based on the process of modification? The only rational way out of this dilemma is to regulate agricultural crops and microorganisms based on the new traits that are added by molecular methods. If the organism is familiar, such as corn, and the new trait does not change it in a way that could be harmful to people, animals or the environment, we should not regulate it.

It should be noted that the regulatory, as well as the ethical, issues are rather different when it comes to using gene editing in medicine as compared with agriculture. This is because breeders can routinely weed out and discard organisms with undesirable traits, irrespective of whether the trait arose naturally or through breeding techniques. Doctors cannot.

Nina Fedoroff receiving the 2006 National Medal of Science from President George W. Bush.

What other hot-button issues are important to you?
I am most concerned about increasing public acceptance of these new methods of modification in agriculture, particularly for crop plants. Climate warming is rapidly moving more and more of the Earth’s agricultural areas out of the climate in which plants were domesticated. Year by year, this encroaches on global agricultural productivity as the area experiencing very high growing season temperatures expands. Because the global human population is still growing, this will increasingly affect food security.

In order to rapidly adapt crops to warmer growth conditions, we need the modern tools of molecular modification—all of them—to adapt our most productive crop plants to the warmer conditions. Older methods of plant breeding will not suffice, as they either take many years or fail altogether because the needed genes don’t exist in sexually compatible plants.

Why should we be scientifically literate?
We live in a society totally based on science and technology. Increasingly, the kinds of decisions that our leaders make are based on the ability of science to predict future trends, such as global warming. Since politicians cannot get ahead of their populace, the only way they can make scientifically sound decisions about issues such as climate change, GMOs vaccinations and many other important issues is through the support of a scientifically literate population.

How do organizations such as NAS help in this regard?
NAS was established by President Lincoln to help the government make scientifically sound decisions by calling on the expertise of the best and most accomplished scientists in the country. Its reports continue to guide the government to the extent that politicians recognize the validity of scientific guidance.

Christopher Scholz

The Scotland-based firm has donated 10 licenses of its to Syracuse for research and training purposes. The suite, which is valued at nearly $2.2 million, is considered the industry standard for geological modeling and structural analysis of Earth’s deep interior.

“MOVE benefits faculty and students interested in tectonics and structural geology,” says Christopher Scholz, professor of Earth sciences in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S). “We are grateful to Petroleum Experts, whose software tools will particularly advance our understanding of continental rifting [i.e., the extending and thinning of Earth’s crust].”

Petex, which has U.S. offices in Houston, Texas and Lafayette, Louisiana, develops software modules that help geologists obtain two- and three-dimensional images of features below Earth’s surface.

Starting in January, A&S professors, postdocs, graduate students and undergraduates will use MOVE to study the evolution of complex geological terranes.

“Many of Earth’s economic resources are spatially concentrated through movements of the tectonic plates, creating complex, three-dimensional rock configurations over millions of years,” says Scholz, an A&S faculty member since 1998. “Disentangling the history of an area’s deformation helps us learn more about the distribution of the subsurface resource—whether it is an ore body, an oil or gas accumulation, or a water aquifer.”

In addition to aiding in the study of important sites that are undergoing active tectonic deformation, MOVE will lead to products that could elevate Syracuse’s status in the field of rift basin architecture and evolution. “It will make us more successful in competing for the most substantial research grants and in publishing in the world’s top scientific journals,” Scholz says.

MOVE is the latest acquisition of the Earth sciences department, known for its state-of-the-art analytical and computing facilities in the Heroy Geology Laboratory.

Scholz says the licensing agreement will benefit faculty-led, departmental research projects, most of which are “large, collaborative, multi-institutional and multi-national” in scope. Common among all of them is scholarly emphasis on Earth’s crust and mantle.

“Acquiring skills in the collection and analysis of data is essential for Earth sciences students interested in careers in academia, government or industry. Working with MOVE will teach them critical thinking, an essential component of a liberal arts education,” he concludes.

Founded in Edinburgh in 1990, Petex is one of Europe’s fastest growing technology companies, with more than 420 clients worldwide.

Liviu Movileanu, professor of physics, creates tiny sensors that detect, characterize and analyze protein-protein interactions (PPIs) in blood serum. Information from PPIs could be a boon to the biomedical industry, as researchers seek to nullify proteins that allow cancer cells to grow and spread.

Movileanu’s findings are the subject of a paper in (Springer Nature, 2018), co-authored by Ph.D. student Avinash Kumar Thakur. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has supported their work with a four-year, $1.17 million grant award.

“Detailed knowledge of the human genome has opened up a new frontier for the identification of many functional proteins involved in brief physical associations with other proteins,” Movileanu says. “Major perturbations in the strength of these PPIs lead to disease conditions. Because of the transient nature of these interactions, new methods are needed to assess them.”

Enter Movileanu’s lab, which designs, creates and optimizes a unique class of biophysical tools called nanobiosensors. These highly sensitive, pore-based tools detect mechanistic processes, such as PPIs, at the single-molecule level.

Even though PPIs occur everywhere in the human body, they are hard to detect with existing methods because they (i.e., the PPIs affecting cell signaling and cancer development) last about a millisecond.

Movileanu’s response has been to create a hole in the cell membrane—an aperture known as a nanopore—through which he shoots an electric current. When proteins go near or through the nanopore, the intensity of the current changes. The changes enable him to determine each protein’s properties and ultimately its identity.

The concept is not new—it was first articulated in the 1980s—but only recently have scientists begun fabricating and characterizing nanobiosensors on a large scale to detect DNA, sugars, explosives, toxins and other nanoscale materials.

Movileanu hopes his real-time techniques will detect cancers before they spread.

One type of cancer in which he is particularly interested is lymphocytic leukemia, a common and aggressive disease that starts in the bone marrow and spills into the blood. Because leukemia cells do not mature and die properly, they often spiral out of control.

“Leukemia cells build up in the bone marrow and crowd out normal, healthy cells,” Movileanu explains. “Unlike other cancers, which usually start in the breasts, colon or lungs [and spread to the bone marrow], lymphocytic leukemia originates in the lymph nodes, hence the name.”

Over the summer, he received another four-year grant from NIH—his third million-dollar one to date—to build nanobiosensors. This project involves colleagues at SUNY Upstate Medical University, led by Michael Cosgrove G’93, G’98, associate professor of biochemistry and molecular biology.

A digital illustration of a cancer cell undergoing mitosis (Christoph Burgstedt/Shutterstock.com)

Movileanu’s projects are part of a burgeoning field called interactomics, which uses experimental and computational techniques to study interactions—and the consequences of those interactions—between proteins.

“The data gleaned from a single protein sample is immense,” says Movileanu, a member of the Biophysics and Biomaterials research group in the Department of Physics. “Our nanostructures allow us to observe biochemical events in a sensitive, specific and quantitative manner. Afterward, we can make a solid assessment about a single protein sample.”

As for the future, Movileanu wants to study PPIs in more complex biological samples, such as cell lysates (fluid containing “crumbled” cells) and tissue biopsies.

“If we know how individual parts of a cell function, we can figure out why a cell deviates from normal functionality toward a tumor-like state,” says Movileanu, who earned a Ph.D. in experimental physics from the University of Bucharest in Romania. “Our little sensors may do big things for biomarker screening, protein profiling and the large-scale study of proteins [known as proteomics].”

In June, Movileanu presented at the first Northeast Nanomaterials Meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS)’s Northern New York Section, held in Lake Placid. He has since reprised his ACS talk at Brown and Clarkson universities and at the 15th annual International Conference on Flow Dynamics in Sendai, Japan.

Michael Ruggiero

Forbes magazine has recognized an alumnus of the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) for his contributions to the study of molecular movement.

, who earned master’s and doctoral degrees in chemistry in 2014 and 2016, respectively, is a member of , highlighting 600 young stars in 20 different industries throughout North America.

The 28-year-old Burlington, Vermont, resident is an assistant professor of chemistry at The University of Vermont (UVM), where his cutting-edge research has earned him a place in the “Science” category of “30 Under 30.”

Ruggiero’s binary approach to the study of matter—specifically, the movement of atoms and molecules—combines experimental and theoretical techniques, resulting in materials whose properties benefit science and engineering.

“In everything around us, even in things as solid as a rock, atoms and molecules are constantly moving,” says Ruggiero, who trained under Professor Timothy Korter at Syracuse. “My research is geared toward understanding these movements, which impact the properties of materials. This goes from the very basic to the very applied.”

Ruggiero relies on vibrational spectroscopy to follow particles inside a molecule. “We apply light in the form of infrared radiation to see precisely where their motions occur. Afterward, we use computational tools to pinpoint the motions that correspond to the experimental results we have obtained,” he continues.

Already, his insights into the vibrations of atoms are a boon to the pharmaceutical, telecommunications and renewable energy industries. Ruggiero is particularly proud of how he has helped “pharma” understand the causes of drug degradation.

He also has improved the way semiconductors work in flexible displays (e.g., curved screens on computer monitors, televisions and phones), and has shed light on the mechanical properties of gas storage materials in hydrogen fuel cells.

“Atomic vibrations play a pivotal role in everyday life, from dictating the mechanical response of materials, such as how stiff or rubbery something is, to determining the stability of materials, such as pharmaceuticals,” says Ruggiero, whose expertise encompasses physical and computational chemistry, as well as materials science. “Our lab currently is investigating materials that capture and store greenhouse gases, as well as impact long-acting, extended-release drugs.”

Ruggiero traces his unique aesthetic to Syracuse, where Korter—a department chair known for his dutiful, cadenced study of the physical characteristics of molecular solids—instilled in him an appreciation for basic and applied research.

“He was one of the most productive students I’ve ever had,” says Korter, citing Ruggiero’s broad scientific interests and ability to bring demanding projects to fruition. “His idea of ‘relaxing’ is doing  three projects at once, instead of four. I am excited to see what he will produce in his own laboratory in the years to come.”

The co-author of nearly 25 science papers in top-tier journals, Ruggiero applauds Korter and A&S Dean Karin Ruhlandt (a Distinguished Professor of Chemistry) for teaching him the “nuanced aspects” of contemporary research.

“Being on the ‘30 Under 30’ list is a testament to all the great education and support I have gotten throughout my career, especially from Syracuse. It serves as a bastion for my own career goals: to inspire students the same way I was inspired,” Ruggiero says.

Alexander R. Weiss

Alexander R. Weiss ’12 has a library full of books and journals, from arcane treatises on science and engineering to timeless works of literature and philosophy.

One book he holds dear is The New York Times Bestseller “The Brain That Changes Itself” (Viking Press, 2007), by Norman Doidge, a Canadian psychiatrist and award-winning science writer.

“At Syracuse, I was part of [in the College of Arts and Sciences], which brought him to campus in 2009,” recalls Weiss, who earned a bachelor’s degree in bioengineering from the (ECS). “Dr. Doidge discussed how neuroplasticity is challenging the traditional, hard-wired model of the brain in favor of something more malleable.”

A polymath with a flair for neuroscience, Weiss recalls Doidge’s Honors Lecture with pinpoint precision. At one point, Doidge showed a video clip of a woman with damaged inner ears who suffered from a perpetual sense of falling. Seated in a neuroscience lab wearing a wired hard-hat, she had electrodes taped to her tongue. Technology enabled her to send signals to her brain via the tongue, thus bypassing pass the damaged vestibular system. “Within a year, she was healed because the electrical impulses had rewired the brain,” Weiss says.

Norman Doidge

Imagine his surprise when, the day after the lecture, Doidge visited his classroom. Weiss was in “Linked Lenses,” a popular honors course co-taught by professors Cathryn Newton and Samuel Gorovitz. “Dr. Doidge signed my copy of his book, and sent me down the path I’m on now,” says Weiss, speaking by phone from Baltimore, where he is a postdoctoral research fellow in neuroengineering at Johns Hopkins University (JHU). “I still have that book, and often refer to it.”

Weiss has come a long way, literally, from that galvanizing encounter. He has spent the past six years shuffling between Exeter College (one of the constituent colleges at the University of Oxford), earning a doctorate in biomedical science, and the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) in Bethesda, Maryland, completing multiple fellowships.

Weiss no longer accrues frequent-flier miles the way he used to, but the accomplished young experimentalist is earning other kinds of points from his JHU colleagues.

For example, 60- to 80-hour workweeks in JHU’s Cognitive Neurophysiology and BMI Lab are de rigueur. “BMI” refers to “brain-machine interface,” a growing field that uses movement- and other behavior-related neural activity to control prosthetic limbs and communicate with computers.

“I perform clinical research on BMI, functional mapping of language processes and cognitive neuroscience,” Weiss explains. “It is exciting, rewarding work, and has the capacity to develop assistive systems for individuals with disabilities.”

The postdoc is in exalted company. His supervisor is the inimitable Nathan Crone, a pioneer in cognitive research, neuro-engineering and electrophysiology. “He does real-time mapping of brain function in patients to reduce the possibility of impacting their brain function during surgery for epilepsy,” Weiss says. “This reflects our larger mission of understanding the neural mechanisms of motor, sensory and language functions.”

Weiss arrived at JHU in September and expects to remain there for a few years. Meanwhile, he is in early talks with prospective employers from Harvard, Stanford and Caltech. “I can’t say much, other than the projects involve really cutting-edge stuff. Until then, I will stay here, doing clinical research or getting involved with its vibrant startup scene,” he says.

Growing up in the shadow of the University of Pennsylvania and Temple University, Weiss seemed destined for a career in Philly. His parents were dyed-in-the-wool Ivy Leaguers—his father a civil engineer, his mother a chemical engineer. Trips to Penn, Penn State and Temple were frequent. “Then I visited Syracuse and fell in love with the campus. Didn’t hurt that I liked cold weather,” Weiss says, half-jokingly.

Meeting Gustav Engbretson, professor emeritus of biomedical and chemical engineering at Syracuse, sweetened the deal. Weiss first encountered the affable professor during his junior year of high school. “Gus was the nicest guy,” Weiss remembers. “He was a bioengineer who was into retinal degenerative disease.”

Engbretson told Weiss something he never forgot—that choosing an undergraduate program is like deciding whom to date in middle school. “It should be fun and feel important at the time, but it leads to bigger and better things in the long run,” Weiss recalls him saying.

At Syracuse, Weiss blurred the boundaries of professional and liberal arts learning. When not working in the Syracuse Biomaterials Institute (SBI), he could be found poring over books on statistics (his minor), playing trumpet in the marching and pep bands or studying multidrug tolerant infections in implant patients—the focus of his Honors Capstone project.

Recognition seemed to follow him everywhere, often in the form of scholarships and memberships in academic honor societies.

Cathryn Newton and Samuel Gorovitz

Cathryn Newton, professor of Earth and of Interdisciplinary Sciences, was an ardent early champion of his. “Alex’s creativity and incredible abilities of associative thinking are his hallmarks. He is quiet, funny, committed, insightful—in short, everything one would seek in a scientific colleague,” says the A&S Dean Emerita, who also is Senior Advisor to the Chancellor and Provost for Faculty Engagement.

Another proponent was Weiss’ senior thesis advisor, Jeremy Gilbert, then professor of biomaterials in ECS. Both logged hundreds of hours in SBI, studying how bacterial biofilms attached to metal surfaces and interacted with different electrochemical processes.

Weiss had an innate grasp of what they were doing—rare for an undergraduate, explains Gilbert, the newly appointed Hansjörg Wyss Endowed Chair for Regenerative Medicine at Clemson University. “Alex learned the methods that were required, including how to use an atomic force microscope to image and measure bacterial changes associated with the interactions. He was a pleasure to have in my lab.”

A highlight of their partnership was the Society for Biomaterials Annual Meeting and Exposition in Orlando, where Weiss presented his and Gilbert’s findings before a blue-ribbon audience of academic, healthcare, governmental and business professionals.

Was the Syracuse junior nervous? A little, but he did not show it. “Alex acquitted himself quite well. He was poised, focused and clear in his communication,” Gilbert adds.

Fate intervened during Weiss’ senior year, when he found out about the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Oxford-Cambridge Scholars Program. If selected, Weiss could spend two years in Oxford’s Nuffield Department of Medicine, followed by three years at the NIH campus in Bethesda—the largest biomedical research facility in the world.

“I told Professors Newton and Gorovitz about it, and they said I should ‘100-percent apply.’ The fellowship seemed like a pipe-dream,” he recalls.

Newton and Gorovitz worked closely with Weiss—meeting with him frequently, encouraging him to keep refining his application materials, urging him to be openly clear about his love of literature and of liberal education. They also arranged a mock panel interview, rounded out by Biology Professor John Russell, Gilbert and several ECS staffers. “It worked out, I guess,” Weiss says in a classic piece of understatement. “Shortly after graduation, I was on a plane to London.”

Weiss muses wistfully about life after Syracuse. At Oxford, he trained under Tipu Aziz, the Bangladeshi-born, British neurosurgeon, known for his innovative treatments for Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis and neuropathic pain. Aziz also founded the U.K.’s first functional neurosurgical unit dedicated to novel approaches to the surgical treatment of brain disorders.

“It was amazing to see his surgeries offer hope to patients battling Parkinson’s and to people wanting to walk again,” says Weiss, who worked with the renowned professor from 2012-14.

As the calendar flipped to 2015, Weiss returned stateside, spending the next three years with Judith Walters at NINDS. Walters is famous for many things, notably her studies of mechanisms in the brain that mediate dysfunctions associated with neurological diseases and disorders.

She says Weiss’s academic grooming, particularly in BMI and deep brain stimulation (in which implanted electrodes help the brain control body movements), was a boon to her research into Parkinson’s disease.

Judith Walters (Photo by Ernie Branson)

“Alex has a combination of skill sets that make him popular on the job circuit,” notes Walters, senior investigator and chief of NINDS’ Neurophysiological Pharmacology Section. “He is experienced with engineering-related tasks, rodent and human neurophysiology, behavioral studies, rodent neurosurgery and complex techniques for data analysis. These qualities enable him to investigate changes in brain function in a range of neurological disorders.”

Weiss’ soft skills are equally commendable. Walters says his “good-natured collegiality” made him popular among trainees and summer students. “He was one of my lab’s best mentors. He was kind and understanding, but also politically astute,” she says, noting his gift for a well-placed joke or piece of advice. “I look forward to hearing great things about him in the future.”

Weiss capped off his NINDS experience with a five-month postdoctoral fellowship, following graduation from Exeter in April.

Admittedly, having a “piece of paper” from one of the oldest, most respected colleges in the world (Exeter is more than 700 years old) is “pretty terrific,” Weiss says, but he would not have gotten it without his Syracuse education.

“What I accomplished at SU—combining my knowledge of engineering and statistics with a burgeoning interest in neuroscience—laid the groundwork for what I do today at Johns Hopkins,” says Weiss, who resides in the Capital Beltway community of Silver Spring. “Just as importantly, Syracuse instilled in me an entrepreneurial spirit—the desire to find creative solutions to tough problems.”

Weiss considers intellectual entrepreneurship more than an occupation; it is an attitude, a way of life for him. He credits his Syracuse professors, especially those in A&S and ECS, for teaching him the value of hard work; grit; and wide-ranging, associative, creative thinking.

“Sometimes, the best ideas are the craziest ones, but you have to start somewhere—to be willing to make mistakes or fail,” says Weiss, citing the concept of risk and reward. “I am reminded of this almost daily in Baltimore, which, with its proximity to Washington, D.C., and with Johns Hopkins’ commercial arm [JHU Technology Ventures], is filled with smart people with incredible ideas.”

Perhaps what Weiss is doing at JHU—and has undertaken thus far at Syracuse and Oxford—affirms the Norman Doidge adage that “we see with our brains, not our eyes.”

In a final nod to that psychological mentor, Weiss says, “The same intelligence that allows us to worry and anticipate negative outcomes allows us to plan, hope and dream.”

Without missing a beat, he adds, “It’s important to keep our head in the game.”