Brooklyn
College Magazine — Spring 2002
College
News
• Your
permanent Record
• Giuliani Bids farewell at Brooklyn College
• An Unforgettable Lesson
• Oysters Return to Jamaica Bay
• Sun—Screened
• Hearing—Aid Hero
• Here She Is, Miss Haiti USA
• Scott Appointed Vice—President for Institutional
Advancement
• Olympia Dukakis at Brooklyn College
• Robin Kelley, 2002 Hess Scholar in Residence
• And from Our Far East bureau, Larry Tung, M.F.A.,
'02
• Brooklyn College Art Gallery News
• Dance Dance Dance
• Brooklyn College Graduate Wins Soros Fellowship
• Short Takes
Your permanent Record
Ever wonder what happened to your original transcript? That awkward photo you
took after your mandatory physical? That loyalty oath you signed? You'll be happy
to know they are being kept safe and secure in a fireproof room in Boylan Hall.
But the fragile documents, some printed on tissue—thin onionskin, are subject
to paper rot, and they tend to tear and smudge when handled.
Two years ago the Office
of the Registrar began digitizing the entire collection of 960,000 student records
so they can be instantly accessed via computer. "The law says we must keep
them forever," says Assistant Registrar Monica Rivera, who oversees the collection.
"This way we can preserve them better."
Rivera's office also
has more than four thousand unclaimed Brooklyn College diplomas, dating all the
way back to 1932. "Two years ago, President Kimmich sent letters out to many
of these people, offering to send the diplomas to them, and we received nearly
one thousand responses," Rivera recalls.
"Frank Serpico—the
cop from the movie—was one of them. He wrote us a nice letter thanking us for
his diploma, which he earned in 1959."
If you've never picked up your diploma, call the registrar's office, (718) 951-4764,
and they will be happy to mail it or, if you wish, formally present it to you
on campus.
Giuliani Bids farewell at Brooklyn College
Former Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani spent part of his last day in office at Brooklyn
College, presiding over the graduation of 309 probationary FDNY firefighters.
Whitman Hall was filled to capacity for the commencement exercises, which started
off with a short video praising Giuliani's work on behalf of the Fire Department
during his eight years in office and his leadership after September 11. During
the emotional two—hour ceremony, Giuliani and outgoing New York City Fire Department
Chief Thomas Von Essen shook hands with each graduating firefighter and posed
for pictures. Giuliani was presented with a framed portrait of his uncle, an FDNY
veteran, and at the close of the formal festivities an unabashedly appreciative
song was played to honor the outgoing mayor—Carly Simon's "Nobody Does It
Better."
An Unforgettable Lesson
In modern pedagogy, much is made of the teachable moment—a critical current
event in students' lives may turn into a meaningful lesson.
When two hijacked planes struck the World Trade Center towers last fall, Jack
Shuler, M.F.A., '01, was standing in front of his English 1 class, lecturing about
rebellion, Robert Frost, and Langston Hughes. No one in the classroom learned
of the day's terrible events until after class. Two days later, when Shuler walked
back into that same classroom, he knew this was a teachable moment beyond comprehension.
What resulted was a softbound collection of essays, What We Experienced,
which was written, published, and sold in short order by Shuler and his students.
The class plans to donate the proceeds from the sale of the book to the Asociación
Tepeyac, a New York—based public service organization that will identify
and forward the money to a family who lost a loved one on September 11.
"Now students know that their writing is affecting a specific family,"
Shuler says. "It's not a huge thing that these students did, but if even
one student is transformed by this experience, then it will have been worthwhile."
Shuler, who received his master's degree in poetry in 2001, serves as project
director for the Brooklyn College Community Partnership for Research and Learning,
a program that promotes classroom learning and activities that benefit the community.
The program, headed by Professor Nancy Romer of the Psychology Department, was
a source of inspiration and support for the essay collection.
To order copies of What We Experienced, send an e-mail request to jackshuler@hotmail.com.
The suggested donation is $10 per copy.
Oysters Return to Jamaica Bay
Students from Brooklyn College are participating in a program to help reintroduce
oysters to Jamaica Bay. At a ribbon—cutting event last November, several
hundred Brooklyn College—raised oysters in specially designed floating cages
were ceremoniously lowered into the bay. Students will check on the oysters every
few weeks to see how they are faring. It is hoped that in a few years, if the
oyster seedlings continue to thrive, the baby bivalves feeding on the nutrient—rich
water will grow into adult shellfish and begin reproducing and restocking Jamaica
Bay. Chester Zarnoch, the Brooklyn College graduate student in charge of the project,
is skeptical that the shellfish industry could come back to these waters. "Jamaica
Bay is a national park," he points out, "so it's illegal to remove the
oysters. This project is really about helping students understand the ecology
of the bay."
Sun—Screened
This year's Sundance
Film Festival featured an entry from Brooklyn College: King Wai Cheung's ten—minute
film, Farewell Hong Kong, was one of only seventy—nine short films
(out of 2,700 submitted) screened at the prestigious event in January. Produced
under the auspices of the Department of Film, with help from Professors Virginia
Brooks and Robert Tutak, Farewell Hong Kong is set in New York City and
explores the conflicting feelings of a young immigrant from the former British
protectorate on the coast of China who is simultaneously English and Chinese.
A trained cellist, Cheung came to the United States in 1992 to study at the Conservatory
of Music but received a B.A. in philosophy in February 2002. He and his wife,
the pianist
Hedemi Gojo, M.A., '96, moved back to Hong Kong in March after Cheung won a screenplay
contest there, sponsored by Michelle Yeoh, the star of Crouching Tiger, Hidden
Dragon.
Hearing—Aid Hero
Thanks to Shlomo Silman, audiologist and Broeklundian Professor of Speech Communication
Arts and Sciences, twenty people in Brazil are hearing again. When he was invited
to lecture at the Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Silman learned that
many young Brazilians treated at the university's hospital were unemployed because
of adult—onset hearing loss. Before he left for Brazil, Silman obtained twenty
hearing aids at a reduced cost, donated by the Department of Speech Communication
Arts and Sciences and the Speech and Hearing Center. Some of the patients wept
when their hearing returned after they were fitted with the devices; others won
back jobs they had lost because of their disability. "People with hearing
disabilities often can't compete in society," Silman points outs. "Now,
with hearing aids, they have a new lease on life." Silman was awarded the
Medal of Humanitarian Service to the Brazilian People and continues to stay involved
in the lives of hard—of—hearing Brazilians: He recently sent an additional twenty—seven
hearing aids to São Paulo.
Here She Is, Miss Haiti USA
Lysa—Naomi Montauban,
a junior at Brooklyn College, was crowned Miss Haiti USA on November 25, besting
120 other contestants in the first—ever beauty pageant for Haitian Americans.
Montauban, an economics major and president of Delta Gamma Phi sorority, is also
a makeup artist with her own fledgling business, Belle Visage Imagining. She won
$2,000 and a trip to Haiti sponsored by the Haitian Tourist Ministry.
Scott Appointed Vice—President for Institutional Advancement
Janet Edwards Scott has joined Brooklyn College as vice—president for institutional
advancement and executive director of the Brooklyn College Foundation.
President Christoph M. Kimmich noted that her appointment will bring a new sense
of vigor to the college and the foundation. "Ms. Scott's demonstrated leadership
in the nonprofit sector and in higher education is a formidable asset in our endeavor
for excellence," he said.
Scott comes to the college with thirty years of development experience in the
nonprofit sector. She previously served as director of development at the national
headquarters of the American Civil Liberties Union Foundation. She also held senior
administrative positions at the national headquarters of the American Red Cross,
including participating in a management exchange program as a first—aid instructor
in Zambia.
Prior to her work at the Red Cross, Scott served as director of planned giving
at the University of Miami and, before that, as director of
development at the University of Illinois Foundation.
Scott received her master of business administration degree from Western Illinois
University and her bachelor of science in public relations from the University
of Illinois. She is a member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals and
the National Committee on Planned Giving.
A native of Fisher, Ill., Scott has two children. She enjoys scuba diving and
is an accomplished needlepoint artist.
"Institutional advancement focuses on building and maintaining broad working
relationships with the college community, alumni, and city and state officials,"
Scott says. "One important element in the equation is obtaining adequate
financial resources to support the priority needs of students, faculty, and staff
so that we can ensure the college's academic excellence."
Olympia Dukakis at Brooklyn College
No character in any play is as complex as we are," Olympia Dukakis assured
her students in a master class that she gave at Brooklyn College in January. "Understand
yourself, and the characters will reveal themselves." And with that, the
Academy Award—winning actress urged her rapt audience to plumb their psyches.
How did twenty—three M.F.A. and third—year B.F.A. acting students take
to it? "They loved her commitment, patience, and generosity," reports
Assistant Professor Judylee Vivier, director of the Theater Department's graduate
program in acting.
Dukakis was already an accomplished stage actress and director with thirty years
of experience and two Obies to her credit when she began her Hollywood career.
Her debut film performance as Rose Castorini in the 1987 romantic comedy Moonstruck
earned her an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress, the New York Film Critics Circle
Award, the Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award, and the Golden Globe Award.
Since then, Dukakis has taught acting at New York University and appeared in many
movies, although her first love remains the theater.
At the start of the Brooklyn College workshop, Dukakis asked students to identify
the primary issue they wanted to address in their acting work and delved in. "Not
that I'm so amazingly perceptive," she explained, "but I've battled
these questions a lot in my own work."
During the second and third day of the class, she helped students expand their
self—knowledge through a moment—by—moment analysis of the scenes
they had prepared from the works of Anton Chekhov, John Patrick Shanley, Beth
Henley, and Joe Orton. "Figure out your character's conflicts, what she really
wants," Dukakis told one student. "Plays are written about struggling,
yearning, running into walls, and overcoming obstacles."
While students focused on their individual professional goals, Dukakis stressed
the importance of owning a role and of achieving a personally authentic emotional
response to it. "Don't turn to the director and ask how you did. Ask yourself
first, then ask your scene partner, then you hear from the director."
The master class was arranged by Broeklundian Professor Benito Ortolani, chairperson
of the Theater Department, and Vivier, a former student of Dukakis.
Robin Kelley, 2002 Hess Scholar in Residence
Lauded by Cornel West as "the preeminent historian of black popular culture
writing today," Robin D. G. Kelley, this year's Robert L. Hess Scholar in
Residence, came to Brooklyn College in March to lecture, hold discussions, and
even play a little piano.
A professor of history and Africana studies at New York University, Kelley has
wide—ranging academic interests. His most celebrated work, Yo' Mama's
DisFunktional!: Fighting the Culture Wars in Urban America (Beacon Press,
1997), was selected as one of the year's top ten books by the Village Voice,
and his second collection of essays, Freedom Dreams: The Black Radical Imagination
(Beacon Press, 2002), continues Kelley's groundbreaking analysis of black liberation
struggles, jazz, hip—hop, and working—class radicalism. During his residency
at Brooklyn College, Kelley also lectured on the historical basis of the reparations
movement, academia and social responsibility, feminism, and the globalization
of African American history.
In his Hess Memorial Lecture, "Jazz and Freedom Go Hand in Hand," Kelley
focused on how the art form acts on a wide scale to liberate culture and society.
Jazz has been much on his mind lately—his forthcoming book, Misterioso:
The Art of Thelonious Monk (The Free Press), examines the music of this enigmatic
and original composer and pianist. The week of public lectures and discussions
culminated in the George Gershwin Theater with Kelley, an accomplished amateur
pianist, joining Assistant Professor of Music Salim Washington and his jazz ensemble
for the Monk classics Misterioso and Pannonica, before turning the
ivories over to Warren Byrd, whom Kelley described as "a real pianist."
"I don't play professionally, and don't worry, I won't give up my day job,"
Kelley joked with his audience between tunes. "But as Thelonious Monk once
said, 'Don't be afraid to make mistakes.'"
And from Our Far East bureau, Larry Tung, M.F.A., '02
Already an experienced daily newspaper reporter, Larry Tung received his master
of fine arts degree in television production at this year's Commencement.
During his Brooklyn College career, he interned at WNET New York/Channel Thirteen
and at the Beijing bureau of CNN. Tung grew up in Taipei, Taiwan, where he earned
a bachelor's degree in commercial design from Ming Chuan University. He covered
national and city politics for two years at Taiwan News, one of the country's
three English—language daily newspapers. He hopes to work in the United States
full time before returning to Asia. "Taiwan is a very small place,"
he says. "I would like more people to have access to my work."
Brooklyn College Art Gallery News
The M.F.A. Thesis Exhibition, celebrating the work
of nine graduate students ran from May 7 to 20. . . . Freudian Circus,
an exhibition of paintings by four Brooklyn women artists that depicted the intertwined
animal and intellectual sides of human nature, opened February 27 and ran through
March 20. . . . Lost and Found, a retrospective of the work of artist Thelma
E. Kandel, '54, opened May 9 with intricately constructed, touching, and often
humorous "assemblage" pieces. . . . May 15—31, Brooklyn College
Magazine Art Director Joe Loguirato exhibited Recent Work: Portraits of
Children, which captured in exquisite detail the essence of childhood.
Dance Dance Dance
Members of the Brooklyn college Olympic Hopefuls Dance Sport Team displayed their
talent at a showcase performance in April at Gershwin Theater. Led by Sergei Nabatov,
assistant professor of physical education and exercise science, the team is one
of thousands of ballroom dance troupes around the world hoping that their sport
will be adopted as an official Olympic event. More than a dozen couples performed
at the Dance Sport Spectacular, giving the audience a display of such dances as
the rhumba, cha cha and tango.
Brooklyn College Graduate Wins Soros Fellowship
Sophia Jan, who graduated in 1999 with a bachelor's degree in Spanish, was named
one of thirty 2002 Paul and Daisy Soros New American Fellows. Fellows receive
an annual maintenance stipend of $20,000 plus half—tuition for up to two
years of graduate study in the United States. More than one thousand applications
for the fellowship were received this year, with the thirty fellows selected from
eighty—four finalists.
Jan's family immigrated to the United States from Taiwan and she was born in Brooklyn
in 1978. Her parents are now naturalized citizens living in Queens.
Jan is in her second year of medical school at the State University of New York
Health Science Center at Brooklyn. She is planning for a career in public health
policy—a choice that was inspired by being the principal caregiver to her
brother, who is severely disabled, as well as her experience at the college. Her
internships with people with disabilities in rural Mexico and her role as a leader
of student organizations on campus helped to sharpen her desire to actively effect
change. "I want to be part of the decision—making process," she
says.
Elected to Phi Beta Kappa at Brooklyn College and receiving several academic awards,
Jan was also a community leader and an athlete who participated on both the swimming
and tennis teams. She was the student speaker at her Commencement.
The Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans was established in 1997
to assist new Americans in furthering their careers through graduate education.
One hundred forty fellowships have been given since the inception of the program.
Short Takes
Philip Napoli, History, took six graduate students to NBC in march to interview
anchorman and author Tom Brokaw as part of an ongoing oral history project...
During spring break, KC Johnson, History, brought students to Washington,
D.C., where they visited the Supreme Court and heard oral arguments in Republican
Party of Minnesota v. kelly, which addresses a Minnesota statute governing
restrictions on what judicial candidates may say in their campaigns...Judylee
Vivier, Theater, organized a one—day workshop, "How to Make a Living
While Pursuing Your Dream," to examine strategies for student directors,
producers, and performers to obtain work in the entertainment industry. The workshop
was moderated by Stanley Zucker, president of Chelsea Studios... On the Podium:
Matthew Erdelyi, Psychology, and Bernard H. Stern Professor in Humor, made
"Freud as a Joke" the topic of his Stern Lecture in Humor and used jokes
and cartoons to explain central Freudian concepts... Daily News columnist
Juan Gonzalez chose "Politics at Ground Zero" as the subject
for his Belle Zeller Lecture... Acclaimed composer Ned Rorem dropped by
SUBO to discuss "American Art Song in the Twentieth Century," share
the story of his life and career, and hear two selections from his song cycle
The Evidence of Things Not Seen performed by Conservatory of Music students.
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