2010

Year: 2010

Nippon Foundation Grant Adds Books on Contemporary Japan to Lawrence Library

Lawrence University has been named the recipient of 40 books through the Nippon Foundation’s “Read Japan” grant program, which donates books about contemporary Japan to libraries around the world.

The books are from the foundation’s catalog “100 Books for Understanding Contemporary Japan,” which cover five categories: history; politics and international relations; economy and business; society and culture; and literature and arts.

Although the “Read Japan” program typically awards grant recipients 100 books, Lawrence already owned 60 of the titles from the catalog.

Associate Professor Jane Yang, chair of the department of Chinese and Japanese and the East Asian Studies program, said she selected titles that best fit courses taught at Lawrence.

“We added political, cultural and literary texts since these would best complement what we teach,” said Yang. “Our courses in international relations, cultural anthropology and literature and film can best make use of these new books.”

Among the books Lawrence will add to its collection are “The U.S.-Japan Alliance: Past, Present and Future,” Japanamerica: How Japanese Pop Culture has Invaded the U.S.” and “Japanese Women Writers: Twentieth Century Short Fiction.”

Based in Tokyo, the Nippon Foundation was established in 1962 as a non-profit philanthropic organization. While early efforts focused on the domestic development of the maritime and shipping fields, the foundation more recently has expanded its activities into education, social welfare and public health, both within Japan and in more than 100 nations abroad.

President’s Matriculation Convocation Opens Lawrence University’s 162nd Academic Year

Lawrence University President Jill Beck officially opens the college’s 162nd academic year as well as the 2010-11 convocation series “Innovation Through Collaboration” Thursday, Sept. 16 with the annual matriculation address.

Beck presents “Expanding Student Opportunities in Research, Performance, Public Service and Environmental Activism” at 11:10 a.m. in the Lawrence Memorial Chapel. The convocation is free and open to the public.

President Beck

In her address, Beck will outline the steps involved in the process of innovation and highlight some examples in which Lawrence is practicing innovative approaches in curricular and co-curricular areas. Joining Beck in the presentation will be Professor of Music Janet Anthony, Assistant Professor of Government and Stephen Edward Scarff Professor of International Affairs Jason Brozek, Associate Professor of History and Pieper Chair of Community Engaged Learning Monica Rico, Associate Professor of Government and Edwin & Ruth West Professor of Economics and Social Science Dena Skran and students Sarah Ehlinger, Joseph Neumann and Katelin Richter.

Beck is in her seventh year as president of the college. Since assuming the presidency in 2004, she has focused her priorities on raising Lawrence’s national profile, increasing the number and spectrum of individualized learning experiences for students, fostering collaboration between the fine and performing arts and the traditional liberal arts and sciences, cultivating a desire for environmental sustainability on campus and in the lives of Lawrence alumni, creating greater diversity in the Lawrence community and engaging alumni, parents and friends of the college to enhance educational experiences.

Other speakers on the 2010-11 convocation schedule include:

• Oct. 5, 2010 — Ray Suarez, senior correspondent for “The NewsHour” on PBS, “The Browning of America.”

• Feb. 8, 2011 — Mary Jane Jacob, executive director of exhibitions and exhibition studies, 
School of the Art Institute of Chicago, “The Collective Creative Process.”

• April 5, 2011 — Timothy X. Troy ’85, Professor of Theatre Arts and J. Thomas and Julie Esch Hurvis Professor of Theatre and Drama, Lawrence University, “Unexpected Collaborators: The Geniuses Among Us.”

• May 17, 2011 — Sara Quandt ’73, professor, department of epidemiology and prevention, division of Public Health Sciences, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, “It Takes a Community: Collaborating to Reduce Health Disparities in the U.S.”

A Record-Setter: Lawrence Welcomes Largest-Ever Freshman Class

When the Lawrence University admission staff starting planning for this year’s freshman class, the goal was to enroll a slightly larger group of first-year students than it did in 2009.

As the saying goes, be careful what you wish for.

Lawrence welcomes its largest freshman class ever — 456 — Tuesday, Sept. 7 when new students arrive on campus to move in and begin a week of orientation activities. Classes for the 2010-11 academic year begin Monday, Sept. 13.

“We wanted a larger class. We just didn’t expect it to be this much larger,” said Ken Anselment, Lawrence’s director of admissions.

This year’s freshman class — 100 students larger than last year’s — was drawn from the largest applicant pool in Lawrence history, a record 2,625. Counting transfer students (17) and exchange students coming from abroad (20), nearly 500 new faces join the student body this fall.

“Given the state of the economy, colleges were nervous,” said Anselment of the prospects for the class of 2014. “People were predicting dire straits for private colleges, but things ended up way better than expected.”

Anselment credits several factors for the jump in applications and matriculants, citing the college’s emphasis on individualized instruction, its “curb appeal” and good old-fashioned hard work.

“Our philosophy that college should not be a one-size-fits-all experience and our exceptionally high number of individualized courses really resonates with students,” said Anselment. “The opening of the Warch Campus Center has been huge. And some of the other improvements, such as the College Ave. median project and the renovation of the Lawrence Memorial Chapel, have the campus looking spectacular.

“A concerted effort by the entire Lawrence community, from the admissions staff to faculty, athletic coaches and alumni all reaching out to prospective students, has been essential to our success,” Anselment added. “Like the African proverb that says it takes a village to raise a child, it takes a whole university to enroll a student. And this year, did we ever.”

The new students bring a diverse set of interests and eclectic experiences with them to campus.

Amal Abbas spent a year fearing for her life every day as war raged around her Baghdad neighborhood. When a bomb destroyed the elementary school adjacent to the middle school she attended in 2004, Abbas’ mother gathered up Amal and her two siblings and fled for Amman, Jordan, leaving behind everything but the clothes they could carry. In May, 2008, with the help of the International Organization for Migration, Abbas and her family uprooted again, resettling in Chicago, a transition complicated by the fact they knew no one there and spoke minimal English.

With the help of a sponsor, Abbas attended — and excelled — at St. Scholastica Academy, an all-girls catholic school, for two years. When her best friend applied to Lawrence, Abbas followed suit. A campus visit in April sealed the deal.

“I fell in love with Lawrence. It felt like a second home,” said Abbas, who is believed to be the first student from Iraq ever to attend Lawrence. “I’m excited and nervous. This is going to be another whole new beginning for me.”

Henry Gergen of Beaver Dam spent 18 days in July on a six-country tour of Europe as the lead trumpet player for the Sound of America Honor Band, which is composed of all-state musicians from around the country. During a stop at the Luxembourg American Cemetery and Memorial, final resting place of nearly 5,100 U.S. servicemen, most of whom died during the “Battle of the Bulge” in World War II, Gergen was given the honor of playing “Taps” at the grave of General George S. Patton. The students’ visit to the military cemetery was filmed and shown on Luxembourg television.

Emily Russell could be Lawrence’s version of the dog whisperer. The 18-year-old from Tulsa, Okla., began competing in dog obedience and agility shows just four years ago. By 2009, she was the no. 1 ranked junior obedience handler in the country by the United Kennel Club, the world’s largest all-breed performance-dog registry. In addition to showing her three-year-old golden retriever Layla, whose name was inspired by the Eric Clapton classic, Russell also visits nursing homes on a monthly basis with Aubrie, an eight-year-old therapy dog.

Walker Brengel of Whitefish Bay is following in the footsteps of three older brothers, all of whom also have attended Lawrence. While Henry and Taylor graduated in 2006 and 2009, respectively, brother Peter begins his junior year this fall. Like his siblings, Walker is a swimmer, but also an avid cyclist who once found himself pedaling along side seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong during a “Live Strong” ride in Milwaukee. He also is an aspiring artist who has been selling his artwork nationally since he was in the sixth grade.

The 456 freshmen represent 36 states and 32 foreign countries, among them Ethiopia, Myanmar, Nepal and Vietnam. International students account for just under 10 percent of the freshmen. Wisconsin supplied the most freshmen (128), but only three other states — Illinois (77), Minnesota (55) and New York (20) — sent more students to Lawrence than did China (15).

“We have young people from all over the world coming here to Appleton and we’re very proud of that,” said Anselment. “It’s fun to recruit students who are excited about the place — and their excitement has been palpable.”

Among those who reported their ethnicity, 17 percent of the incoming freshmen are domestic students of color, the highest level since Lawrence began tracking such numbers several decades ago.

The Class of 2014’s academic profile remains among the strongest of any institution in the state, with 26 percent of the freshmen ranked in the top five percent of their high school graduating class, while nearly 43 percent graduated in the top 10 percent of their class. Fifteen of this year’s freshmen graduated as their school’s valedictorian. Collectively this year’s freshmen carry an average high school grade point average of 3.66 with ACT and SAT score averages of 29 and about 1900, respectively.

More than 92 percent of this year’s freshmen class received financial assistance from Lawrence. The average need-based financial aid package exceeded $28,500.

“We’re proud to offer financial aid packages that help students focus more on fit than on finances,” Anselment said.

Closer Look at the Forbes’ Rankings Reveals More Good News for Lawrence

In conjunction with Forbes.com’s third annual “America’s Best Colleges” report, the Center for College Affordability and Productivity (CCAP) provides additional rankings beyond the magazine’s list of the nation’s best 610 undergraduate institutions.

In its recently released 2010 study, in which Lawrence University was ranked 50th nationally, Forbes and the CCAP also ranked Lawrence favorably in two other categories.

Using the Carnegie classification “Baccalaureate Colleges – Arts and Sciences,” which is regarded by Forbes as the nation’s best liberal arts colleges, Lawrence was ranked 29th among 196 schools, placing above such peer institutions as Bates (31), Macalester (32), Grinnell (48), Connecticut (53) and St. Olaf (70) colleges.

In its listing based on regional location, the study ranked Lawrence seventh among 150 institutions in the Midwest, ahead of peer schools Macalester (8), Oberlin (11), Grinnell (17) and St. Olaf (22) colleges.

Based in Washington, D.C., the CCAP is an independent, not-for-profit research center dedicated to facilitating a broader dialogue on the issues and problems facing the institutes of higher education in the United States.

Forbes.com Report Ranks Lawrence University 50th in 2010 “America’s Best Colleges” Report

Using the quality of the education a college provides, the experiences of its students and how much those students achieve as its measuring stick, Forbes.com has named Lawrence University the best undergraduate institution in Wisconsin and 50th nationally among more than 600 undergraduate institutions in its third annual “America’s Best Colleges” report.

Lawrence was the only state institutions to crack the business publication’s top 100. Beloit College was ranked 125th, St. Norbert College 152nd, Carroll University 184th, and Ripon College 195th.

In addition to finishing top-ranked among 11 Wisconsin institutions included in Forbes.com’s list, Lawrence also was ranked higher than such traditional educational heavyweights as Georgetown University (52), the University of California-Berkeley (65) and Ivy League member Cornell University (70).

Liberal arts colleges like Lawrence accounted for six of the top 15 ranked institutions nationally while many of the large state universities landed well down Forbes’ list, including Penn. State University (192), UW-Madison (212), and the University of Minnesota (418).

Launched in 2008 as an alternative to the annual rankings done by U.S. News & World Report, Forbes’ rankings focus largely on student-related concerns: Do the students enjoy their classes and overall academic experience? Will courses be interesting and rewarding? How likely is the student to graduate in four years? Will the student get a good job after graduation? How much debt will the student incur in pursuit of a degree?

“We’re happy that Forbes takes a student-centered approach to its assessments,” said Ken Anselment, Lawrence’s director of admissions. “And we continue to be gratified that Forbes recognizes the high-quality experience we provide our students, as well as the lifetime of rewards they reap from that experience as alumni.”

Compiled with the assistance of researchers at the Washington, D.C.-based non-profit think tank Center for College Affordability and Productivity, the magazine’s 2010 “America’s Best Colleges” report ranks 610 undergraduate institutions from among the 6,600 accredited post-secondary institutions in the United States.

More than 10 factors are used in objectively determining the rankings, with no single factor accounting as much as 20 percent. The only subjective judgments are those of Forbes and the Center for College Affordability and Productivity as to which factors to include and the weights to be used in evaluating each factor.

Data in the rankings were drawn from numerous sources, including the opinions of student evaluations of courses and instructors recorded on the Web site RateMyProfessors.com and post-graduate success determined by enrollment-adjusted entries in “Who’s Who in America” and average salaries of graduates reported by Payscale.com.

Other ranking factors included an estimated average student debt after four years, four-year college graduation rates, and the number of students and faculty, adjusted for enrollment, who have won nationally competitive awards such as Rhodes Scholarships and Nobel Prizes.

Williams College earned Forbes.com’s no. 1 ranking, supplanting last year’s top-ranked institution, the U. S. Military Academy at West Point, which was ranked fourth this year. Princeton University (2), Amherst College (3) and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (5) completed the top five.

The Princeton Review Cites Lawrence University Among Nation’s Best Colleges

An exceptional education experience along with a great theatre program and an easily navigable campus earned Lawrence University inclusion in the just-released 2011 edition of The Princeton Review’s annual book “The Best 373 Colleges.”

The Princeton Review’s 19th edition profiles of 373 colleges — less than 15% of America’s 2,500 four-year colleges — it considers the nation’s top schools along with school rating scores in eight categories. The book also includes “Top 20” lists in 62 categories based on surveys of students attending the colleges.

Lawrence made two of the top 20 lists, ranking 11th in best college theatre program and easiest campus to get around. The lists are based on a high consensus among its surveyed students about a topic compared with that of students at other schools answering the same survey question(s) on that topic.

Using a scale of 60-99, with 99 the highest, Lawrence earned rating scores of 92 in campus life, which measures students’ satisfaction with their lives outside the classroom, 90 in academics, including a 99 rating in professor’s accessibility, a 91 in financial aid and an 81 “green” rating based on a schools’ environmental commitments. Earlier this year, Lawrence was among 286 colleges and universities included in The Princeton Review’s first-ever guide to green colleges.

“Each year, the Princeton Review offers an eclectic mix of college ratings,” said Ken Anselment, Lawrence’s director of admissions. “We’re happy to see our theatre program continue to be recognized year after year among the nation’s best. And this year’s addition of having an easily navigable campus likely reflects the great campus improvements we’ve made over the past year, such as the opening of the Warch Campus Center, Hurvis Crossing and the College Avenue median beautification project. We trust that our friends and neighbors in northeast Wisconsin — not to mention the students that come to us from around the country and around the world — will discover that when they arrive on this jewel of a campus.”

In its profile of the college, The Princeton Review defined the Lawrence experience as “a cooperative, rather than a competitive, learning environment” with “intense academics, extreme involvement in extracurricular activities, and a near-obsession with music.”

Students who were surveyed described Lawrence as a place that “doesn’t have just one strength, it has many unique and diverse strengths” with a student body that is “interested in learning for the sake of learning, not studying for the sake of receiving the highest grade.”

According to Robert Franek, senior vice president of publishing at The Princeton Review and the book’s author, outstanding academics is the primary criteria for inclusion in the book.

“Our choices are based on institutional data we collect about schools, our visits to schools over the years, feedback we gather from students attending the schools and the opinions of our staff and our 28-member National College Counselor Advisory Board,” said Franek.

Lawrence Ranked 36th by High School Counselors; 67th Among National Liberal Arts Colleges in Annual U.S. News Guide

Lawrence University was thought of more highly by high school guidance counselors than the editors at U.S. News & World Report in the magazine’s  2011 “America’s Best Colleges” report released today (8/17).

In addition to its overall rankings in national universities and national liberal arts colleges categories in its annual guide, U.S. News also includes lists and rankings of a wide variety of other niche categories, without regard for size or type of institution. Lawrence was ranked 36th nationally in a survey of guidance counselors from America’s best high schools who were asked which liberal arts colleges they think offer the best education to their students.  Among 250 national liberal arts colleges, Lawrence was ranked 67th.

One of numerous college guides released each August, U.S. News’ version uses a combination of subjective information, such as peer assessment as well as statistical analysis of a variety of factors it considers indicative of academic excellence — graduation rates, student retention and acceptance rates, among others — in determining its rankings.

Lawrence had strong showings in the areas of incoming students ranked in the top 10 percent of their high school class (38 percent), graduation rate (76 percent), full-time faculty (94 percent) and alumni giving rate (43 percent) while also showing increases in freshman retention rate (90 percent) and classes with less than 20 students (75 percent) from the previous year.

“We’re happy to see U.S. News report on things like our alumni giving rate, which, even in a challenging economy, continues to be among the nation’s highest as well as freshman retention rate, which in our case, was an increase over the previous year’s already high rate,” said Ken Anselment, director of admissions at Lawrence. “High student retention and alumni giving rates tell us that people’s satisfaction with their Lawrence experience is both consistent and lasting.

“Even more than the rankings,” Anselment added, “we’re thrilled to know that high school counselors — who best understand the nuances of quality and fit between students and colleges — continue to think very highly of the Lawrence experience and recommend it to some of their best students.”

Williams College of Massachusetts earned the magazine’s top spot in the national liberal arts college category for the seventh consecutive year. Harvard University was the top-ranked institution in U.S. News’ national universities category after sharing the no. 1 ranking last year with Princeton University, which was ranked second this year.

In compiling its annual “America’ s Best Colleges” guide, U.S. News & World Report evaluates nearly 1,500 of the nation’s public and private four-year schools, using data from up to 16 separate factors, each of which is assigned a “weight” that reflects the magazine editor’s judgment as to how much that measure matters. Each school’s composite weighted score is then compared to peer institutions to determine final rankings.

Institutions are divided into several distinct categories. In addition to the best liberal arts college category that measures national institutions like Lawrence, other rankings are based on universities that grant master and doctorate degrees and colleges that are considered “regional” institutions.

Lawrence University Economist Named to National Academy of Sciences Committee Investigating Unintended Automobile Acceleration

David Gerard, associate professor of economics at Lawrence University, is participating in a National Academy of Sciences  committee study reviewing evidence to identify possible causes of unintended acceleration in motor vehicles in the aftermath of Toyota’s large recalls.

The independent, 17-member Committee on Electronic Vehicle Controls and Unintended Acceleration was formed at the request of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to review electronic throttles and other systems used throughout the auto industry. The study is part of the federal government’s efforts to learn what led to two massive recalls in late 2009 and in January of this year.

David Gerard_09 _web
David Gerard

While much of the unintended acceleration problem has been focused on Toyota, according to Administrator David Strickland, the NHTSA has received complaints related to this problem for every major vehicle manufacturer.

The National Research Council (NRC) of the National Academy of Sciences organized the committee and held its first meeting in March.  At that meeting, the committee identified several additional areas of expertise it wanted to include and Gerard, along with three other members, were added.  The committee will meet several more times, including August 2-3 in Detroit.  It is expected to deliver its final report to the NHTSA by the end of June 2011.

Gerard, who joined the Lawrence faculty in 2009, specializes in risk regulations and public policy, including the interrelationships between regulations and technological change in the U.S. auto industry. He is also part of the development team for TrafficSTATS, an interactive web-based ,tool used to compare and communicate traffic safety risks.

Prior to coming to Lawrence, Gerard spent eight years on the faculty at Carnegie Mellon University, where he was the executive director of the Center for the Study and Improvement of Regulation in the Department of Engineering & Public Policy.  Gerard blogs regularly for Lawrence students and alumni and “fellow travelers.”

Sculptor Rob Neilson Named to Endowed Professorship

Rob Neilson, associate professor of art at Lawrence University, has been named the college’s Frederick R. Layton Professor of Art. Appointments to endowed professorships recognize academic distinction through teaching excellence and/or scholarly achievement.

A member of the Lawrence art department since 2003, Neilson is a sculptor who specializes in public art and how that art engages the public and becomes part of their lives.

Rob-Neilson_web2
Rob Neilson

Working with metals, plastic, rubber and other exotic materials, Neilson has been awarded commissions for site-specific installations St. Elizabeth Hospital in Appleton, the cities of Charlotte, N.C., and Los Angeles, Calif., and the Long Beach Transit Authority. His foam and rubber sculpture, “Two-Head Trojan Ducky” was selected in 2004 for display at Chicago’s 10th Annual Navy Pier Walk exhibition.

One of his most recent commissions involved a series of 54 cast iron masks based on digitally scanned faces of local residents Neilson created for the Los Angeles Country Metropolitan Transit Authority. The four-foot-tall masks were affixed to the canopy of one of the L.A. county light rail stations. They were formally dedicated last November.

“Rob Neilson is an enormously creative artist and a wonderful teacher,” said Provost and Dean of the Faculty David Burrows. “His large-scale works have attracted national interest and praise for their unusual style and use of novel ideas. Rob is able to see the world in new and exciting ways, and his work reflects that vision. As a teacher he works many long hours and inspires his students to accomplish things they never thought possible.”

Neilson earned a bachelor of fine arts degree at the College for Creative Studies in Detroit and a master of fine arts degree in sculpture at the University of North Carolina.

The Layton Professorship was established in 1983 in part from a trust established by the assets of the Layton School of Art and Design as well as funds raised by Lawrence.Originally designed to bring distinguished artists to campus for multiple year stays, the endowed chair now supports a permanent position in the art department.