Press Releases

Category: Press Releases

Former U.S. Associate Attorney General rejoining Lawrence Board of Trustees

A familiar face is returning to the Lawrence University Board of Trustees.

A Head shot of Former U.S. Associate Attorney General Bill Baer.
Bill Baer ’72

Bill Baer, who previously served on the board from 2001-2012, has been re-elected to a three-year term, effective Feb. 1.

On Jan. 20, Baer stepped down from his position as Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General, the third-ranking position in the U.S. Department of Justice, in conjunction with the completion of the Obama administration. Baer joined the DOJ’s Antitrust Division as Assistant Attorney General in December 2012, leaving the Lawrence’s Board of Trustees, where he had been vice chair for two years.

“Now that Bill has completed his assignments with the Justice Department, we are delighted to welcome him back to the Lawrence Board of Trustees where his legal experience, sound judgment and analytical skills will once again be a tremendous asset to our ongoing work and strategic planning,” said Susie Stillman Kane ’72. “Given his past leadership roles on the board, he also brings significant institutional knowledge and perspective to our work.”

A 1972 Lawrence graduate, Baer has established himself as one of the nation’s leading antitrust attorneys. He began his career at the Federal Trade Commission and beginning in 1980, spent 15 years as head of the antitrust division of the law firm of Arnold & Porter. In 2010, the National Law Journal named him as one of “the decade’s most influential lawyers” and the International Who’s Who of Business Lawyers named Baer the “leading competition lawyer in the world” in 2006 and 2007.

In his previous tenure on the board, Baer served on the search committee for Lawrence’s 16th president, Mark Burstein. He has been active on behalf of Lawrence, serving as an admissions volunteer, a campaign working group member for the university’s $160 million “More Light” campaign (2005-2011) and as a panelist with the Lawrence Scholars in Law program.

Baer, along with other family members, established the Joseph L. and Mary R. Baer Family Scholarship in recognition of his parents’ lifelong commitment to education.

After earning a bachelor’s degree in government from Lawrence, Baer earned his J.D. degree from Stanford Law School.

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College.”  Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

Lawrence’s Great Midwest Trivia Contest offers 52nd test of cerebral fitness

 It seems a no brainer that Ridley Tankersley would eventually hold the exalted title of Trivia Headmaster of Lawrence University’s ultimate test of cerebral fitness.

A photo of Lawrence University Trivia Headmaster Ridley Tankersley.
Senior Ridley Tankersley will oversee the 52nd edition of Lawrence’s Great Midwest Trivia Contest.

Heck, he almost was named a trivia master before he was even a Lawrence student.

As 2017’s Trivia Headmaster, Tankersley, a senior studio art major from Phoenix, Ariz., will oversee 50 straight hours of outrageous competition all in the name of fun during the 52nd edition of Lawrence University’s Great Midwest Trivia Contest.

Older than the Super Bowl and liberally sprinkled with questions that make explaining the Higgs Boson look easy, the Lawrence trivia contest is the nation’s longest-running salute to all things obscure.

The contest returns in all its inconsequential glory Friday, Jan. 27 at its customary 10:00.37 p.m. start time and runs until midnight Sunday. The contest, just as it has for the past 11 years, will be webcast worldwide from the control room of wlfmradio.

Nearly 400 questions will be asked over the course of the contest, with hundreds, if not thousands of trivia addicts playing for on-campus and off-campus teams, calling in answers to the WLFM studios. Last year, 86 teams battled it out for the off-campus title, which was won by Hobgoblins of Little Minds, a team based in North Carolina. Among on-campus combatants, David and the Bucky’s Batallion Diabolically Antagonizing Tortured Brood-Makers, Basically Building Batteries, Bungee Jumping Blindfolded, Bizarrely Bludgeoning Bells and Definitely Ascending toward Brilliance By Dastardly Battling Together outlasted 18 challengers for its second straight title.

Tankersley, who went from playing as a freshman to serving as a trivia master the past two contests, tried to pull a fast one in 2012. As a visiting prospective student, Tankersley conspired with a current student to apply as a trivia master.

“We thought it would be funny if we both auditioned to be trivia masters,” said Tankersley, who was a member of the winning on-campus team his freshman year. “I pretended to be a Lawrence student. My visit roommate gave me a fake Lawrence ID number and his room number. I went through the whole process, including an interview. I heard I came close to being picked. I think people were quite surprised when they realized I was back in Arizona finishing high school.”

As he gets ready to settle in to the big chair for the weekend, Tankersley hopes to remind players of the contest’s credo: Trivia is meant to be entertainment and should be perceived solely in that light.

“I’ve seen the focus put on competitiveness, not the enjoyment of playing and I want to see it go back to that,” said Tankersley, who figures he’ll only manage to sneak in eight hours of sleep during the course of the 50-hour contest. “I want it to be on the front of everyone’s mind that people are playing because it’s fun and trivia masters are doing what they do because it’s fun.”

A photo of Lawrence University headmaster dressing up as a Joker, surrounded by trivia masters holding up large playing cards.
A “deck full” of trivia masters will assist headmaster Ridley Tankersley (center) during this year’s 50-hour Great Midwest Trivia contest.

While technology has perhaps eroded some of the contest’s original, simple charm, its core spirit — a weird, yet at the same time weirdly logical experience —  remains untarnished.

“You’re in a room with waxing and waning numbers of other teammates, but you’re all there doing the same thing,” said Tankersley, whose dad played as the one-man team “Square Root of All Evil” from Arizona last year. “People take it seriously and it’s inspiring that they do, finding the fun in this weird thing.

“It’s really all about the community of playing,” he added. “It’s about spending time with your friends on the weekend, and maybe coming out of it with a bad prize. It’s all about the experience.”

 Appleton native Kim Stahl knows all about trivia’s “community of playing.” She began playing the trivia contest when she was in elementary school and started a team in sixth grade. Today, she and her best friend Heidi Delorey are co-ring leaders of a team that numbers around four dozen multiple-generation players from as many as 10 states who annually converge on her home — in Chapel Hill, N.C.

Stahl, who has approximately 35 years of notches in her trivia belt, and her merry band of “Hobgoblins,” have benefited from the contest’s switch from an over-the-air broadcast to its current webcast, allowing her to maintain a beloved, decades-old tradition.

“We just love playing. We love the contest. It’s a lot of fun and it makes for a wonderful reunion,” said Stahl, a 1991 graduate of Appleton West High School. “And we love the fact that all of these Lawrence students have kept it going all these years. It’s such a unique college tradition.”

Despite her long history with the contest, Stahl first cued the DJ to play “We are the Champions” in 2015, the contest’s 50th anniversary. They successfully defended their title last year and now are gunning for a coveted “threepeat.”

“We are firmly intending to hit the hat trick this year,” said Stahl, whose own personal trivia tradition involves filling her front yard with pink flamingos the weekend of the contest.  “After never expecting to win for the first 30-some years, that would be a crowning jewel.”

Following trivia tradition, Lawrence President Mark Burstein, will start the fun by asking the contest’s first question, which, also by tradition, is always the final — and virtually unanswerable 100-point “Super Garruda” — from the previous year’s contest.

For one of the few times in the contest’s history, last year’s Super Garruda was correctly answered by the Trivia Pirates…Aaarrrggh. They somehow managed to come up Earwigs Rule to the question: In 1964, a band pretended to play Beatles songs at a battle of the bands called the Letterman Show. What is written in the top right corner of the page that features the band in a KWSS DJ’s copy of the lead singer’s 1965 high school yearbook?

Here are a few “softballs” to help everyone get warmed up for this year’s contest.

  1. In 1988, students at the University College in Dublin broke a record by debating, for 503 hours and 45 minutes, what statement?
  2. At this toy themed amusement park in San Diego, what guards the entrance to the ride immediately south of the easternmost green roller coaster?
  1. The leader of a one-man comedy synth punk band also has a website dedicated to images of a certain household object. What is BigJerk’s lamp thinking?

(1. “Every Dog Should Have Its Day” 2. A 16-foot tall LEGO pharaoh  3. “I hate the zoo.”)

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College.”  Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

Year of the Rooster: Lawrence celebrates Lunar New Year 

Lawrence University will ring in the 2017 Lunar New Year — the Year of the Rooster — Saturday, Jan. 28 at 6 p.m. with dance performances and a multicultural expo in the Warch Campus Center. The family-friendly event is free and open to the public.

A photo of a local Hmong dance group Nkauj Hmoob Ntsias Lias.
Nkauj Hmoob Ntsias Lias, a local Hmong dance group, will be among the performers at Lawrence’s annual Lunar New Year celebration.

Showcasing Eastern culture will be the local Hmong dance group Nkauj Hmoob Ntsias Lias, the Vietnamese hip-hop duo Beast Street, a traditional lion dance by Vovinam Chicago and the Japanese drumming/folk dance group Anaguma Eisa from UW-Madison.

Following the performances, several Lawrence student organizations will host a cultural expo from beginning at 8 p.m., offering a variety of traditional crafts/games, calligraphy, paper fan/lantern decorating and paper fortune cookies. A photo booth will be available and a selection of Asian treats — Vietnamese Bánh mì, Korean potato pancakes, Chinese donuts, spring rolls, crab Rangoons and pot stickers — will be served.

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College.”  Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

 

New lecture series explores cultural competency

A five-part series examining issues related to cultural competency by Lawrence University begins Friday, Jan. 27. Each one-hour program, starting at 11:30 a.m. in the Warch Campus Center, is free and open to the public.

A Head shot of Lawrence University accessibility services coordinator and academic skills specialist Meghan Lally.
Meghan Lally

Meghan Lally, accessibility services coordinator and academic skills specialist at Lawrence, opens the series with the presentation “Reframing Disability: Designing Inclusive Classrooms and Communities.”

Recognizing disability as an aspect of diversity that is integral to society, Lally will discuss ideas and education technology for incorporating Universal Design principles and disability studies into educational curriculums.

Other presentations include:
• Feb. 24 — “Gender in the 21st Century,” Helen Boyd Kramer, lecturer of gender and Freshman Studies

• March 3 — “Intercultural Skills for Successful Global Citizenship,” Cecile Despres-Berry, lecturer in English as a second language and director of the Waseda Program; Leah McSorley, director of international student services; Laura Zuege, director of off-campus programs

• April 28 — “Imagine More,” Rev. Linda Morgan Clement, Julie Esch Hurvis Dean of Spiritual and Religious Life

• May 26 — “Lesson’s from the Trenches: Activism for Social Change in the New Millennium,” seniors Max Loebl and Guilberly Louissaint

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College.”  Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

A day “on”: Lawrentians honor MLK legacy through reflection, community service

While the annual holiday honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is a day off from work or school for many, more than 250 Lawrence University students, faculty, staff and local alumni will make it “a day on.”

A photo of Lawrence University student packing up a box to send to Feeding American in Eastern Wisconsin.As a prelude to the Jan. 16 annual Fox Cities community celebration of the life of the civil and human rights leader, which Lawrence will host in the Memorial Chapel beginning at 6:30 p.m., Lawrentians will spend part of the day engaged in community service.

Since 2008, Lawrence has honored King’s legacy by providing volunteers to area nonprofit organizations. This year Lawrence volunteers will spend part of the King holiday providing their time and talents to 11 local nonprofit organizations, including the Boys and Girls Club of the Fox Valley, Riverview Gardens, Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin, Homeless Connections and the Bethesda Thrift Shop on a variety of activities, including a new reading initiative for K-6 students at Appleton’s Edison Elementary School.

Prior to the volunteer activities, Lawrence will conduct a Read & Reflect event the morning of Jan. 16 in the Warch Campus Center. The action-based discussion will focus on Marc Lamont Hill’s book “Nobody: Casualties of America’s War on the Vulnerable, from Ferguson to Flint and Beyond.” It will include the sharing of personal experiences of feeling like a “nobody” and action individuals and the campus as a whole can take to better support society’s  most vulnerable members.

A photo of Lawrence University students volunteer on MLK's Day.

Pulitzer Prize-winning syndicated columnist Leonard Pitts will deliver the keynote address — “On the Fierce Urgency of Now” — at the Fox Cities’ 26th Martin Luther King community celebration.

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College.”  Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

Pulitzer Prize-winner headlines annual Martin Luther King Jr. celebration; Lawrence professor to receive community award

Award-winning newspaper columnist and author Leonard Pitts believes the concept of “now” is as urgent as it has been in many years.

A photo of award-winning newspaper columnist and author Leonard Pitts.
Leonard Pitts

Pitts, who writes a nationally syndicated column for the Miami Herald, will deliver the keynote address Monday, Jan. 16 at the 26th annual Fox Cities Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. community celebration at 6:30 p.m. in the Lawrence Memorial Chapel.

Two community awards will be presented as part of the celebration, including an educator award that will go to Lawrence University faculty member Amy Ongiri.

The theme for this year’s celebration is “Refusing to be a Bystander to Racism and Injustice.” The event, which will include a sign language interpreter, is free and open to the public. A reception will immediately follow in Shattuck Hall 163.

The annual commemoration of Dr. King’s life and legacy is jointly presented by Lawrence University and Celebrate Diversity Fox Cities, with the support of numerous Fox Valley organizations, churches and individuals.

Inspired by a passage in King’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech, in which he warned against “the tranquilizing drug of gradualism,” Pitts presents “On the Fierce Urgency of Now.”

King urged people not to be patient or wait for change to happen. Pitts believes that message needs to be reinforced because too many have “forgotten the fierce urgency of now, neglected to keep the pedal to the metal where human rights are concerned,” eroding much of the progress made in the post-civil rights era. In light of events of the past year, particularly the outcome of the national election, Pitts will make the case for the urgency of “now.”

During his 40-year career, Pitts has been recognized numerous times for literary excellence, including a Pulitzer Prize for commentary in 2004. His popular twice-a-week column appears in dozens of newspapers around the country. The National Association of Black Journalists have honored Pitts with its annual Award of Excellence three times and named him its Journalist of the Year in 2008.

He is a seven-time recipient of the Society of Professional Journalists’ Green Eyeshade Award and has been the recipient of the Atlantic City Press Club’s National Headliners Award five times.

In addition to his column, Pitts has written five critically acclaimed books, including 2015’s “Grant Park,” a provocative look at black and white relations in contemporary America.

Pitts, who resides in Bowie, Md., earned a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Southern California at the age of 19 after starting college as a 15-year old on a special honors program.

With a celebration theme focused on refusing to be a bystander to racism and injustice, Kathy Flores, chair of the MLK Planning Committee, says Pitts is the perfect keynote speaker.

“I can’t wait to hear Leonard Pitts’ address because so much of his writing has examined this very topic,” said Flores. “He is a shining example of someone in the media who stands up against racism and injustice in every word he writes. His passion and authenticity for justice makes him a powerful writer and speaker.”

A Head shot of Lawrence University Jill Beck Director of Film Studies and associate professor of film studies Amy Ongiri.
Amy Ongiri

As part of the community celebration, Ongiri will receive the third MLK Educator Award and Sarah Long-Radloff will be recognized as the 23rd recipient of the Jane LaChapelle McCarty Community Leader Award.

Ongiri joined the Lawrence faculty in 2014 as the Jill Beck Director of Film Studies and associate professor of film studies. She since has established herself as a fighter for social justice and a passionate advocate for all marginalized people.

With scholarship focused on diversity and multiculturalism, Ongiri has developed classes in which students engage intensely with issues of race, class, ability, ethnicity, body size, gender, sexuality and other categories of social hierarchy while challenging students to examine their unconscious biases.

As a role model of social justice activism, Ongiri serves as a faculty mentor for several Lawrence diversity and social justice student organizations, among them Alianza and the Men of Color Alliance. Her impact on students has been described as “profound.”

Her engagement extends beyond the campus, leading presentations on issues of diversity for local companies. As a strong believer that queer women of color be visible, she volunteers frequently as a DJ at local events, including the city’s annual Juneteenth celebration, and coaches basketball on Saturday mornings at the YMCA.

A Head shot of Fox Cities resident Sarah Long-Radloff.
Sarah Long-Radloff

Long-Radloff, a Fox Cities resident for more than 40 years, has been engaged in community outreach since she arrived, acting on her mission of providing a majority-white community with a positive African American experience.

She is active in the Appleton Kiwanis Club, earning the organization’s George F. Hixson Fellowship Award in 2016.  Serving some of the community’s most vulnerable or at-risk citizens, she volunteers at Harbor House, the Emergency Shelter/Homeless Connections and at the state prison in Waupun.

During a career at Kimberly-Clark Corp., Long-Radloff was involved with several diversity initiatives and helped train upper management, both locally and nationally, in support of the company’s efforts to create a more diverse work force.

The celebration also will feature student winners of the annual MLK essay contest, who will read their entries. This year’s winning student essayists are:

• Caroline Basehoar, 3rd grade, St. Francis Xavier Elementary School, Appleton
• Eli Skrypczak, 4th grade, Foster Elementary School, Appleton
• Kala Lones, 9th grade, Appleton North High School
• Milly Figueroa, 11th grade, Appleton North High School

The celebration will include a spoken word performance by members of Lawrence’s Slam Poetry Club and music by Anthony Gonzalez, B-Lilly, Mauranda Owens, Mike Pope and Paris Wicker.

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College.”  Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

Faculty, contemporary prints, Japanese woodblock prints featured in new Wriston Art Center exhibition

The work of five Lawrence University studio art faculty members will be featured in the university’s latest Wriston Art Center Galleries exhibition.

A photo of the artwork "Boys & Bubs: Seasons of Change" by Benjamin Rinehart.
Benjamin Rinehart’s “Boys & Bubs: Seasons of Change” (2016) will be among the works in the Wriston Art Center’s faculty exhibition.

The faculty exhibition in the Kohler Gallery, one of three new shows, opens Friday, Jan. 13 at 6 p.m. with a free public reception. A performance by the Lawrence band We Go From Where We Know follows at 8 p.m. The exhibition runs through March 12.

The faculty exhibit includes painting, sculpture, video, ceramics, photography, and book-making by Tony Conrad, lecturer of art, Rob Neilson, Frederick R. Layton Professor of Art and associate professor of art, Benjamin Rinehart, associate professor of art, John Shimon, associate professor of art, and Meghan Sullivan, Uihlein Fellow of Studio Art. An exploration of portraiture in its various forms occupies a prominent place in this exhibition, the first faculty group show in the galleries in more than a decade.

“The exhibition is a stunning showcase of our studio art faculty’s current work,” said Beth Zinsli, curator and director of the Wriston Art Center Galleries. “It really highlights their skill, thoughtfulness and brilliance as working artists as well as teachers and mentors.”

A photo of the artwork "Couples" by Louise Bourgeoise.
“Couples” by Louise Bourgeoise is part of the “The Fine Print” exhibition, a selection of contemporary prints by women.

“The Fine Print” in the Hoffmaster Gallery features a selection of contemporary prints by women on loan from long-time art collector and 1963 Lawrence graduate Dr. Robert Dickens.  A prominent psychiatrist in Manitowoc, Dickens’ primary area of interest is late 20th and early 21st century works on paper. The exhibition feature works by such well-known artists as Louise Bourgeoise, Squeak Carnwath, Allison Saar and Frances Myers, among others, as well as a triptych by Jean Shinn — “Celadon Threads” — she created using digital embroidery.

The Leech Gallery features “Dreams of the Floating World: 15 Views of Tokugawa Japan,” 30 Japanese woodblock prints from Lawrence’s permanent collection that were selected and researched by Lawrence students in Assistant Professor of History Brigid Vance’s course “Early Modern Japan.” The exhibition is organized into three themes: portraits, nature and urban perspectives.

Through their work with the prints, the students learned about Japan’s Tokugawa period (1603-1868). They wrote explanatory texts for each work and framed the prints for the show. Woodblock printmaking tools will be part of the exhibition.

The Wriston Art Center galleries are free and open to the public Tuesday-Friday 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday noon – 4 p.m.; closed Mondays. For more information on the exhibition, 920-832-6890.

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College.”  Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

 

 

 

University convocation celebrates the international contributions of Lawrence cellist Janet Anthony

The third installment of Lawrence University’s 2016-17 convocation series will celebrate the musical and educational career of Professor of Music Janet Anthony in a rare evening presentation.

A Head shot of Lawrence University cello professor Janet Anthony.
Janet Anthony

Anthony presents “Adventures in Music Making: 20 Years of Cross-Cultural Exchange in Haiti” Friday, Jan. 6 at 7 p.m. in the Lawrence Memorial Chapel. The event, free and open to the public, also will be available via a live webcast.

The program will feature performances of Haitian music, including two works composed by non-degree seeking students at Lawrence, by the Lawrence University Cello Ensemble and the Lawrence Symphony Chamber Orchestra as well as remarks by 2011 Lawrence graduate Carolyn Armstrong Desrosiers, Lawrence jazz studies program director Jose Encarnacion and Haitian journalist Fritz Valescot,

Anthony, the George and Marjorie Olsen Chandler Professor of Music, was chosen as the co-recipient of Lawrence’s annual Faculty Convocation Award, which honors a faculty member for distinguished professional work. She is the eighth faculty member so honored.

A cellist who joined the Lawrence conservatory of music faculty in 1984, Anthony has been making annual trips to Haiti since 1996 to conduct, perform and teach at music schools there.

Since making her first trip, more than 50 Lawrence students and faculty colleagues have accompanied her to teach in some of the many music programs with which she has been involved. Anthony also has assisted in bringing key Haitian music teachers and students to the United States for short-term professional development.

Following the devastating 2010 earthquake that devastated parts of the country, Anthony helped organized a benefit concert in Appleton for Haiti and collected needed supplies for the survivors, including gently used instruments. She has since performed numerous memorial concerts in Haiti, including one in 2011 on the one-year anniversary of the earthquake.

Anthony is the co-founder and current president of Building Leaders Using Music Education (BLUME)-Haiti, a Fox Cities-based nonprofit organization that works with Haitian and International partners to develop and support music education for youth and young adults in Haiti.

A photo of Lawrence University cello professor Janet Anthony playing her cello.Desrosiers, an Appleton native who has made multiple trips to Haiti with Anthony, co-produced and co-directed a documentary film — “Kenbe La” — which explores the transformational power of music programs in Haiti.

An active soloist, recitalist and chamber musician, Anthony has toured with the Vienna Chamber Orchestra, the Austrian Radio Orchestra and the Chamber Orchestra of the Vienna Symphony. She also has performed or taught in Argentina, China, Curacao, Japan, Venezuela and Vietnam and, as a member of the Duo Kléber, she has performed in England, France, Italy and Bosnia Herzegovina.

A frequent performer on Wisconsin Public Radio, Anthony earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Arizona and a master’s degree in music from the State University of New York at Stony Brook. She also studied at Vienna’s famed Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst.

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College.”  Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

 

 

 

Lawrence names Catherine Gunther Kodat new provost, dean of the faculty

Lawrence University President Mark Burstein has announced the appointment of Catherine Gunther Kodat as provost and dean of the faculty.  She also will join the Lawrence English department as a tenured professor.

A photo of Lawrence University provost and dean of the faculty and english professor Catherine Gunther Kodat.
Catherine Gunther Kodat will join the Lawrence administration as provost and dean of the faculty July 1.

A scholar of 20th-century English literature and American studies, author and former newspaper reporter, Kodat is currently the dean of the College of Arts & Sciences and professor of English at Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Ore. Kodat will officially join the Lawrence administration on July 1, 2017.

Kodat will succeed David Burrows, who announced in March he will return to the faculty at the end of the 2016-17 academic year. Burrows joined the administration in 2005 and will remain with the university, teaching in Lawrence’s psychology department and leading efforts to enhance pedagogy.

As Lawrence’s chief academic officer, Kodat will share responsibilities for long-range financial planning, enhancing the campus’ intellectual climate, recruiting, retaining and supporting faculty, strengthening instruction and research, fostering curricular innovation and promoting campus inclusivity.

In announcing her appointment, Burstein called Kodat’s academic background, accomplishments and interests “a perfect fit” for Lawrence.

“Katie’s interest in Lawrence drew early attention from the search committee and our interactions with her only increased our desire to have her join us,” said Burstein. “From the beginning, it was clearly a difficult task to find someone who had the temperament, experience and love of the liberal arts to carry forward the very successful tenure of Dave Burrrows. I think we have found such a person in Katie.”

Kodat joined the Lewis & Clark administration from the University of the Arts, a visual and performing arts institution in Philadelphia, where she served as acting provost and dean of the school of arts and sciences.

Prior to Lewis & Clark, Kodat spent 17 years at Hamilton College in Clinton, N.Y., where she rose from assistant to full professor, chaired the English and creative writing department and served as director of the American studies program. She was recognized with Hamilton’s Excellence in Teaching Award in 2008. She also has taught at Boston University, Boston College and Tufts University.

“Katie brings so much to the table: a deep appreciation and love of the arts, a strong commitment to scholarship and teaching, and tremendous warmth and humor.”
     — Tim Spurgin, chair of the search committee

She is the author of the 2015 book “Don’t Act, Just Dance: The Metapolitics of Cold War Culture” and more than two dozen published scholarly articles, book chapters and reviews.

Before beginning her academic career, Kodat was a metro reporter and dance critic for the Baltimore Sun in the 1980s.

Kodat said the job description was one of the things that first attracted her to Lawrence.

“The posting said Lawrence was looking for ‘a leader with a strong vision and a humane, personal touch,’” said Kodat. “Most of these job descriptions sound a lot like one another, but that line was unique. It caught my attention and told me something about Lawrence that certainly was consistent with my view of the world.”

“The prospect of joining an intellectual community where music plays such a central role, both academically and in the everyday life of the campus, is tremendously exciting to me,” Kodat added.

She began her undergraduate career as a piano performance major at the Peabody Institute before earning a bachelor’s degree summa cum laude in English at the University of Baltimore. She earned a master’s and doctorate degree in English from Boston University.

“Katie brings so much to the table: a deep appreciation and love of the arts, a strong commitment to scholarship and teaching, and tremendous warmth and humor,” said Tim Spurgin, Bonnie Glidden Buchanan Professor of English Literature and associate professor of English, who chaired the search committee. “She has held senior leadership positions at two distinguished institutions, working on everything from budgets to curricular review and reform. All of this, combined with her early experience as a reporter for the Baltimore Sun, will serve as excellent preparation for her work here.”

Kodat’s husband, Alexander, is a senior product architect and software engineer at Rocket Software. They are the parents of triplets: Axel, a 2015 graduate of Swarthmore College; Dexter, a 2015 graduate of Occidental College; and Madeleine, a senior at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College.”  Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

 

Lawrence’s Banta Bowl recognized with national “distinguished facility” award

Lawrence University’s Banta Bowl has always been a home to winners, but the facility itself is now a winner as well.

The recently renovated Ron Roberts Field at the Banta Bowl has received an award from the American Sports Builders Association (ASBA). The new-look Banta Bowl, designed by Rettler Corp. of Stevens Point and constructed by The Boldt Co. of Appleton, was honored in the Distinguished Field Facilities category.

A fisheye photo of Lawrence University stadium Banta Bowl.
Renovated in 2015, Lawrence’s Banta Bowl was recognized by the American Sports Builders Association with an award as a “distinguished field facility.

“It is exciting to be honored with this award,” Lawrence Director of Athletics Christyn Abaray said. “The foresight and vision displayed to show what this could be, and the deliberation and expertise utilized to make the Banta Bowl a reality are commendable and remarkable. We want to thank everyone who supported and continue to support this effort. This is an example of how impactful positive change can be.”

The ASBA, the national organization for builders and suppliers of materials for athletic facilities, presents these awards annually to facilities built by ASBA members and exemplify construction excellence.

The 3,634-seat Banta Bowl, tucked into a natural ravine just south of the Fox River, underwent the major renovation during the spring and summer of 2015.

Renovations began with raising and widening the playing field to accommodate a soccer pitch. The stadium, home to Lawrence football since 1965, now also houses the Lawrence men’s and women’s soccer teams. The natural grass surface was replaced with FieldTurf to allow for more and varied use of the stadium.

The fan experience was greatly improved with aluminum grandstand seating and an LED scoreboard that houses a new sound system.

Fans enter the Banta Bowl through an inviting plaza at the north end of the stadium. The new Gilboy Athletic Center houses Lawrence’s football locker room, an athletic training room, an officials’ room, concessions, ticketing and restrooms. The building was named for Steve ’62 and Joan Gilboy, who provided a leadership gift for the stadium renovation.

The naming of Ron Roberts Field at the Banta Bowl honors Lawence’s legendary football coach and long-time director of athletics, Ron Roberts, at the behest of Tom Rogers ’65, who gave the lead gift for the renovation.

Lawrence surpassed the goal of $4.5 million to renovate the stadium, and the final piece of the renovation is set to be completed in 2017. The original press box will be replaced with a new multi-level facility for game control personnel, the media and coaches. It is expected to be ready for games in the fall of 2017.

“This was an incredibly collaborative endeavor that bore a result of which all involved can be very proud,” Abaray said.

“Thanks to the leadership of Lawrence for this project from the Board of Trustees, President Mark Burstein and Vice President for Alumni and Development Cal Husmann,” Abaray added. “In addition, thank you to Mike Szkodzinski, director of athletics/head hockey coach at the time of planning and construction, and Rettler Corporation for their significant contribution to the renovation. Finally, thank you to Lynn Hagee, instrumental in the aesthetic appeal of the Banta Bowl, for her assistance.”

The football teams at Lawrence have embraced the Banta Bowl and made it a home to champions. The Vikings, under the leadership of Roberts, captured seven of their 16 Midwest Conference titles since moving into the stadium in 1965.

The Banta Bowl would not have been possible without the generosity of George Banta Jr. ’10. Originally called the Lawrence Bowl, the stadium was an anonymous gift from Banta and was renamed in his honor after his death in 1978.

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College.”  Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.