Press Releases

Category: Press Releases

Outagamie County Historical Society Honors Anthropologist Peter Peregrine

Lawrence University anthropologist Peter Peregrine’s work in locating long-forgotten gravesites at the Outagamie County Asylum Cemetery in Grand Chute has been recognized by the Outagamie County Historical Society.

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Peter Peregrine

Peregrine has been named the 2016 recipient of the historical society’s annual Lillian F. Mackesy Historian of the Year Award, which honors outstanding contributions to Outagamie County history.

It’s the second straight year a Lawrence faculty member has received the award. Music librarian Antoinette Powell was the 2015 recipient.

Nominated by the Friends of Outagamie County Cemetery, Peregrine will receive his award March 8 at the annual meeting of the Outagamie County Historical Society.

“I am extremely pleased that Peter has received the Outagamie County Historical Society ‘s Lillian Mackesy Historian of the Year award,” said Provost David Burrows. “This award is a wonderful recognition of the high quality of his work. It also symbolizes how talented Lawrence faculty can be successful in projects that cross disciplinary lines — in this case history and anthropology. Lawrence is honored to have one of its faculty recognized in this way.”

With the help of Lawrence students and a magnetometer that allowed him to conduct archeological work below the ground without doing any excavation, Peregrine mapped the cemetery. He was able to identify the final resting place for 133 people buried in unmarked graves who died at the Outagamie County Asylum for the Chronic Insane and whose bodies went unclaimed.

“The entire community is indebted to Professor Peregrine for his extraordinary efforts and commitment to locate the burials at the cemetery.”
   — Linda Shinkin, Friends of Outagamie County Cemetery

A formal rededication of the cemetery, which include the unveiling of a granite memorial stone with the name of each person interred, was held last September.

“Professor Peregrine is receiving the historian of the year award specifically for his work with the Outagamie County Asylum Cemetery and public presentation of that work,” said Matt Carpenter, executive director of the History Museum at the Castle. “More broadly, though, the award acknowledges Peter’s commitment to a community-wide conversation about our past and the importance of heritage preservation and public history based on solid methodologies.”

In nominating him for the award, Linda Shinkin on behalf of the Friends of Outagamie County Cemetery wrote “Professor Peregrine’s report completely changed the scope of the restoration of this historic cemetery.

“It really was an educational community project,” wrote Shinkin. “The entire community is indebted to Professor Peregrine for his extraordinary efforts and commitment to locate the burials at the cemetery.”

Established in 1976 by the Outagamie County Historical Society, the award is named in honor of Lillian Mackesy, a former columnist and editor for The Post-Crescent, whose columns included: “Looking Back 100 Years,” “Historically Speaking” and “Remember When?”

Mackesy, the award’s first recipient, was devoted to the preservation and promotion of the region’s historical heritage. Her personal collection forms the core of the History Museum’s research files and photograph collection.

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” and Fiske’s Guide to Colleges 2016. 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.

Broadcaster, author Krista Tippett presents “The Mystery and Art of Living”

Award-winning broadcaster and best-selling author Krista Tippett explores the essence of what it means to be human in a Lawrence University convocation.

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Krista Tippett

Tippett presents “The Mystery and Art of Living,” Tuesday, Feb. 16 at 11:10 a.m. in the Lawrence Memorial Chapel. She will conduct a question-and-answer session immediately following her remarks. The event is free and open to the public.

As host and executive producer of the nationally syndicated radio program “On Being,” Tippett explores religious and spiritual issues, especially as they relate to how people want to live their lives.

Raised as a Southern Baptist in Oklahoma, Tippett was politically active in her youth, working as a freelance journalist in divided Berlin in the 1980s and later serving as a special assistant to the U.S. ambassador to West Germany.

After returning to the states, she earned a master’s of divinity degree from Yale University and launched her radio program in 2003, a project she considered a reconciliation between her intellectual and spiritual selves.

Originally called “Speaking of Faith” and airing on just two stations, “On Being” has become phenomenally successful. It is now heard on more than 400 stations nationally while Tippett’s podcasts are downloaded more than 1.5 million times a month.

The New York Times once described Tippett’s interview style as “a fusion of all her parts – the child of small-town church comfortable in the pews; the product of Yale Divinity School able to parse text in Greek and theology in German; and, perhaps most of all, the diplomat seeking to resolve social divisions.”

Tippett’s broadcasting work was honored in 2008 with a George Foster Peabody Award for “The Ecstatic Faith of Rumi,” an interview she conducted with Fatemeh Keshavarz, a professor at Washington University, on the life of the 13th-century Muslim mystic and poet.

In 2014, President Obama presented Tippett with the National Humanities Medal for “thoughtfully delving into the mysteries of human existence. On the air and in print, Ms. Tippett avoids easy answers, embracing complexity and inviting people of all faiths, no faith and every background to join the conversation.”

She also is the author of two books. “Einstein’s God: Conversations About Science and the Human Spirit” is a collection of 13 interviews with distinguished scientists and writers on science that made the New York Times bestseller list in 2010. “Speaking of Faith: Why Religion Matters—and How to Talk About It,” published in 2008, is a conversational journey that explores the role of faith in the world.

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” and Fiske’s Guide to Colleges 2016. 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.

Road Trip: Student volunteers visit Philadelphia for collaborative public health project

A seven-person team of multi-national Lawrence University students are accompanying government professor Claudena Skran to Philadelphia to work on a public health-related project the second week of February.

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Student volunteers in Lawrence’s KidsGive program will travel to Philadelphia to work with Healthy NewsWorks elementary school journalists in a video project. Among the participants in the project are Tierney Duffy, Alex Kurki, Professor Claudena Skran, Delina Abadi, Tamanna Akram and Wesley Varughese.

The students, members of KidsGive, a Lawrence-based scholarship program for children in Sierra Leone, will collaborate with Healthy NewsWorks, a health-focused student media program, to produce two educational videos on water and sanitation that will be shown at Conforti Primary School in Freetown, Sierra Leone.

KidsGive members are cooperating partners in a project that will build a new well and water system for the Calaba Town section of Freetown, an area on the outskirts of the capital city that is not currently served by piped water. When completed, the well will provide a water-tap system for the 500 children at Conforti Primary School and their families.

The video project will enable Healthy NewsWorks student reporters from two Philadelphia elementary schools to work with Lawrence KidsGive volunteers to engage in peer-to-peer public health education with students their own age in Sierra Leone. The videos will focus on health facts about water hygiene and hand washing. The Healthy NewsWorks students also will participate in face-to-face videoconference discussions about health with their counterparts in Sierra Leone.

Skran called the KidsGive engagement with Healthy NewsWorks “a very exciting collaboration.”

“We are pleased that we can contribute in its important mission to train young journalists and promote better health,” said Skran. “Working with student journalists will enable us to better reach children in Sierra Leone with important messages about sanitation and hygiene, which is especially important in the aftermath of the Ebola epidemic in West Africa.”

Marian Uhlman, director of Healthy NewsWorks, said her student journalists are looking forward to working with the KidsGive volunteers.

“It’s a great opportunity for our students to broaden their understanding of the world and to see how the health communication skills they’re learning can make a real difference in improving lives,” said Uhlman.

KidsGive volunteers participating in the video project will be senior Wesley Varughese, Lake Villa, Ill., project coordinator; junior Delina Abadi, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, elementary school coordinator; senior Tierney Duffy, Riverside, Ill., middle school coordinator; senior Joe Pegorsch, Waupaca, videographer; junior Andres Capous, San Jose, Costa Rica, Spanish language coordinator; junior Alex Kurki, Helena, Mont., financial manager; sophomore Tamanna Akram, Dhaka, Bangladesh, water project liaison.

While on the trip, the students also will meet with Lawrence alumni in Philadelphia and New York City.

Prior to the video project, Skran, the Edwin & Ruth West Professor of Economics and Social Science and Professor of Government, will present “Stories of Loss and Resilience” Tuesday, Feb. 9 at the Free Library of Philadelphia. The public lecture will examine the impact of the Ebola epidemic on the children of Sierra Leone. Skran will share first-hand accounts of children who lost homes, parents and months of schooling while enduring quarantines and hospitalizations during the epidemic and discuss international efforts to assist in the nation’s recovery.

“Working with student journalists will enable us to better reach children in Sierra Leone with important messages about sanitation and hygiene, which is especially important in the aftermath of the Ebola epidemic in West Africa.”
    — Government professor Claudena Skran

Skran was the first U.S. Fulbright Scholar to Sierra Leone after its 1991–2002 civil war and has visited the country 17 times, including three times during the Ebola epidemic. She is currently writing a book, “Ebola Time,” on the children, schools and the Ebola epidemic in Sierra Leone.

KidsGive, founded by Skran, is part of Lawrence’s Innovation and Entrepreneurship program. It strives to educate U.S. students about African life and cultures and to promote informed giving while providing children in Sierra Leone with learning opportunities. The student-run organization maintains active partnerships with schools in all four regions of Sierra Leone by providing scholarships and general school support and by sponsoring volunteer missions by American university students.

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” and Fiske’s Guide to Colleges 2016. 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 Mudd Gallery exhibition features work of revolutionary Mexican artists

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Luis Arenal, “Lázaro Cárdenas y La Reforman Agraria, 1934-1940 (Lázaro Cárdenas and Agarian Reform, 1934-1940),” 1947, linocut.

Lawrence University’s Mudd Gallery hosts the exhibition “Selections from the Estampas de la Revolución Mexicana Portfolio” beginning Thursday, Feb. 11 and running through March 11. The exhibition, located on the third floor of the Seeley G. Mudd Library, is free and open to the public.

The exhibition is part of a series of of community programs highlighting 500 years of diversity and achievement by Latino Americans through a partnership between Lawrence, the Appleton Public Library, Casa Hispana and the History Museum at the Castle.

Featuring works from Lawrence’s permanent collection, the exhibition highlights the work of artists from the Taller de Gráfica Popular — The People’s Graphic Workshop — of Mexico City. The TGP is an artists’ print collective founded to advance revolutionary social causes.

Beth Zinsli, curator and director of Lawrence’s Wriston Art Center Galleries, will deliver a gallery talk on the history and iconography of the Estampas portfolio to open the exhibition at 4 p.m. on Feb. 11.

“The portfolio as a whole attempts to chronologically narrate complex political events in Mexican history from 1876 to1947, but the prints also reveal a great deal about the lives of every day people in this period,” said Zinsli. “The exhibition features a selection of linocut prints from the portfolio that recount crucial events and themes from the Mexican Revolution period through a variety of visual strategies, including caricature, allegory and references to religious iconography and well-known works of art.”

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Francisco Mora, “Emiliano Zapata, lider de la revolución agraria (Emiliano Zapata, Leader of the Agarian Revolution),” 1947, linocut.

While the exhibition features such historical figures as Porfirio Díaz, Francisco Madero, and Emiliano Zapata, it is counterbalanced by images that convey real concerns about the human condition and the denunciation of social and civil injustices.

The community-wide “Latino Americans: 500 Years of History” program is supported by a pair of grants Lawrence received from the American Library Association and the Wisconsin Humanities Council with funds from the National Endowment for the Humanities.

 

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” and Fiske’s Guide to Colleges 2016. 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 named one of the country’s top “Colleges That Pay You Back”

The Princeton Review has named Lawrence University one of the nation’s best colleges for students seeking an exceptional education with great career preparation and at an affordable price.

Princeton-Review_bang-for-Buck_newsblogLawrence was included in the education services company’s 2016 edition of its just released book “Colleges That Pay You Back: The 200 Schools That Give You the Best Bang for Your Tuition Buck.”

Lawrence and UW-Madison were the only two Wisconsin institutions to be included in the book.

The Princeton Review selected the schools based on return on investment (ROI) ratings it tallied for 650 schools last year. The ratings weighted 40 data points that covered everything from academics, cost, and financial aid to graduation rates, student debt, and alumni salaries and job satisfaction.

Lawrence also was included on the book’s sublist of the top 25 Best Schools for Making an Impact, which was based on student ratings and responses to survey questions covering community service opportunities, student government, sustainability efforts and on-campus student engagement.Princeton-Review-Book_newsblog

“One of the things we like about this particular ranking is its heavy emphasis on assessing the return on investment families make,” said Ken Anselment, Lawrence’s dean of admissions and financial aid, “Our student and alumni success shines a bright light on the great things that happen at Lawrence.”

In its profile of Lawrence, The Princeton Review editors cited the college for its “rigorous academic experience” and for extolling “the values of a liberal education as a means by which to build character, think critically, and create opportunities for choice.”

Students surveyed for the book described Lawrence as “a very close-knit community” and Appleton as “a great little town with a lot of good restaurants, bars and cafes.”

In the “Career Information” section of the profile, Lawrence earned an exceptional ROI rating score of 89, with median starting salaries for graduates of $36,400 and median mid-career salaries of $89,500.

Princeton-ReviewBang-for-Buck_newsblog2Schools included in the book “stand out not only for their outstanding academics, but also for their affordability via comparatively low sticker prices and/or generous financial aid to students with need or both” according to Robert Franek, lead author and The Princeton Review’s Senior VP/Publisher.

“Students at these colleges also have access to extraordinary career services programs from their freshman year on, plus a lifetime of alumni connections and post-grad support,” said Franek.

Of the 200 schools profiled in the book, 66 are public and 134 are private. There were also nine tuition-free schools included.

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” and Fiske’s Guide to Colleges 2016. 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.

Geologist Marcia Bjornerud named Fellow of the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts & Letters

Lawrence University geologist Marcia Bjornerud has been named a Fellow of the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts & Letters for 2016. She is the first Lawrence faculty member to be accorded that honor.

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Marcia Bjornerud

Established in 1981, the Fellows program represents the highest level of recognition conferred by the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts & Letters. Drawn from a pool of statewide nominees, Fellows are elected for their extraordinary levels of accomplishment in their fields as well as lifelong commitments to intellectual discourse and public service.

One of 11 new Fellows named to the Academy in perpetuity, Bjornerud will be publicly recognized Sunday, April 17 at an awards ceremony in the Pyle Center on the University of Wisconsin–Madison campus.

Bjornerud, the Walter Schober Professor of Environmental Studies and Professor of Geology at Lawrence, joined the faculty in 1995. Her scholarship focuses on the physics of earthquakes and mountain-building. She combines field-based studies of bedrock geology with quantitative models of rock mechanics. She has conducted research in high arctic Norway (Svalbard) and Canada (Ellesmere Island) as well as mainland Norway, Scotland, New Zealand and the Lake Superior region.

“Marcia Bjornerud is an outstanding member of the Lawrence faculty and a great contributor to the quality of life in Wisconsin,” said Provost David Burrows. “Her election recognizes an important connection between academic research and scholarship and the scientific understanding of Wisconsin’s environment. The election to the Academy is richly deserved and is a symbol of the collaboration between Lawrence and the citizens of Wisconsin.”

Linda Ware, president of the Wisconsin Academy Board of Directors, said the Fellows program is a way to “honor the genuine treasures we have in this state—extraordinary people who show us the best of Wisconsin.”

“Every two years, we scan the state to find its most outstanding and creative people,” said Ware. “As part of our increasingly statewide reach for interdisciplinary excellence, we’re proud to recognize these brilliant and focused citizens who inspire people in Wisconsin and beyond.”

“[Marcia’s] election to the Academy is richly deserved and is a symbol of the collaboration between Lawrence and the citizens of Wisconsin.”
         — Provost David Burrows

The founding director of Lawrence’s program in environmental studies, Bjornerud was named a Fellow of the Geological Society of America in 2003 and twice was named a Fulbright Senior Scholar, first in Norway (2000-2001) and then New Zealand (2009). She was named Outstanding Educator in 2011 by the Association of Women Geoscientists and was recognized with Lawrence’s Excellence in Scholarship or Creative Activity Award in 2007.

She is the author of the 2005 book, “Reading the Rocks: The Autobiography of the Earth,” and is a regular contributing writer to the New Yorker’s science and technology blog.

In 2012, Bjornerud was lead author on a pro bono report for the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission on the geology of the Gogebic Range. The report was designed to serve as a free public document to provide baseline information about the potential effects of an open pit mine on the waters of the Bad River and the wild rice stands in the Kakagon Sloughs.

She earned a bachelor’s degree in geophysics from the University of Minnesota and master’s and doctoral degrees in structural geology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

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” and Fiske’s Guide to Colleges 2016. 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 Artist Series welcomes violinist Rachel Barton Pine Feb. 6

Violinist Rachel Barton Pine brings her dazzling technique and joyous tone to classical and contemporary music Saturday, Feb. 6 in the second concert of Lawrence University’s four-part 2015-16 Artist Series.

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Rachel Barton Pine

The performance, which includes pianist Matthew Hagle, begins at 8 p.m. in the Lawrence Memorial Chapel. Tickets, at $25-30 for adults, $20-25 for seniors and $18-20 for students, are available through the Lawrence Box Office, 920-832-6749.

Praised for her ability to connect with others through her music as a powerful, emotional and dynamic artist, Pine’s performance range spans a wide spectrum. She has appeared as a soloist with many world-renowned ensembles, including the Chicago Symphony, the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Royal Philharmonic. She also has jammed with the likes of Slash of Guns N’ Roses and other rock and metal stars.

Associate Professor Samantha George, who teaches violin in the Lawrence Conservatory, hailed Pine as a “generous and flexible musician.”

“I have been a fan of Rachel Barton Pine’s for many years,” said George. “I am always impressed by her ability to play the most difficult passagework with sophisticated phrasing and gesture.”

George fondly recalled Pine’s versatility during a Chicago concert she attended.

“The first 45 minutes Rachel performed with a small baroque ensemble. Then a full orchestra appeared and she performed as soloist, playing Vivaldi’s ‘Concerto for Four Violins’ and the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto. After a set change, Rachel reappeared with her rock band and sounded fantastic all amped up. I was blown away.”

Pine has recorded more than 25 albums, featuring classical favorites, contemporary artists and neglected historical pieces. Her 2013 CD, “Violin Lullabies,” recorded with Hagle, debuted at number one on the Billboard classical chart.

Last September, Cedille Records released Pine’s recording of “Vivaldi: The Complete Viola D’Amore Concertos with Ars Antigua” while Avie Records will release Pine’s performance of J.S. Bach’s “Six Sonatas and Partitas for Violin” this March. That disc was recorded in the same church in which Pine first heard the music of Bach live, and experience that helped her fall in love with the violin at age three.

“I am always impressed by her ability to play the most difficult passagework with sophisticated phrasing and gesture.”
  — Samantha George

The product of an unstable childhood in a working-class Chicago family, Pine has been called  “indomitable,” in part for her struggles after a horrific train accident which severed her left leg and severely injured her right foot.

For her part, Pine has refused to let those challenges derail her musical career.

“I don’t dwell on what I can’t, so I dwell on what I can do,” she told the Lansing State Journal in January 2016. “I’m a Midwesterner and I believe in hard work. I have red hair and good fingers. I can stand on a stage and play all 24 Paganini Caprices and not many other people can do that.”

In addition to performing, Pine spends her time teaching and helping talented young musicians with their expenses through the Rachel Elizabeth Barton Foundation, which she started in 2011.

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” and Fiske’s Guide to Colleges 2016. 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.

 

On and off-campus teams successfully defend their titles in 51st annual Lawrence trivia contest

A Foolish Consistency is the Hobgoblins of Little Minds successfully defended its crown, winning its second straight off-campus title in Lawrence University’s 51st Great Midwest Trivia Contest.

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The new Trivia Master’s for next year’s contest get ready to hand out the prizes to the top=finishing teams in this year’s contest.

The North Carolina-based team racked up 1,220 points during the 50-hour contest that ended at midnight Sunday, Jan. 31, to edge Pugnugget and Corn Wars: The Iowans Awaken, which tied for second with 1,205 points. Holy Broman Space Team Presents 2016: A Honda Odyssey finished third with 1,110 points.

A total of 86 off-campus teams competed.

David and the Bucky’s Battallion Diabolically Antagonizing Tortured Brood-Makers, Basically Building Batteries, Bungee Jumping Blindfolded, Bizarrely Bludgeoning Bells and Definitely Ascending toward Brilliance By Dastardly Battling Together ran away with the on-campus title with 1,315, winning its second straight title. Michael Hubbard was a distant second among 18 on-campus teams with 1,101 points while Nipples of Knowledge: The Matriarchy: Ormsbae Trivia Team (The Experience, TM), placed third with 1,075 points.

For their winning efforts, Hobgoblin and Bucky’s were awarded first-place prizes of a box of Andrew Commons cookies and a package of Minion Peeps, respectively.

One team, the Kimberly-based Trivia Pirates…Arrgh, managed to correctly answer the contest’s final, usually impossible “Super Garruda” 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? The Pirates were the only team to correctly come up with Earwigs Rule.

The contest was not without some controversy. A team that was leading the off-campus scoring, had their point total zeroed out late in the contest by the trivia masters after it was discovered an individual on the team was also playing with an on-campus team and using answered generated by Bucky’s for the off-campus team.

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” and Fiske’s Guide to Colleges 2016. 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.

Trivia Time: Lawrence sets the bar when it comes to all things obscure, inconsequential

It wasn’t so much “playing” Lawrence University’s Great Midwest Trivia Contest as a freshman in 2013 that got Jon Hanrahan hooked on the college’s 50-hour minutia marathon.

It was taking a break from answering questions to answering phones at Action Central that turned him into a contest die-hard.

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Grand Master Jon Hanrahan (center) and his fellow trivia master’s will oversee the 51st edition of Lawrence’s 50-hour Great Midwest Trivia Contest Jan. 29-31.

“After playing for several hours for Plantz Hall’s legendary Morgan Freeman team, I went to the WLFM studios and spent just as much time answering phones that first year,” said the senior from Johnsburg, Ill. “I remember being thrown off by all the clamor and the commotion, but I also remember thinking, ‘this was something I needed to experience first hand.’”

From humble phone answerer, Hanrahan has risen to become the Grand Master of this year’s contest, the exalted overseer of the 51st edition of the country’s oldest ongoing salute to all-things insignificant.

As per custom, the contest kicks off precisely at 37 seconds after 10 p.m., Friday, Jan. 29 and runs continuously through midnight Sunday, Jan. 31. As it has since 2006, the contest will be webcast worldwide on the Internet at wlfmradio.lawrence.edu.

Questions are asked in three-minute intervals, with teams calling in answers to a bank of a dozen or more phones staffed by volunteers in the WLFM studios.

Last year’s celebratory 50th contest attracted 65 off-campus teams and 29 on-campus teams, with similar numbers expected for this year’s edition.

Orchestrating 50 straight hours of the most complex, unGoogleable questions is not a task Hanrahan takes lightly, even though the contest’s long-standing credo is basically to have fun. Helping him maintain some degree of sanity while overseeing a largely insane endeavor will be 12 hand-picked trivia masters.

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Volunteers will be busy answering phones and recording correct answers in the WLFM studios during Lawrence’s 2016 Great Midwest Trivia Contest.

“I have spent many nights staying awake, mulling over detail after little detail,” said Hanrahan, who counts his selection as this year’s Grand Master as one of the “disproportionally” proudest moments of his young life. “The contest is a vast and complex beast. I’ve had at least three dreams about trivia and in each one I had to tend to something that I forgot or didn’t foresee.

“I really trust my co-masters to run an entertaining and relatively stress-free contest,” he added. “I’m excited about their ideas and their somewhat oddball perspectives. We’re all going to push ourselves to write creative questions that really stretch the possibilities of what a Lawrence trivia question can feel like.”

Since making its debut in 1966 as an alternative to an off-campus academic trip known as “Encampment,” where select students went off to discuss esoteric topics with professors, Lawrence’s Great Midwest Trivia Contest has nurtured friendships and sparked romances — at least one set of trivia teammates became husband and wife — while spawning second and even third generation trivia devotees from among the original players.

Haranhan credits the trivia contest’s enduring popularity to Lawrence’s non-traditional “good, smart student.”

“As Lawrentians, we like to follow our passions, but we also tend to want to mess with things,” said Hanrahan, a piano performance major. “Trivia is that chance to be messily intellectual and creative. Do the answers to any of our 400-plus questions really matter? Usually, no. But for some reason, the players keep searching. By the time the weekend is over, the questions and the answers will drift away and yet, because of it all, we will have had a chance to see just about every nook and cranny that exists in the world. And we will have left our strange, ambitious mark.”

While Hanrahan hints at a few new twists up his Grand Master sleeve, he’s not about to reveal any of his plans in advance. It goes without saying, though, no one will be able to answer a single question off the top of their head.

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Concentration and great search abilities are useful skills during Lawrence’s 50-hour tribute to all things trivial.

“Even if someone is not aligned with any particular team or if someone is able to only answer one question correctly the entire weekend, we’ll do our best to make the listening itself entertaining,” said Hanrahan, who hopes to pursue a career in radio after graduation.

Following trivia tradition, Lawrence’s president, in this case Mark Burstein, will start the fun by asking the contest’s first question, which, again by tradition, is always the final question — the virtually impossible “Super Garruda” — from the previous year’s contest.

While it proved to be a stumper last year, it should be an easy “get” right out of the gate for every team this time around. To wit: Near property previously owned by Rockwell Lime Company is a manhole built in 1921 with an 8-inch diameter pipe leading downstream 226 feet. What is the manhole label and what is written on the cover of the manhole?

Surely written in notebooks and special files all over campus and around town is the answer “15-47” “Richards Iron Wks” (works).

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” and Fiske’s Guide to Colleges 2016. 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 establishing leadership position for spiritual and religious life

Tom and Julie Hurvis met in the late 1950s as undergraduates at Lawrence University. She devoted her life to people, especially those in need, and enthusiastic advocacy of the Bahá’í faith’s vision of a unified and peaceful world.

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Julie Esch Hurvis ’61 and Tom Hurvis ’60

In her memory, Tom Hurvis has made a generous gift to Lawrence for the establishment of the Julie Esch Hurvis Dean of Spiritual and Religious Life, which will continue her legacy with countless generations of students, faculty and staff.

Julie, who passed away last July, was a 1961 Lawrence graduate while Tom graduated in 1960.

As devoted members of the Bahá’í faith, the Hurvises strongly believed in the power of spirituality. They embraced the wisdom of `Abdu’l-Bahá, the son of the religion’s founder and its one-time leader, who once said, “Man is, in reality, a spiritual being and only when he lives in the spirit is he truly happy.”

Designed to further enhance the transformative experience a Lawrence education provides, the new leadership position will be dedicated to reinforcing a welcoming and supportive community environment for spiritual and religious exploration and expression.

The gift will endow the position and its related programming in perpetuity. A national candidate search to fill the new position will begin immediately.

“Julie Hurvis’ impact on Lawrence can be felt on this campus every day,” said President Mark Burstein. “She cared deeply about every student and worked to ensure they succeeded at the university. Our inaugural dean of spiritual and religious life will not only help ensure that success but also will be a reminder of Julie’s life, values and care for the individual. I am grateful to Tom and Julie for creating this legacy and caring so deeply about our students.”

The focus of the dean’s position will include education, student support and mentoring, campus programs, enhancing connections to the religious communities of the Fox Cities, and campus spiritual leadership.

“Lawrence strives to meet the intellectual and developmental needs of students, however, for many students, their needs include spiritual support,” said Nancy Truesdell, vice president for student affairs. “The Julie Esch Hurvis Dean of Spiritual and Religious Life will be an important resource for those students. We’ll also be able to provide a location where they can have conversations about faith and their personal values as well as a space for reflection or prayer.”

A leadership position dedicated to the spiritual and religious needs of the campus community has been discussed for several years, sparked by research Truesdell conducted while on sabbatical leave in 2010 as well as campus climate surveys completed by students. More recent conversations she had with a wide range of campus constituents underscored a need to strengthen the college’s support of students of faith.

“Julie Hurvis’ impact on Lawrence can be felt on this campus every day. Our inaugural dean of spiritual and religious life will not only help ensure that success but also will be a reminder of Julie’s life, values and care for the individual.”
    — President Mark Burstein

The dean will serve as a senior campus leader, collaborating with individual students and groups, faculty, staff, local clergy and community organizations to offer support in the exploration of spirituality, religion and morality. The new position will provide a resource and counselor during moments of tragedy and crisis, working with the campus community to provide opportunities for meaningful ceremonies and celebrations for a range of religions and interfaith services.

Student Kathryn Bellile feels the new dean “will be an important voice on campus to advocate for students of faith.”

“A dean could be a great support for faith-based organizations on campus, helping them to engage with the life of the university and helping to get students involved in faith communities if they haven’t found their way to one,” said Bellile, a senior from Appleton and a member of the college’s Lawrence Christian Fellowship organization. “Investing in this position shows a thoughtful concern for the needs of students of faith and an interest in broadening our definition of diversity to include people who hold different convictions and beliefs.

Main Hall_Spiritual Dean_newsblog“For students of faith, their religion may be the most important aspect of their life and identity,” added Bellile. “This will send a message to current and future students that their faith is recognized by the Lawrence community and that the campus is willing to accept and support that part of who they are. They don’t have to check their convictions at the door to participate fully in the community we have here.”

Long-time faculty member Steven Jordheim called the new dean’s position “a transformative moment in the life of our university.”

“The creation of the position of dean of spiritual and religious life demonstrates Lawrence’s commitment to the spiritual wholeness and wellness of all students, faculty and staff,” said Jordheim, professor of music, who joined the Lawrence conservatory in 1981. “The presence of the dean on our campus and the support, mentoring and programming available through this new office will facilitate important dialogue and understanding regarding various religious and spiritual beliefs, practices and experiences within a context of mutual support and respect.”

The Hurvis gift also will support a new campus spiritual and religious center, providing students, faculty and staff space to explore, learn, worship and connect on issues of spirituality and religion. The center will be created through a renovation of an existing campus building, with capacity for updates to meet future needs.

A native of Sheboygan, Julie Hurvis was a life-long enthusiast of Wisconsin’s scenic beauty. Gifted with a strong visual sense, she earned a bachelor’s degree from Lawrence in studio art and later earned a bachelor of fine arts degree from the Art Institute of Chicago.

She took great pride in the countless lives she touched throughout the Chicago area, especially those she had an impact on through 40 years of continuous service as a member of the Glenview (Ill.) Spiritual Assembly, the annually elected body stewarding Bahá’í’s activities in the village.

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” and Fiske’s Guide to Colleges 2016. 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.