Lawrence University News

Marcia Bjornerud’s Book “Timefulness” Nominated for Prestigious Literary Award

Timefulness: How Thinking Like a Geologist Can Help Save the World, the latest book from Walter Schober Professor of Environmental Sciences and Professor of Geology Marcia Bjornerud, has been long-listed for the PEN America Awards, one of the nation’s most prestigious literary awards. Bjornerud is nominated for the PEN/E.O Wilson Prize for Literary Science Writing, which honors “a book that exemplifies literary excellence on the subject of the physical or biological sciences and communicates complex scientific concepts to a lay audience.”

Bjornerud does just that in Timefulness, which reveals how knowing the rhythms of Earth’s deep past and conceiving of time as a geologist does can give us the perspective we need for a more sustainable future. As Bjornerud observes, “our everyday lives are shaped by processes that vastly predate us, and our habits will in turn have consequences that will outlast us by generations.” Timefulness presents a new way of thinking about our place in time, enabling us to make decisions on multigenerational timescales.

In her elegant and engaging prose, Bjornerud peppers Timefulness with insights and anecdotes, sharing the deep knowledge and passion for geology she brings to her classrooms with her readers. Timefulness is also an example of the bonds students and faculty forge at Lawrence: Haley Hagerman ’14 provided the illustrations that appear throughout the book.

“Timefulness is a delightful and interesting read.”

In addition to the recognition from PEN, Timefulness has also garnered rave reviews. Leading science journal Nature described it as “a trenchant study” and Science writes that “Timefulness is a delightful and interesting read. The author’s cadence and the illustrator’s … figures made me feel as though I was having a glass of wine with a friend who was explaining geologic history while sketching on a napkin.”

Stay tuned! The finalists for the PEN Awards will be announced in January 2019.

Timefulness: How Thinking Like a Geologist Can Help Save the World

Read a Q&A with Marcia Bjornerud about Timefulness.

An A+ for D Term: Students Offered a Rich Array of Experiences During Winter Break

From Appleton to London to Hong Kong, Lawrence faculty and students used D-Term 2018 to explore ideas, art, research skills and the wider world. D-Term, or December Term, is a two-week mini-term that offers brief, intensive enrichment courses. This year, students had the opportunity to engage with questions of sustainability and historical resilience to disasters, bring a liberal arts perspective to wellness and sharpen practical skills in design and data analysis.

Read more about this year’s D-Term classrooms, whether it’s a room in Main Hall, an urban garden in Hong Kong or the top of St. Paul’s Cathedral in London, through insights from faculty members.

Hong Kong: Sustainability, Livability, and Urban Design

Group of Lawrence students with Hong Kong skyline in background — Students taking part in the D-Term trip to Hong Kong stand on Victoria Peak, overlooking the Hong Kong skyline.

This combined discussion-and-travel course examined sustainable, livable urban design through the lens of contemporary Hong Kong. The class, taught by Stephen Edward Scarff Professor of International Affairs and Associate Professor of Government Jason Brozek and Associate Professor of Government Ameya Balsekar, spent one week on campus reading and preparing, followed by several days in Hong Kong for on-the-ground study, including meetings with local NGOs, government officials and business leaders. Below are excerpts from Jason Brozek’s daily reports on the opportunities for students during the on-the-ground study portion of the class:

Day 1: The first day of the on-the-ground portion of our class on livability, sustainability and urban design in Hong Kong focused on the city’s history, British & Chinese influences and its emergence as a global trading and financial hub. We visited Chunking Mansions to engage with “low-end globalization” (a concept and case study from one of the books we discussed during our week of prep on campus), did a mapping activity with a scan of a vintage 1930 map of Kowloon, visited the Hong Kong Museum of History and hiked at Victoria Peak. We ended the day by having dinner at the Happy Valley Jockey Club with KK Tse (’81) and Wendy Lai.

Day 2: We focused on the preservation of things like urban green space and historic buildings—the kind of things some cities have lost as they tried to build and grow quickly. We did a slow-looking activity in Kowloon Park (inspired by Freshman Studies), then compared it to wilder green space by hiking across the Wan Chai Gap trail to the reservoir on the south side of Hong Kong Island. Connected to a different class discussion, we also visited some preserved historic sites. They included a former army barracks in Kowloon Park, the 1912 Wan Chai Post Office (now the Environmental Resource Centre) and the international award-winning Blue House.

Day 3: We kicked off with Rooftop Republic, a nonprofit that helps corporations and schools build rooftop farms. At this site, they grow on top of a shopping mall and donate the produce to local food banks.

Then we met with Rick Kroos ’66, who was the engineer for the HSBC headquarters in Hong Kong’s financial district (as well as many other projects). Rick connected us with a wide range of other speakers, including Billy Wong, deputy head of research at the HK Trade Development Council; Anneliese Smilie from Redress, a nonprofit dedicated to reducing waste in Hong Kong’s garment industry; and Bernard Chang, an architect with the firm KPF.

Day 4: We spent the morning with the staff of Department of City Planning to learn about the HK2030+ strategic vision. Overall, Hong Kong is focused on livability, sustainability and integration with the broader Pearl River Delta (Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Macau and other nearby cities in China). The students asked terrific (hard!) questions about how this plan intersects with climate change, affordable housing, green space, waste management, historic preservation and land reclamation. In the afternoon, we visited the new Kowloon terminal for the high-speed rail connection with mainland China, which is controversial in Hong Kong. Many people here see it as encroachment on Hong Kong’s autonomy, which is guaranteed under the Basic Law and One Country, Two Systems principle.

You can view the full gallery of photos from Hong Kong here.

Bebop Language and Innovations

Director of Jazz Studies Jose Encarnacion writing musical notations on whiteboard. — Director of Jazz Studies José Encarnación and students make musical notations.

All instruments were welcome in this course exploring how to improvise using bebop language. Among the activities, students studied solo transcriptions of musicians like Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and Clifford Brown, and applied improvisational concepts.

With an ever and constant changing world, I make my best efforts to keep our students current with contemporary musical forms and genres.

Assistant Professor of Music and Director of Jazz Studies José Encarnación shares that, “the music, it is always about the music and the musicians of that time period. Their wisdom, understanding, imagination, creativity, commitment and contributions to the music inspires me to introduce it to students. With an ever and constant changing world, I make my best efforts to keep our students current with contemporary musical forms and genres,” continues Encarnación. “I like for my students to listen and understand the tradition of this important American art form called ‘jazz’ and the many transformations it took on along its history. In my teachings, I encourage my students to listen, learn and develop respect for the past so they may add their contribution, knowledge and new light embodying the richness of the past and freshness of the new.”

Introduction to R and Excel for Data Analysis

Careful data analysis has become central to decision-making in areas from politics to sports to medicine. This D-Term course introduced students to collecting, cleaning and manipulating messy, real-world data with powerful programs R and Excel.

Professor Arnold Shober stands in front of a graph in a classroom. — Arnold Shober explains how to manage and analyze data to students in his D-Term class.

“For any of the natural and social sciences, quantitative data analysis is a core skill,” explains Associate Professor of Government Arnold Shober. “It is like reading a book–but for most of us it is more like reading a book in a language we’re just learning. And just like learning a new language, we make lots of mistakes. The D-Term course lets my students make those mistakes in a low-stakes, focused environment. Then, when it really counts, on their own projects, they can focus on their analyses and not the mechanics. They can write paragraphs–not spell words.”

Happiness: Meditation and Science

Constance Kassor and students meditating at a table. — Professor Constance Kassor and students participate in a guided meditation exercise.

This course took a liberal arts approach to meditation, tackling the question “What is happiness and how is it achieved?” by engaging with ideas of Buddhist philosophy of mind and investigating the ways in which they are being studied and employed by psychologists, neuroscientists and cognitive scientists. This D-Term offering is also an extension of Lawrence’s commitment to student wellness and the whole student.

My hope is that students will come away from this course with tools to help them better deal with stress at Lawrence and beyond.

“This course stemmed from my research and teaching interests in Buddhist thought and meditation,” explains Assistant Professor of Religious Studies Constance Kassor. “Not only did we read about suffering and happiness from both Buddhist and scientific perspectives, but we also spent time engaging in the different meditative practices that we studied. Students were also required to commit to 10-30 minutes of meditation outside of class every day and report on their experiences. My hope is that students will come away from this course with tools to help them better deal with stress at Lawrence and beyond.”

Plague, War, and Fire: Disasters and the Making of London

Three students pose on top of St. Paul's Cathedra with the London skyline in the background. — Students participating in the D-Term London study course stand atop St. Paul’s Cathedral.

Between 1642 and 1666 London experienced war, plague and fire. This December, Lawrentians traveled to London to examine these catastrophes and explore how the city’s responses shaped the future of not merely London, but other cities across the globe. Students visited museums and historical sites and considered how London responded to crisis, commemorated it and confronted it again when German bombs fell during the twentieth century.

“London is such an incredibly rich landscape on which to study history,” notes Frederick, whose D-Term class grew out of an earlier course he taught at Lawrence’s London Centre in 2016. “During these two weeks we were in constant contact with the deep history of this fascinating city, from walking past walls erected by the Romans, to having a lecture from an archeologist about the 14^th-century plague skeleton he had laid before us, to exploring the rooms from which Churchill defended the defense of England during the Blitz. I can teach students a great deal about history in the classroom, but there is something to being in the place where it happened that just can’t be replaced.”

(Frederick also adds a dispatch about the updated London Centre: “We got a tour of the new London Center. It’s awesome!”)

Adobe Creative Suite

Associate Professor of Art Benjamin Rinehart developed a workshop setting to introduce students to the Adobe Creative Suite programs, which include Photoshop, InDesign, and Illustrator. “Students, staff and faculty are eager to become proficient in the Adobe Creative Suite programs,” observes Rinehart. “This course is valuable for any field of study and has many applications beyond being an artist or designer.”

Student at computer editing image in Photoshop. — A student explores Photoshop during D-Term.

From creating art to presenting data, knowledge of design principles and programs gives Lawrentians another tool to enhance their own work and offer a broad array of talents to prospective employers. The class is project-centered, allowing each student to explore the multifaceted and contemporary nature of each program. In just a couple of short weeks, students are exposed to methods in image construction, graphic design, typography and more. Students also visited the Lawrence University Office of Communications to speak with designers and see how these programs are used to advance an organization’s materials and mission.

Conservatory Hits High Notes with an Awards-Filled November

By Savvas Sfairopoulos ‘19

The Lawrence University Conservatory of Music clinched an impressive list of awards this November, with major wins at opera and voice competitions. Lawrence University placed first in Division 4 of the National Opera Association’s Best Opera Production 2017-2018 for their production of The Count Ory. The French comedic opera by Rossini was staged in March under the instruction of Director of Opera Studies Copeland Woodruff. Opera studies also had a strong showing in the musical theater division of the Collegiate Opera Scenes Competition, making it to the finals. In addition to the impressive group performances, Jack Murphy ’21 of Neenah, Wis., and Nysios Poulakos ’21 of Iowa City, Iowa, will be competing at the NOA National Conference in Salt Lake City in the January in the musical theatre division, performing a scene from Duncan Sheik and Steven Slater’s Spring Awakening.

In more exciting news for Lawrence opera, Anna Mosoriak ’19 of Highland, Ind., won a Metropolitan Opera National Council Encouragement Award. The MET Opera National Council is the most prestigious competition in the United States for young singers; the Encouragement Award is presented to singers who, though they do not advance to the next round of the competition, show promising talent.

The list of accomplishments for the Conservatory continues, with 10 Lawrentians earning accolades in a huge showing at the annual Wisconsin Chapter of the National Association of Teachers and Singing (NATS) competition held Nov. 3-4 at UW-Whitewater.

Kyree Allen ’22, Washington, D.C.: First place men’s first-year college classical division.

Clover Austin-Muehleck ’19, San Francisco, Calif.: First place women’s fourth-year college classical division.

Emily Austin ’21, Washington, D.C.: First place women’s third-year college classical division.

Nick Fahrenkrug ’20, Davenport, Iowa: First place men’s third-year college classical division; this is Nick’s third straight NATS title.

Alex Iglinski ’19, Muskego, Wis.: Second place men’s third and fourth-year musical theatre division.

Hannah Jones ’22, Houston, Texas: First place women’s first-year college classical division.

Baron Lam ’21, Galesburg, Ill.: Second place men’s second-year college classical division.

Emma Milton ’21, Muskego, Wis.: Second place women’s second-year college classical division.

Jack Murphy ’21: First place men’s first and second-year musical theater division and first place men’s second-year college classical division.

Sarah Scofield ’21, West Lafayette, Ind.: First place women’s second-year college classical division.

The NATS competition features 28 separate divisions grouped by gender and level. Depending upon the category, competitors are required to sing two, three or four classical pieces from different time periods with at least one selection sung in a foreign language. This year’s showing builds on Lawrence’s winning tradition at NATS; Lawrence singers have regularly taken first-place honors in a competition that draws hundreds of singers from around the state.

Lawrence University Honored for Leadership and Innovation in Workplace Health

Lawrence University’s commitment to the health and wellness of its employees has earned it a Platinum Well Workplace Award from the Wellness Council of America (WELCOA) in conjunction with the Wellness Council of Wisconsin. Lawrence is one of only seven institutions nationwide to be honored with the Platinum designation, which honors organizations that “have distinguished themselves as not only leaders, but innovators in workplace health promotion.”

“For more than ten years Lawrence has focused on the overall well-being of our community. We value our employees and students as a whole person and are committed to providing preventative and comprehensive wellness programming,” said Director of Wellness and Recreation Erin Buenzli, who is spearheading Lawrence’s wellness initiatives.

Lawrence was honored with a Gold Award in 2016, and the Platinum Award demonstrates its ongoing commitment and continued innovation in employee wellness. Lawrence’s wellness initiatives focus on key interventions: tobacco cessation, stress intervention, nutrition, and challenges to increase physical activity. “Our goal is to meet people where they are in their wellness journey by offering a variety of programs focused on the individual including our mind spa, massage program, personal training, and dietician,” continued Buenzli.

“Lawrence University has clearly demonstrated their commitment to protect and enhance the health and well-being of their employees. By meeting the comprehensive standards necessary to achieve the Platinum Well Workplace Award, Lawrence University is prioritizing the well-being of their employees as a foundation of their organization’s culture,” said Wellness Council of Wisconsin’s Executive Director Marissa Kalkman.

WELCOA’s Well Workplace awards, which recognize “America’s Healthiest Companies,” are based on criteria of the seven “Cs”: Capturing CEO support; Creating a cohesive wellness team; Collecting data to drive health efforts; Carefully crafting an operating plan; Choosing appropriate interventions; Creating a supportive environment; and Carefully evaluating outcomes.

Lawrence will join other winners from around the region at the Fox Cities Well Workplace awards ceremony on November 13. An announcement regarding the status of the Fox Cities as a “Well City USA” will be made that evening. Achieving a Well City designation requires that 20 percent of a community’s entire working population must be employed by at least 20 Well Workplace award-winning organizations.

Lawrence University Performs Concert Commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the End of World War I

At 11:00 a.m. in the Lawrence Chapel on Sunday, November 11, 100 years after the moment the World War I guns fell silent on the western front, students and faculty from the Lawrence Jazz Department will perform Armistice 1918, a multimedia piece composed and arranged by jazz pianist and Lawrence faculty member Bill Carrothers. The event is free and open to the public, no tickets are needed.

Armistice 1918 begins with a musical and visual representation of the period immediately before the war, the second section revolves around the separation of loved ones and the extraordinary events of Christmas 1914. The third part is a portrait of life at the front in a series of improvisations and popular songs from the time, and finally the silence of Armistice day, interrupted only by the sound of church bells bringing the news of peace. In Armistice 1918, Bill Carrothers attempts to bring together his two passions; history and music. His goal with this project was to tell a story of the Great War through music; of the process from the relative innocence of 1914 to the wasteland of November 11, 1918. Heavily influenced by the poets of the war and specifically of infantry officer 2nd lieutenant Wilfred Owen, with his gritty realism and and the poignant contrasts between idealism and reality Carrothers brings together his inventive harmonies and passion for history to create an experience unlike any other.

Carrothers will be joined by fellow Lawrence faculty members Jose Encarnacion, saxophone; Matt Turner, cello; Mark Urness, bass; and Dane Richeson, drums; as well as by guest vocalist Peg Carrothers and guest percussionist Jay Epstein. The performance will be accompanied by a slideshow of photographs and poems from the First World War and will also feature a choir made up of Lawrence University Conservatory students, as well as narration by Jerald Podair, Professor of History at Lawrence.

Bill Carrothers has been a professional pianist for 35 years and has been teaching at Lawrence since 2011. He has played many venues throughout the U.S. and Europe including the The Village Vanguard, Birdland, the Monterey Jazz Festival, and the Montreal Jazz Festival. In October of 2000, Mr. Carrothers headlined the prestigious Rising Star Tour throughout Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. He has been a leader on twenty-six recordings, all of which have received critical acclaim, and has played with some of the greatest names in jazz including: Scott Colley, Dave Douglas, Billy Hart, Freddie Hubbard, Dave King, Dewey Redman, Bill Stewart, and Toots Thielemans.

Lawrence University Launches Transformative $220 Million Be the Light! Campaign

Lawrence University announces the launch of Be the Light! Learners. Leaders. Lawrentians., a historic $220 million capital campaign.

Lawrence is launching Be the Light! with a celebratory weekend at its Appleton campus. The announcement of two leadership gifts will mark the celebration: a $2.5 million gift from philanthropist and chair of Old World Industries J. Thomas Hurvis ’60 to endow the Riaz Waraich Dean for Career, Life, and Community Engagement, and $2.5 million from the Kohler Co. to renovate Kohler Hall into a 21^st-century residential space.

These gifts from Mr. Hurvis and the Kohler Co. illustrate the generosity and momentum behind Be the Light!. The campaign has raised $165.5 million toward its overall goal during the quiet phase—already more than the total raised during the university’s last capital campaign. More than 7,800 alumni have provided transformational support for Lawrence through leadership gifts and contributions to the Lawrence Fund.

“Today we embark on the most ambitious fundraising initiative in Lawrence’s history. This campaign will provide foundational investments in a bold vision for Lawrence’s future,” says Lawrence University President Mark Burstein.

The Waraich Dean for Career, Life and Community Engagement will play an integral role in fulfilling Lawrence’s mission to prepare students for successful and meaningful lives after graduation. In addition to endowing the deanship, Mr. Hurvis is asking Lawrence alumni, parents, and friends to join him by matching his gift with an additional $2.5 million to support internships, career exploration, and curricular development through the Center for Career, Life, and Community Engagement. Mr. Hurvis, one of Lawrence’s most dedicated donors, named the endowment for his business partner, Riaz Waraich, as a moving recognition of how partnership provides a key ingredient for career success.

“We are honored that the deanship of the Center for Career, Life, and Community Engagement will carry Riaz Waraich’s name. His partnership with Tom represents essential Lawrence University values of innovation, entrepreneurship, and how the combination of different perspectives brings success,” said President Burstein.

The Kohler Co.’s gift will transform Kohler Hall, which originally opened in 1967, into a welcoming home and community space for Lawrence students. Kohler Hall was named in honor of Ruth DeYoung Kohler, who served as a Lawrence University trustee from 1945-1953. Mrs. Kohler’s service to Lawrence was followed by her son, Herbert V. “Herb” Kohler, Jr., who served as a trustee from 1974-2002 and is currently an emeritus trustee; and her granddaughter, Laura Kohler, who has served as a trustee since 2014. In addition to Kohler Hall, the Kohler Gallery in the Wriston Art Center is named in the family’s honor.

“Kohler Co. and the Kohler Trust for The Arts and Education have had long-standing relationships with Lawrence and understand how important the residential experience is to the Lawrence community,” noted President Burstein. “Lawrence students encounter new ideas, engage in intellectual exchange, interact with different cultures, and make friendships that last a lifetime in the residence halls. This generous gift will transform the student experience on campus.”

The Be the Light! Campaign is infused with the values of Lawrence University: creating an inclusive educational experience accessible to all that prepares today’s students to lead lives of meaning and distinction. These values are reflected in the cornerstones of the campaign:

Full Speed to Full Need: A $30 million matching gift supporting endowed scholarships jumpstarted Be the Light! in 2014. This matching gift became the Full Speed to Full Need initiative, a visionary move to make Lawrence accessible and affordable to every student. Meeting the full demonstrated financial need of every student places Lawrence in the elite ranks of the fewer than 70 colleges nationwide that offer this level of support; it would also make Lawrence the only full need institution in the state of Wisconsin.

Student Journey: Lawrence educates the whole student, from classroom learning in programs of distinction to personal development through wellness, career advising, and more. Generous gifts have supported the creation and expansion of cutting edge and interdisciplinary programs, including: the Dwight and Marjorie Peterson Professorship in Innovation, the Dennis and Charlot Nelson Singleton Professorship in Cognitive Neuroscience, the Wendy and KK Tse Professorship in East Asian Studies, and the Jean Lampert Woy and J. Richard Woy Professorship in History. Additional support for the whole student includes the endowed Julie Esch Hurvis Dean for Spiritual and Religious Life.

Campus Renewal: Lawrence’s spaces shape the student experience, and Lawrence is renewing its beautiful and historic campus in key areas including athletics, the Center for Academic Success, and residence halls. Alumni generosity has supported the renovation of Lawrence’s stadium facility, the Banta Bowl and Ormsby Hall, a student resident hall. Additional gifts have transformed the campus landscape and public spaces.

The Lawrence Fund: The Lawrence Fund is a critical part of the university’s financial health and ensures student success every day. Contributions to this annual fund come from alumni and friends of Lawrence at all financial levels. Gifts support students, faculty, and facilities on every corner of campus, including flexible support for athletics, study abroad, student research, the library, Lawrence’s Door County campus Björklunden and more. The online launch of Be the Light! took place on October 10, 2018, as part of Lawrence’s annual Giving Day tradition: 2,920 donors contributed more than $1.79 million to the Lawrence Fund in a single day.

“The Be the Light! Campaign comes at a critical time, when it is more important than ever that the education Lawrence provides responds to current societal needs. This campaign has the power to transform our university, our students, and the future leadership of our world,” said President Mark Burstein. “I am grateful for the generous support of the Lawrence community, which has already helped us surpass our previous campaign total. These investments will allow us to continue our transformational work, to be the light.”

Visit the Be the Light! Campaign website

Lawrence Hosting Symposium on International Refugee Crisis

Lawrence University will be hosting a symposium on the international refugee crisis November 4-6. This critical and timely topic will be explored through speakers, art, dance, music and film, introducing the community to people who are themselves refugees; to medical, legal and journalism professionals who provide refugee services; to artists and musicians who have chronicled the loss of homeland; and to scholars who examine and write about the economic and ethical implications of immigration. This event is free and open to the public.

The centerpiece of this multi-day event is a symposium featuring experts from around the globe followed by a concert and performance. It takes place Monday, November 5 at 7 p.m. in the Esch Hurvis Room of the Warch Campus Center.

The speakers are:

Speakers: David Hausman, Attorney, ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project
Liza Ramlow, Nurse-Midwife, Doctors Without Borders
Mark Johnson, Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Amel Abbas ’14, Iraqi Refugee and Lawrence University Alumna
Moderator: Claudena Skran, Edwin & Ruth West Professor of Economics and Social Science and Professor of Government, Lawrence University Department of Government

This event is free and open to the public.

Full Schedule of Events

Nov. 1-6, 2018

Art exhibit at Wriston Art Center
Exhibit in Seeley G. Mudd Library
Photography exhibit in Warch Campus Center

Sunday, Nov. 4 Warch Campus Center Cinema

6 p.m. A Local Perspective on the Refugee Crisis with Joseph Kabamba, Resettlement Specialist at World Relief and refugee from the Democratic Republic of Congo and Tami McLaughlin, director of World Relief Fox Valley
Films:
7 p.m. Myanmar’s Killing Fields (57 minutes)
8 p.m. The Pirogue (Moussa Toure, 2012) (87 minutes)

Monday, Nov. 5 Esch-Hurvis Room, Warch Campus Center

7–9 p.m. Symposium

Speakers: David Hausman, Attorney, ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project
Liza Ramlow, Nurse-Midwife, Doctors Without Borders
Mark Johnson, Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Amel Abbas ’14, Iraqi Refugee and Lawrence University Alumnus
Moderator: Claudena Skran, Edwin & Ruth West Professor of Economics and Social Science and Professor of Government, Lawrence University Department of Government

9 p.m.-10 p.m.—Concert of music by and about refugees performed by students and faculty of the Lawrence University Conservatory of Music View the program

10 p.m. Reception and networking opportunity

Tuesday, Nov. 6, Mead Witter Room, Warch Campus Center (note new location)

4:30 p.m. Main Hall Forum: Dollars and Sense of the Refugee Crisis
Shyam Souri Suresh, Professor of Economics, Davidson University
Harry Brighouse, Professor of Philosophy, UW-Madison

Election Law Expert to Discuss Partisan Gerrymandering on November 8

Prof. Robert Yablon (Univeristy of Wisconsin Law School) will be at Lawrence University November 8 to discuss contemporary challenges to redistricting law, including Wisconsin’s own Gill v. Whitford. In his talk, “Partisan Gerrymandering: What Next?,” he will discuss both legal and partisan issues with drawing the lines that group voters into districts–and what that means for democratic representation. He is an expert in election law, federal courts, and campaign finance law. Yablon was a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University and has clerked for both Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sonia Sotomayor. An engaging teacher, Prof. Yablon was honored with the Classroom Teacher of the Year award this year at University of Wisconsin Law School.

Yablon’s visit is sponsored by the American Constitution Society and the Lawrence University Government Department. “American democracy is uniquely about rules and institutions, and nowhere is this more evident than in American elections. There is no roadmap in the Constitution for drawing the lines, but Prof. Yablon can show us the contours of where they might go,” said Prof. Arnold Shober, an associate professor of government.

Prof. Yablon talk will be in Wriston Auditorium at 4:30 p.m., November 8. The event is free and open to the public; no tickets are required.

Lawrence University Presents 38th Annual Jazz Weekend

Lawrence University will present the 38^th annual Fred Sturm Jazz Celebration Weekend with live performances from the Regina Carter Quartet on Friday, November 2 and the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra on Saturday, November 3. Both concerts will take place at 7:30 pm in the Lawrence Memorial Chapel. Tickets are free for all students with a valid student ID, and range from $20 – $30 for seniors and adults. Tickets are available for purchase from the Lawrence University Box Office in person, online or by calling 920-832-6749.

Jazz Violinist Regina Carter

Fred Sturm Jazz Celebration Weekend brings professional jazz artists to the Lawrence campus for a non-competitive jazz education festival. Over the course of the weekend hundreds of middle and high school students from around the Midwest work with Lawrence faculty and jazz educators from across the country. The weekend culminates in the Friday and Saturday evening concerts given by internationally acclaimed jazz musicians.

The concert on Friday, November 2 will feature Regina Carter, a Sony Masterworks recording artist and the foremost jazz violinist of her generation. Her quest for beauty combined with her passion for excellence did not escape the attention of the MacArthur Foundation, who awarded Regina their prestigious fellowship “genius grant.” Carter’s recent release, Ella: Accentuate the Positive and touring program, Simply Ella, mark the 100th birthday of musical legend Ella Fitzgerald. Carter will perform Simply Ella live at Lawrence with her quartet.

The concert on Saturday, November 3 showcases the multiple-Grammy winning 16 piece Vanguard Jazz Orchestra which features some of the world’s finest musicians. Co-founded by legendary trumpeter Thad Jones and drummer Mel Lewis, after more than 50 years the ensemble still plays virtually every Monday night at the renowned Village Vanguard Jazz club, New York City’s most famous basement. The beautiful and unique arrangements of Thad Jones enchanted audiences worldwide. The mixture of the music from diverse backgrounds created their innovative sound and the band was quickly recognized as a world-class big band. The ensemble cultivated its rich history while commissioning new music that made them the prototype of innovative big band music.

For more information about these events or the Fred Sturm Jazz Celebration Weekend, contact Jillian Johnson at 920-832-6773

Lawrence University recognized as Chicago Scholars Star of Transformation

At a ceremony held at McCormick Place in Chicago on October 23, Lawrence University received The College Star of Transformation award from Chicago Scholars, an organization dedicated to helping “academically ambitious students from under-resourced communities complete college and become the next generation of leaders who will transform” Chicago’s neighborhoods and the city itself.

These students, named Chicago Scholars themselves, receive special training and mentorship from the organization to help them succeed in the college admission process and, more importantly, during their time in college. The organization boasts that its students graduate from college at a rate of 86%, which is nearly 40 percentage points higher than their peers, according to the University of Chicago Consortium on Chicago School Research.

Chicago Scholars CEO, Dominique Jordan Turner, cited Lawrence University’s generosity of financial support for the Chicago Scholars it has enrolled, along with strong on-campus mentoring and advising. Earlier this year, Turner was named as a member of the inaugural class of Obama Foundation Fellows, a program that brings together 20 leaders from 11 countries who are creating solutions to some of the world’s most pressing problems.

Ken Anselment, Lawrence University’s Vice President for Enrollment & Communication, accepted the award on behalf of the university.

“Our partnership with Chicago Scholars has helped Lawrence University meet, recruit, and enroll high-caliber students who are traditionally underserved by the college admission process,” says Anselment, who appreciates the close partnership with the organization, one of more than a dozen around the country with which Lawrence has developed a formal working relationship.

Shortly after leaving the stage, Anselment was called back up to introduce the organization’s Crystal Award winner, Tom Hurvis, a 1960 graduate of Lawrence University, whose support for the organization has transformed its ability to serve Chicago students.

According to Turner, “As a result of Tom’s investment, Chicago Scholars has scaled tremendously.” She notes that the number of students selected to participate in the program has increased from 250 Scholars a year to 1,000 this year—due largely to the supercharging effect of Hurvis’s support.

In his remarks about Hurvis, Anselment noted, “The world is filled with many people like Tom who have been incredibly successful. But there are far fewer people in the world who use their successes in the ways that Tom does, which is to take great joy in using the fruits of that success to create extraordinary opportunities that lift others to their own success.”

Bernard Lilly, a 2018 Lawrence graduate and Chicago-based musician, then took the stage to sing a special tribute to Hurvis, which brought the more than 300 attendees to their feet with a standing ovation for the gifted vocalist.

Hurvis is one of the founders and chairman of Old World Industries, the world’s leading supplier of antifreeze and diesel exhaust fluid, including PEAK antifreeze and coolant, and Blue DEF, respectively.

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.

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