Biology Professor Named Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science
Biology Prof. Manickam Sugumaran has been awarded the distinction of Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). This honor is granted based on the efforts of an individual toward advancing science or fostering applications that are deemed scientifically or socially distinguished. Sugumaran's research into the mechanisms by which insects develop a protective outer shell or cuticle, has garnered approximately $3.6 million in research funds. Sugumaran was one of 283 AAAS members to be chosen as fellows this year. The AAAS, which represents the world's largest federation of scientists, has more than 144,000 members, and publishes the weekly, peer-reviewed journal, Science.
GCOE/Dorchester High School Partnership Receives Technology Grant
UMass Boston's Graduate College of Education and Dorchester High School have been selected as one of 30 professional development school partnerships to participate in the "Virtual PDS Consortium" of the National Institute for Community Innovations. The Consortium will help the GCOE/Dorchester High partnership infuse technology into the curriculum, and support teacher in-service and preparation. The partnership will receive $31,000, plus free on-site and on-line technical assistance, and costs will be covered to send a team of university/school educators to a professional development conference. Members of the team will be chosen in the near future. June Kuzmeskus of the Massachusetts Field Center for Teaching and Learning is presently on special assignment to coordinate the partnership.
Jennings Appointed National Scholar for African-American Churches Project
James Jennings, director of the Trotter Institute, has been appointed as a National Scholar for the Project on the Public Influences of African-American Churches, a three-year research project aimed at understanding the role of Black churches in public life and civic activism in the United States. The project is sponsored by the Pew Charitable Trusts Foundation and Morehouse College in Atlanta, Ga. Jennings will help design the research questions for examining the role of Black churches, and he will write a case study of Black churches in Boston. He is one of 23 scholars named to the project.
Nursing Student Completes Requirements for Program's
1st Doctoral Candidacy
Mary Elizabeth Harrington has completed the requirements to become a candidate for the degree of Ph.D. in Nursing. Her thesis will examine secondary prevention issues in post-myocardial infarction patients. She will assess variations in practice among primary physicians, cardiologists, and nurse practitioners. "It's wonderful to be celebrating both Mary Beth's accomplishment and another sentinel event for our Ph.D. program," says Gail Russell, program director. "We are on target with our timeline for the program's development, and we look forward to our next milestone, which will be Mary Beth's dissertation research followed by graduation."
New UMass Medical Center Program Seeking Participants
The Center for Adoption Research & Policy at the UMass Medical Center in Worcester is the first university-based program in the United States dedicated solely to the issues of adoption and foster care. The center, directed by Peter Gibbs, is surveying faculty, staff and students at all UMass campuses to assess interest in participation in research studies on topics such as child development and family functioning in relation to adoption and foster care. Those with a personal connection to adoption or foster care are invited to complete a short survey form. The Center also seeks study participants with no involvement in adoption or foster care for comparison studies. Further information and the survey are available by calling the center at 508-856-5397. Information can also be found on the Center's web page at http://www.ummed.edu/main/purpose/htm.
Japanese Labor Culture in the 1930s is topic of
Visiting Professor's Talk
Professor Toru Shinoda of Waseda University in Tokyo, Japan, presented a lecture on the topic of "How Workers Justify Their Cause: Japanese Labor Movement Culture in the 1930s," on Nov. 11. His presentation focused on the case of the 1936 Geisha Girls Protest Movement, which demanded from their management an end to despotic management practices and extra commissions, and respect for the girls' individuality. An unusal aspect of the strike was the geisha girls' decision to climb a holy mountain, which convinced the public of their sincerity. The strike was successfully settled through police arbitration - - a model virtually unknown in the U.S. Shinoda's talk was followed by a response from Prof. Michael Novak of the College of Management and CPCS Prof. Jim Green of the Labor Resource Center. This program was part of an ongoing series on "Westernization vs. Modernization in East Asia" sponsored by the Program in East Asian Studies.
Irish poets Catherine Phil MacCarthy and Ciaran Carson presented their latest works to full audiences in separate readings Nov. 3 and 4. Dublin resident MacCarthy read from her new book, "The Blue Globe," a reflection on the world of female experience drawing from personal events. Editor of the "Poetry Ireland Review," this was MacCarthy's second UMass Boston reading. Belfast poet Carson made his UMass Boston debut by reading from his three new books: a collection of his own poems, a collection of translations, and his memoirs, "The Star Factory." Carson, a T.S. Eliot Prize winner for "First Language," focuses on Belfast during the bombings. The poets' visits were sponsored by the Irish Studies Program and the Joiner Center. They are part of both programs' efforts to bring literature and global experiences to the UMass Boston campus.
DCE to Offer Courses at Quincy College in
January
Beginning in January of next year, the Division of Continuing
Education at UMass Boston will begin a collaboration with Quincy
College. Continuing Education will be offering advanced-level courses
at Quincy College, which will be transferred to UMass Boston
automatically if and when a student transfers from Quincy. This
partnership marks a first for Continuing Education. Malisa Roberts,
director of credit programs for the division, recently explained in
an article in the Quincy Patriot Ledger that "we have never offered
courses at Quincy College. And this is the first time we've offered
advanced-level courses at a non-UMass Boston campus." The courses,
which are the same as courses offered at UMass Boston, include
economics, history, criminology/sociology, English, and
psychology.
- - By Patrick Dwyer
WUMB to Showcase First Night Events This New Year's
Eve
WUMB 91.9 FM will be very busy this New Year's Eve. The station will be a major participant in Boston's First Night '99, showcasing performances and providing live broadcasts. The UMass Boston folk and jazz station will broadcast performances by some of Boston's premiere contemporary and traditional folk artists live from the Church of the Covenant at 67 Newbury St. in Boston. WUMB will also provide a live broadcast from the Hynes Convention Center which will feature Haitian, Cape Verdean, and Motown/Oldies music. In addition, the station will provide emcees for concerts at various locations throughout Boston.
First Night '99 will be Boston's 23rd annual New Year's Eve Celebration. Originally conceived in Boston, First Night has become a model for New Year's Eve celebrations throughout North America. Visit the First Night web site (www.firstnight.org) for a complete listing of events.
- - By Patrick Dwyer
Holiday Party Takes Place December 17
Faculty and staff are invited to join in the spirit of the season at the University's holiday party, which will take place on Dec. 17 beginning at 2:30 p.m., in the McCormack cafeteria.