In Short . . .

Poet Carolyn Forché introduced the fourth year of the Department of Writing Distinguished Visiting Writers Series. In addition to conducting master classes and meeting with students and faculty, Forché gave a reading of her poetry and a presentation, which she called "The Poetry of Witness."

The School of Business is running a speaker series on the theme of corporate responsibility, kicked off by New York State attorney general Elliot Spitzer, who spoke on "Corporate Responsibility and the Public Interest." Since his election in 1998, Spitzer has advanced initiatives in environmental protection, public safety, civil rights, and consumer affairs.

Math and computer science faculty members Eric and Margaret Robinson, with John Maceli, received a two-year continuation of National Science Foundation support in the amount of $3.4 million for the IC-based national coordinating center for high school math reform, COMPASS. The funds are for use here and in five regional centers.

The Park Foundation awarded $2,980,203 for full support of 20 students for four years in the Park Scholars class of 2007, beginning in the fall of 2003, and $20,000 to the Frederick Douglass Academy partnership for the 2002-3 academic year.

The Karel Husa Visiting Professor of Composition is Chen Yi, a composer noted for her melding of Eastern and Western musical traditions.

The student organization Ithaca College Republicans recognized Conservative Awareness Week in September with a series of speeches, "town meetings," and a panel discussion.

TV-R majors Justin Daly ’03 and Tasha Wright ’03 were the second recipients of the New York Communications Alumni Internship Award. The award, made possible through contributions of New York–area Ithaca College alumni, provided each student $2,500 to help defray the cost of conducting a nonpaying internship in the city. Daly interned at Fox News, Wright at MTV.

Psychology and gerontology double major Bethany Boillard ’03 was named the AARP Andrus Foundation founder’s scholar, the only one nationally. She received $4,000 plus travel expenses to the Gerontology Society’s national meeting in October, at which she made a presentation as the chosen scholar.

Associate professor of writing Katharyn Howd Machan was inaugurated as Tompkins County’s first poet laureate, one of the few such posts at the county level in the country. The ceremonial position runs for two years. Machan has published more than 1,000 poems in journals and magazines, anthologies, textbooks, and her own collections. She is also a story/dance artist and organizes the College’s annual WomenSpeak program.