A sampling of media clippings about Lawrence University, its faculty, students, and alumni from Spring 2004 and Summer 2004. For more clippings, see the Lawrence in the News index page.
The Capital Times, Madison
August 31, 2004
Headline: New justice to new students: 'Do the best you can'
Byline: Aaron Nathans
Excerpt: Less than three hours after he was sworn in as a state Supreme
Court justice, Louis Butler paid a visit to his alma mater and reflected
on his life's journey. Butler officially took over Wednesday for Justice
Diane Sykes, who was promoted to the U.S. Court of Appeals in Chicago.
Butler urged incoming law students of color at the University of
Wisconsin-Madison to study hard and keep up their work ethic well after
graduation. "I understand and appreciate I am standing on other people's
shoulders," Butler told participants in the Legal Education
Opportunities Program, in which he participated about 30 years ago. He
recalled growing up on the south side of Chicago and heading north into
snowy Wisconsin to visit Lawrence University in Appleton, where
he would become an undergraduate. "The streets were plowed. The
sidewalks were shoveled. I was from Chicago. I was impressed," Butler
said.
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Milwaukee
August 29, 2004
Headline: School counselors get royal treatment.
VIP visits to colleges not just about academics
Byline: Nicole Sweeney
Excerpt: In the competitive arena of college marketing, colleges are
wooing high school guidance counselors with all-expense-paid visits that
can include catered dinners, sporting events, lakefront cruises and even
the occasional trip to the ski slopes. Counselors and colleges say that
allegiances can't be bought and that the visits boost an important
working relationship. But some say the courting can pose a conflict of
interest when students and their families turn to counselors for
objective information. Bruce Weinstein, a national ethics expert and
president of the New York consulting firm Ethics at Work, said he
doesn't see anything wrong with colleges flying in out-of-state
counselors who normally couldn't afford to visit campuses. For 13 years,
Marquette has teamed up with Ripon College, Beloit College, Lawrence
University and University of Wisconsin-Madison for an annual tour called
Counselors Observing Wisconsin Schools, or COWS. The five-day,
invitation-only tour brings in 44 out-of-state guidance counselors a
year. The colleges pay for the counselors' airfare, hotel, meals and
goodies. Local guidance counselors said that seeing colleges first-hand
is vital to the job, and that the tours aren't just a fun getaway. They
often consist of long, exhausting days when counselors are schlepped
across campus in a non-stop flurry of activities.
USA Today, McLean, Virginia
August 27, 2004
Headline: Controversial ads amplify message with age-old strategy.
Call it lots of bang for a few bucks
Byline: Liz Sidoti, Associated Press
Excerpt: A veterans' group with Republican ties spent less than a
half-million dollars in three states to run an ad for one week accusing
Democrat John Kerry of lying about his war record -- and got more than
three weeks of priceless coast-to-coast media coverage for free. It's an
age-old political advertising trick in a new-media era: purchase a small
amount of airtime to run a controversial ad in just a few locations ‹
and then hope the news media amplify the message at no additional cost.
For Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, the tactic worked. The ad aired in
only seven markets: Charleston, W.Va., Green Bay, Wausau and La Crosse
in Wisconsin; and Dayton, Toledo and Youngstown in Ohio, according to a
report released Friday by Nielsen Monitor-Plus and The University of
Wisconsin Advertising Project. Still, a National Annenberg Election
Survey found that a third of the public had seen it and a quarter had
heard about it, mainly because of cable news networks and talk radio
shows. The survey called the ad "a dramatic illustration" of the power
of the media to help a group get out its message. Christian Grose, who
teaches about campaign media at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wis.,
said the commercial got three times the TV mileage in his state. In one
hour, the local news would report on the ad, the spot would run when the
program went to a commercial break, and then the national news would air
a clip as it covered the controversy. "It was truely on TV all the time,"
Grose said.
[The AP story also ran in the San Jose, California, Mercury News, and the Dubuque, Iowa, Telegraph-Herald]
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Milwaukee
Editorial: A judicious appointment
August 18, 2004
Excerpt: Wisconsin wins with Gov. Jim Doyle's pick of Milwaukee County
Circuit Judge Louis Butler to fill the vacancy on the top court. The
state gets a talented justice and a more diverse court. Butler is
particularly well-suited for the Wisconsin Supreme Court. He has served
in his current and previous jobs -- he was a public defender and a
municipal judge -- with distinction. He was the first state public
defender to argue a case before the U.S. Supreme Court. What's more, his
appointment means the court will now better reflect the state's growing
racial diversity. Butler, an African-American, is the first non-white
justice on the court. The perspectives the court brings to issues will
now be more rounded.
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Milwaukee
August 18, 2004
Headline: It's Butler for Supreme Court
Byline: Stacy Forster and Steven Walters
Excerpt: In an announcement with historic significance, Gov. Jim Doyle
today will name Louis Butler to the state Supreme Court, making him the
first African-American to sit on Wisconsin's highest court. Butler had
been "the odds-on favorite" to replace former Justice Diane Sykes, who
resigned on July 4 to become a federal appellate judge, noted one
Supreme Court official, who declined to comment publicly. Butler was
elected to the Milwaukee County Circuit Court in April 2002, becoming
the first African-American in the county to win such a seat without
first being appointed. Before his election to the Circuit Court, Butler
spent 10 years as a Municipal Court judge in Milwaukee and was a public
defender. In an interview with the Journal Sentinel before the
governor's decision, Butler said his judicial philosophy was influenced
by his legal idols. "My goal as a jurist is to bring to the bench the
same passion for equal justice that Thurgood Marshall did, along with an
ability to build consensus as William Brennan did," naming two former
U.S. Supreme Court justices. Louis Butler -- Age: 52; Current position: Milwaukee County circuit judge, elected in 2002; Education: Bachelor's degree from Lawrence University, Appleton, law degree from the University of
Wisconsin-Madison.
Madison Capital Times, Madison
August 19, 2004
Headline: Butler's road to high court. Mom not surprised he wound up there after
Chicago start
Byline: David Callender
Excerpt: Newly appointed state Supreme Court Justice Louis Butler may
have doubted at times whether he'd ever end up on the state's highest
court, but his mother Gwendolyn Johnson never did. "He was always so
determined," she said. That determination showed through as Butler, 52,
spoke of growing up in a gang-infested neighborhood on Chicago's south
side, "where people were killing people and doing drugs. "We had a
one-block area where everyone agreed not to join a gang, and I think,
with two exceptions, everybody held to that agreement," he said. Butler
said his determination also helped him as a student at Lawrence
University in Appleton, then the UW-Madison Law School, next the
Public Defender's Office in Milwaukee, and onto the bench as a Milwaukee
municipal judge and finally a Milwaukee County circuit judge. He said he
is now mindful of his role as a trailblazer -- much as Chief Justice
Shirley Abrahamson was for women jurists in Wisconsin more than 25 years
ago - but that isn't his only focus. "My job is to interpret and apply
the law and uphold justice, and that's what I intend to do on the
court." "I believe deeply that Louis is a person that, when he is facing
decisions that are not only legal decisions but will affect the culture
of this state ... and the quality of life, he will understand what those
decisions mean for people far removed from the courtroom," Doyle said.
The Greenwich Time, Greenwich, Connecticut
August 14, 2004
Headline: Tour connects Byram resident with Asian roots
Byline: Vesna Jaksic
Excerpt: A garden tour may not sound like a cultural event to many Westerners, but for Korean native Ki-Tae Kim, the experience was a connection with his Asian
roots. The Byram resident, who graduated this summer from Lawrence University in Wisconsin, spent 11 days in March touring ancient gardens in Japan and China. The classical and rock gardens are an integral part of Asian culture and for Kim, the trip rekindled a long-standing interest in the subject.
Kim, who graduated with a degree in economics, was one of 15 students and
five faculty members from his university who took the trip, thanks to a $1.5
million grant from the Freeman Foundation, which encourages the study of
Asia by American students. The students toured a number of gardens in Japan and China, visited Buddhist temples, enjoyed traditional Asian cuisine and immersed
themselves in Japanese and Chinese culture. In Kyoto, Kim visited one of
many temples he saw on the trip, a number of which are recognized by the
United Nations as World Heritage sites. Michael Orr, a professor of art history at Lawrence University who also took the trip, said the gardens helped illustrate Asian culture to the students, all of whom have taken some courses in the subject. "They are one of the elite forms of cultural expression in China and Japan," he said, "equal to poetry and painting."
Viewpoints, MediaTracks, Des Plaines, Illinois
[A syndicated radio show that is aired on 250 stations nationwide]
August 14, 2004
Host: Christopher Mitchell
Excerpt: If there was one image about the 2000 presidential election
that stands out in people's minds, it is the picture of election judges
in Florida, peering through punch card ballots trying to figure out how
someone voted. Everyone from conservative republicans to independents
to liberal democrats agreed something had to be done about those punch
card ballots. One of the reforms that is taking place in various states
is junking the punch card voting system for another one.
Grose: There were a lot of studies after the 2000 election by political scientists who were nonpartisan, so they had no vested interest in protecting one particular ballot over another. They disagreed on some of their conclusions in terms of which ballots were better, electronic vs. optical scan, but the main conclusion was they all felt punch cards were bad.
Mitchell: That's Christian Grose, assistant professor of political science at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin.
Grose: There are two kinds of problems in voting that often occur. One is called over voting which means you vote for more than one candidate. This was the sort of thing where in Palm Beach County, someone wanted to vote for Pat Buchanan and then realized they made a mistake and then also voted for Al Gore. That would not count because there's two votes for president, you can only vote for one candidate. That can happen with punch cards because you can't go back and put the little piece you punched out back in. The other problem is under voting, which means you simply do not cast a ballot. Some people choose not to cast a ballot, but a number of other people may press a punch card and they don't push it all the way through but they think it's gone through and this is is the whole hanging chad thing if you remember from 2000. That's an under vote and that might cause their vote to not be counted.
Mitchell: There are states that have been moving ahead, replacing their antiquated punch cards with computerized touch screen equipment. Grose says the machines are pretty straightforward, kind of like going to the bank.
Grose: They're very similar to ATMs, which is what they're often compared to. You go in, it gives you the choices and you press the button or touch the screen. What's nice about them, you have a second chance to make sure your ballot is correct. So if you go and press Buchanan, it will say, "you voted for Pat Buchanan. Is this correct?" You can say no, I actually meant to vote for Al Gore and you can press no, it's wrong and go back and correct your mistake. That's the positive of electronic voting. There's of course some flaws and real negatives, too.
Mitchell: Those negatives have been in the forefront of the news lately. Grose says a lack of a paper trail with touch screens, or DREs as they're called, is a problem because you can't verify the votes put into the machines are the ones that come out.
The Herald Advocate, Park Ridge, Illinois
August 12, 2004
Headline: Former student, high on school band programs,
home from Vietnam tour
Byline: Danielle Braff
Excerpt: Shannon McCue started playing viola as part of her school's
orchestra program. Now, a little over a decade later, McCue has returned
from a 10-day tour of Vietnam, with her string quartet, and is hoping
one day to make it to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
In the midst of budget cut debates throughout Park Ridge/Niles School
District 64 -- and music departments in other suburban schools -- McCue is
an example of someone whose discovery of an instrument in that
district's orchestra program has significantly altered her life.
"I really couldn't be happier choosing the viola -- there's been a lot of
opportunities with this instrument -- it's always needed in the different
ensembles," McCue said. Since she started playing in the 4th grade,
McCue has performed with most of the Park Ridge and Illinois civic
orchestras, including the Lincoln Middle School Concert Orchestra, Maine
South High School Symphony and Chamber Orchestras, Park Ridge Civic
Orchestra, Midwest Young Artists Symphonic Orchestra and the Illinois
All-State Orchestra. Now, she is a sophomore at Lawrence University in
Wisconsin and is planning to study either music performance or
musicology in graduate school before becoming a professional violist.
The Sun Journal, Lewiston, Maine
July 30, 2004
Headline: Baritone's concert to benefit music fund
Excerpt: Baritone Jacob Allen will perform works by Mozart, Thurmaier,
Wolf, Ravel, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Sondheim, Porter, Brown and Schwartz.
Allen recently graduated from Lawrence University in Appleton,
Wis., with a bachelor of music degree in voice performance and a
bachelor's in theater arts. While in college, Allen won first place in
the Wisconsin National Association of Teachers of Singing competition in
both the lower- and upper-college music theater divisions. Allen hopes
to make a career in music theater performance. Before that, he'll spend
next year at Lawrence as the assistant director of conservatory
admissions before attending graduate school to work on a master of fine
arts in acting.
The Journal Times, Racine, Wisconsin
July 29, 2004
Headline: To Russia, with love. Reading "Crime and Punishment" started
Prairie graduate on road that's taking her to Russia for 10 months
Byline: David Steinkraus
Excerpt: Books take your mind on a journey, but for Courtney Doucette it
was just one book that is now leading her to the other side of the world.
"At Prairie (School) we have to read Dostoyevsky's "Crime and Punishment"
our sophomore year, and I was just totally fascinated with Dostoyevsky's
works. I had this crazy idea my freshman year of college that if I studied
Russian I'd actually be able to understand Russian literature better. I didn't
know it would take me an entire life just to learn Russian to be able to read
Russian literature in the original." Now Doucette, a brand new graduate of
Lawrence University, is the winner of a Fulbright Scholarship that will
enable her to travel to Russia for about 10 months. Her studies at Lawrence
were in history and Russian, and she'll put both to use in her Fulbright project.
She intends to study how Russians are rewriting their history [in the post-Soviet
era]. Between now and the end of August, when she leaves for St. Petersburg, she's
spending four hours a day at an intensive Russian language course at Indiana
University in Bloomington. Even though she studied Russian in college, it's not
enough. "It's really complex for English speakers." While the Fulbright program
won't require her to write a report on the results of her study, Doucette plans
a more formal study for herself. She's enrolled for a master's degree program
in Russian studies at the European University in St. Petersburg.
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Milwaukee
July 27, 2004
Headline: New small ship would be a big discovery. Diver
suggests that he's found the Great Lakes' 1st European shipwreck
Byline: Dan Egan
Excerpt: Treasure hunter Steve Libert has spent much of the past three
decades scouring the bottom of Lake Michigan for stockpiles of lost
gold. He's never found so much as a nugget, but now the 50-year-old is
hinting that he might have struck upon something some would see as far
more precious -- the lost Griffin, the first European ship to sail the
Great Lakes, and the first to sink. Researchers are dubious that the
fabled vessel from the 17th century has finally been found. "It's
possible, but I'd be very surprised," said Ron Mason, a professor
emeritus of anthropology at Lawrence University. "If it sank into
very shallow water, then it was probably broken up by wave action. If it
sank into deeper water, then there would be a good chance of
preservation, but it would be very hard to find." The Griffin, built by
French explorer Robert La Salle, was last spotted in September 1679 off
the tip of the Door Peninsula. Loaded down with furs, it was bound for
the eastern Great Lakes but was never seen again. The theory is that it
was lost somewhere between what is now Wisconsin's Rock Island State
Park and the Straits of Mackinac. Ship is not even a word that people
today likely would use to describe the Griffin. Historian George Irving
Quimby wrote in 1966 that records from the time of its construction
indicate it was a sailboat no more than 40 feet long -- scarcely a
worthy life raft aboard some of today's 1,000-foot Great Lakes
freighters. "It wasn't terribly big by our standards, but it was a
monster to the Indians who saw it," Mason said. Mason said La Salle and
his crew arrived at Rock Island on its maiden voyage. There, most of the
men, including La Salle, departed the ship and headed south on Lake
Michigan by canoe. The Griffin, loaded with furs for the return trip,
departed for the east from Rock Island with a skeleton crew. It was
never seen again. Mason said the ship most surely sank before the
Straits of Mackinac, where Lakes Michigan and Huron meet. "There was
already some French people at the straits and had the Griffin passed
there, it seems likely to me we would have some record of that," he
said. "My guess is the vessel went down somewhere in northern Lake
Michigan, and it probably went down in the terrible storm that hit the
area in late September of 1679."
Gannett News Service, McLean, Virigina
July 27, 2004
Headline: Edwards' lack of experience could cost clout among voters
Byline: Raju Chebium
Excerpt: Democrats will showcase the youthful Edwards in an effort to
woo undecided voters during their convention. But two facts cloud
Edwards' sunny outlook: The South Carolina native is one of the
least-experienced Democratic and Republican vice presidential candidates
in recent memory, and Edwards likely won't help the Democratic ticket
win his home state of North Carolina. Most vice presidential candidates,
going back to the 1960 election, have had more than the six years of
elective office experience that Edwards brings to the table. Edwards'
telegenic good looks, though, may more than make up for his lack of
experience, analysts say. "There is absolutely no way that if this were
a radio-dominated political medium, (Edwards) would have been chosen,"
said Jerald Podair, a presidential historian at Lawrence
University in Appleton, Wis. "It's all about visuals." Despite his
appealing image, Edwards won't help the Democrats win his own home
state, according to a CNN-USA TODAY-Gallup Poll in July. The poll of 848
registered voters in North Carolina showed Bush-Cheney ahead of
Kerry-Edwards 54 percent to 39 percent among likely voters. But by
choosing Edwards, who was the top pick of party insiders, Kerry got a
6-point bounce nationwide, the poll showed.
The Bay City Times, Bay City, Michigan
July 26, 2004
Headline: The keys to success
Byline: Kelli Cynecki
Excerpt: Derek Herzer prefers to let the music speak for itself.
The 20-year-old Gaylord resident can't explain how he is able to
memorize classical masterpieces in a few days or create songs by hearing
a melody in his dreams, despite having little formal training on the
piano. But when he sits behind a piano, he can demonstrate his gift of music.
For most of his life, Herzer's parents -- and Herzer himself -- never
realized he had a natural ability to play the piano and create music. He
began playing the piano four years ago. His talent is uncanny, says Anthony
Padilla, an associate professor and
piano department chair at Lawrence University Conservatory of Music in
Wisconsin and an instructor at Bay View's Conservatory of Music in
Petoskey. He began giving lessons to Herzer earlier this summer.
"He is playing some of the most difficult music with no background,"
Padilla said. "In a way it's been a bit of a disadvantage to not have
continuous guidance. Most music majors have had formal lessons since
they were 5. But still, what he has been able to accomplish on his own,
I am amazed."
Csmonitor.com, Christian Science Monitor, Boston, Massachusetts
July 2004
Headline: Ten unforgettable convention gaffes. Five enduring convention highlights
Byline: Josh Burek
Excerpt: As Republican and Democratic delegates prepare for the confetti
and balloons of nomination night, party planners are minding the
mistakes -- and stealing the successes -- of conventions past. The
Monitor talked to political historians to round up some of the most
famous gaffes and highlights in political-convention history.
Ballot marathon & KKK debate dooms party -- In a marathon of nominee-wrangling, Democratic delegates used over 100 ballots at their 1924 convention in New York before finally settling on John Davis, who eventually lost to Republican Calvin Coolidge. What's worse, the party became bitterly divided over planks related to the Ku Klux Klan and Prohibition. "It doesn't get much dirtier than the [Democrats] in 1924," says Jerald Podair, who teaches modern US political history at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisc.
Goldwater's bravado backfires -- Goldwater's remarks scared voters, and Lyndon Johnson won in a landslide. His most famous line -- "Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice; moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue" -- later became a motto of the libertarian movement. When liberal rival Nelson Rockefeller stood to deliver a concession speech, Goldwater supporters heckled him. It was an act of "monumental stupidity," says Podair. "With that heckling went any remote chance of [Goldwater's election.]"
McGovern's nocturnal nomination speech -- If you don't remember George McGovern's acceptance speech, you're not alone. By the time the Democratic candidate overcame delegate feuding and poor floor management to accept the nomination, half the country was asleep. His post-midnight acceptance speech from Miami Beach, Florida was like a tree falling in a forest: virtually no one heard it. "Since then, conventions have become much more choreographed," says Podair.
Bryan stirs crowd with 'cross of gold' speech -- William Jennings Bryan gave a fiery populist speech at the Democratic convention in Chicago, promoting the "free silver" movement with gripping rhetoric. Delegates applauded for nearly half an hour. "It was a moment of high drama, the kind of moment we'll never seen again," says Podair.
The Forum, Fargo, North Dakota
Headline: Reagan funeral challenging assignment
Byline: Terry DeVine
July 14, 2004
Excerpt: I missed the boat recently when I wrote about Fargo native Josh
Lies playing for the U.S. Air Force Band in President Ronald Reagan's
Washington funeral ceremonies. I forgot about his sister, Kirsten.
Kirsten Lies-Warfield, 32, a 1990 Fargo North graduate, also played in
the funeral. She plays trombone in the 99-piece U.S. Army Band, which
led the funeral procession down Constitution Avenue to the steps of the
Capitol. She's been playing trombone since she was 12. She appropriated
her father's trombone when she left for college at Lawrence
University in Appleton, Wis. "It (the Reagan funeral) was the
hardest mission I've done in the band," says Lies-Warfield, who joined
the band on Jan. 5, 1999. "It was 90 degrees. Because it was so high
profile and there were so many people involved, we ended up being on our
feet (in wool uniforms) for so long and were fighting dehydration. We
stood in place for 45 minutes at parade rest before we even stepped
off." Lies-Warfield, who has a master's degree in music from Indiana
University and is working on her doctorate of musical art at Indiana,
says how the band looks is almost as important as how it sounds.
The Honolulu Advertiser, Honolulu, Hawaii
July 6, 2004
Headline: Students pay tribute to former band teacher
Byline: Christie Wilson
Excerpt: More than the music, former students of Baldwin High School
band teacher Saburo Watanabe remember when he would take time out from
class to talk to them about the important things in life, like being a
good citizen and a high achiever. Watanabe, 84, was in the band at
Washington Intermediate and McKinley High School, graduating in 1937.
After a year at the University of Hawaii, he enrolled in the Lawrence
University Conservatory of Music in Wisconsin. After graduating in
1941, he took a job as a regular teacher at Ola'a Elementary near Hilo.
Then came Pearl Harbor. A large number of band teachers in Hawaii at the
time were mainlanders, he said, and many decided to pack it up after the
war broke out. That left vacancies for Watanabe and others. In 1942, he
took a position at Baldwin, which had opened two years earlier with one
of the finest auditoriums in the territory. But he interrupted his
teaching career in 1943 to volunteer for the 442nd Regimental Combat
Team. Watanabe said that when he returned to Baldwin in 1946, the band
program "was a shambles." Many students had dropped from the program and
instruments had been appropriated by Marines stationed on Maui. A fellow
teacher told Watanabe about a heap of discarded musical instruments he
had found at the military dump. Most were pretty banged up, but Watanabe
thought they could be salvaged. By 1947, the Baldwin High School band
program was ready to hold its first spring concert, a tradition that has
continued through the years. By 1948, the band had three separate units
totalling 107 members, plus two beginning classes.
At least a dozen of Watanabe's students have gone on to become band
teachers or music educators.
The Long Island Press, Garden City, New York
July 1, 2004
Headline: Stern and the swingers. Can Howard really throw Bush out of
office?
Byline: Kenny Herzog
Excerpt: Howard Stern firmly believes he can make a difference this
November. He recently told Washington, D.C., political newspaper The
Hill that his "show has a lot of influence among swing voters, voters
who are not Republican or Democrat, but intelligent enough to vote for
the good candidate." Without a doubt, Stern's loyal throngs of nearly
nine million weekly listeners would follow him to the ends of the Earth.
But will Stern's soldiers follow him to the polls, and enter a realm of
proactive political force that the radio legend himself only recently
steered into? That same 30-year-old contractor who tunes into K-Rock at
8 a.m. each day and relates to Stern's rants against censorship and FCC
Chairman Powell also has two kids, a mortgage and an SUV that requires
20 gallons of overpriced oil a week. "Swing states are going to be
decided by gas prices, jobs, security -- not the FCC and Howard Stern,"
posits Christian Grose, an assistant professor of government at
Lawrence University in Wisconsin. "Anyone on the radio has impact
and can do things, but with politics, there's a lot of media outlets and
a lot of sources that people get information from. If there are people
who are disaffected listeners who are younger, they might get interested
in the election by listening to (Stern) complain, they may go evaluate
their choice on other factors, and they might end up voting for Bush,"
says Grose. "There's definitely something about media attention getting
people interested in an election -- but people are not automatons who
then sort of follow their leader and go cast a ballot. If this election
is really close, I mean literally, if it's a few hundred votes like in
Florida, this can make a difference," concurs Grose. "But if this
election ends up being, which I think it will be, about other issues, he
probably doesn't make that much of a difference." In the end, we may
never be able to statistically trace Stern's impact, and it could be
debated anecdotally for years to come. That said, no matter what, as
Grose puts it, "He's raised awareness among a group of people about
censorship and civil liberties that I don't think his listeners would
have thought about much." So regardless of who's in office come '05,
Stern's vigilante campaign, which has ultimately tackled issues of not
just censorship, but scientific research and military policy, may
influence the voting tendencies of millions of Americans for many
elections to come.
The Cleveland Plain Dealer, Cleveland, Ohio
June 30, 2004
Headline: Helmut Krueger, Gould physicist
Byline: Richard M. Peery
Excerpt: Helmut H.A. Krueger, 78, a retired research physicist whose
specialty was tracking devices for submarines and torpedoes, died Sunday
in Galesburg, Ill. During the 35 years he worked for Gould Inc., he also
was involved in the enhancement of stereophonic sound amplification and
other electronics technologies. Krueger, born in Heeren-Wevre, Germany,
was reared in Appleton, Wis. He entered Lawrence University in
Appleton on a science scholarship, then went into the Navy and was
stationed in the Pacific during World War II. After the war, he returned
to Lawrence where he graduated magna cum laude and was elected to the
Phi Beta Kappa Society. Krueger worked at Argonne Laboratories in
Illinois before moving to Cleveland to be on the staff of the National
Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, which became the National
Aeronautics and Space Administration. Donations may be
made to the Helmut H.A. Krueger Scholarship Fund, Lawrence University.
The Telegraph-Herald, Dubuque, Iowa
June 21, 2004
Headline: Have you heard?
Byline: Telegraph-Herald Staff
Excerpt: Ultimate garden tour: A former Dubuque women toured the
classical gardens of the Orient this spring as part of a college
cultural exchange. Meadow Brennan spent four days in Japan and five days
in China and saw 20 gardens in all, some which were created 600 years
ago. There were "strolling gardens" and "dry gardens," a water village,
temples and ancient cities. The trip was funded through a $1.5 million
grant from the Freeman Foundation to Lawrence University in Appleton,
Wis. Brennan graduated from Lawrence last month with a double-major in
psychology and religious studies. She is unsure of her future plans, but
might teach English in Japan or China before going to graduate school in
the U.S. She graduated from Dubuque Senior High School in 2000. "We
examined the gardens as an art form. It was a great opportunity to learn
about both cultures," said Brennan, who has developed a greater
appreciation for occidental gardens as a result of her trip.
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Milwaukee
June 20, 2004
Headline: Richard Warch takes five. A long tenure at Lawrence
Byline: Nahal Toosi
Excerpt: Richard Warch has served as president of Lawrence University
for 25 years, a breathtaking length as far as modern college
administrators go. Warch, a Williams College and Yale University
graduate, is the second-longest-serving president in the history of the
private liberal arts institution in Appleton. The 64-year-old Warch, who
also is an ordained Presbyterian minister, retires at the end of this
month. He plans to spend his retirement in Door County. The Journal
Sentinel's Nahal Toosi interviewed him as he prepared for his final days
at the university's helm.
Q. How has your role as a college president changed in the last 25 years?
A. The job has increased in its pace but not in its range of obligations. To be president of a small residential undergraduate college, I think, means, or can mean, one is involved with all aspects of the institution from student life to faculty to the academic program to the Board of Trustees to external affairs, namely fund raising and the like. . . . Certainly the advent of the computer and word processing and the Internet has (meant) that more gets done in a workday than perhaps was the case 25 years ago.
Q. Lawrence likes to think of itself as the Harvard of the Midwest. Aren't you setting your sights too low?
A. Actually, Harvard is the Lawrence of the East, as we see it. . . . Harvard recently announced that it was proposing a curriculum change of some magnitude, and as I've looked at the executive summary of what they're thinking of doing and the news reports, there are many ways in which Harvard is seeking to do for its undergraduates what Lawrence and like national selective liberal arts colleges have been doing for a long time, whether it's foreign student programs or requiring students to take science courses that involve laboratory components or having a freshman program that deals with the faculty broadly. Those are things that we've done for a long, long time.
Q. Twenty-five years is a long time to be a president. Couldn't the university have used some new blood earlier?
A. It may well have -- that's not mine to say. Whether the university could have used new blood, that's a matter of perspective and point of view. Some may answer that affirmatively. There are others who say longevity does have its virtues. I think the president who stays awhile gets to know the place very intimately, gets to know its alumni very well . . . has an opportunity to speak to the college community broadly . . . so I think there's some virtue to that continuity. I didn't accept the job in 1979 expecting that I would stay for 25 years, but then again I didn't have any time frame in mind.
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Milwaukee
June 16, 2004
Headline: Racine woman named a Fulbright scholar
Excerpt: Courtney Doucette of Racine has been named a Fulbright scholar.
The Prairie School alumna, who just graduated from Lawrence University,
will use her $23,000 grant to study Russian history for 10 months at the
European University in St. Petersburg, Russia. She was among more than
5,000 people who applied for the annual fellowship program.
Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minnesota
June 10, 2004
Headline: Ronald Reagan: No Lincoln, but close
Byline: Jerald Podair
Attribution: Podair is an associate professor of American history at Lawrence
University, Appleton, Wis.
Excerpt: Let's get one thing straight. There will never be another
Abraham Lincoln. No American president will ever measure up to him. None
possessed his combination of vision, courage, principle, eloquence and
humor. But that said, Ronald Reagan came close. Lincoln was unique, but
Reagan came as near as any president to replicating his virtues in a
20th-century setting. Political partisanship still swirls around
Reagan's life and career, of course, and it will take the passing of our
own generation to allow him a historical reckoning uncolored by the
biases of his contemporaries. Both Lincoln and Reagan saw what their
critics did not. They saw that slavery and anti-communism were issues
that went to the heart of American identity and to the question of what
kind of nation America would be. And this was so because both slavery
and anti-communism were essential to defining America's central value:
freedom. Lincoln and Reagan understood that even equality lost its
meaning without freedom -- the opportunity for all Americans, and all
human beings, to rise to the level of their abilities, in their own
ways, on their own terms. And no, this issue of freedom could not be
compromised or passed along to a future generation. It had to be faced,
and decided, then and there by Lincoln's generation of Americans, and by
Reagan's.
The Daily Southtown, Tinley Park, Illinois
June 6, 2004
Headline: D-Day: A generational legacy unlikely to be matched
Byline: Kati Phillips
Excerpt: June 6, 1944 -- D-Day -- marked the beginning of the end of a
tyrant's hold over Europe. Some 160,000 men stormed the beaches of
Nazi-occupied France, spilling forth from the biggest armada in history,
with more than 5,000 ships and landing craft. The young Americans who
fought to free France and defeat Adolf Hitler would, in time, become
known as the Greatest Generation. The young Americans at war today are
fighting another enemy. But youths, historians and even troops back from
the sands of Baghdad doubt this fight will leave the same, indelible
legacy as the one being honored today. Nearly 60 million soldiers and
civilians died in World War II, an effort that touched every household
in the country. But today's war on terror is a more ambiguous struggle,
one without a clear enemy, and it does not compare to World War II in
size, ferocity or meaning. Still, President Bush has compared the fight
against terror to that struggle against tyranny. Casualties in Iraq and
Afghanistan are minimal in comparison. The sheer numbers play into the
depth of a war's impact, according to history professor Jerald Podair of
Lawrence University in Appleton, Wis. Sixteen million people
served in World War II between 1939 and 1945, one out of every nine
Americans. The draft enlisted men between the ages of 18 and 45. A life
was taken every three seconds. "The war on terror will not have anything
near the impact on Generations X and Y that World War II had on the
Greatest Generation for a simple reason: They did not serve in it," he
said. One percent of Americans have served in either Operation Iraqi
Freedom or Operation Enduring Freedom. Combat operations lasted 41 days
and claimed 138 American military lives. Just over 675 have died in
flashes of combat since major operations ended.
Journal Star, Lincoln, Nebraska
June 5, 2004
Headline: Harry Potter: Good spell or bad spell?
Byline: Erin Andersen
Excerpt: One sees him as evil -- "the entry point into the demonic, New
Age world for thousands of young Catholics." Another sees him as a moral
compass for youth -- a person who will do what is right and good, even
if it means breaking a few rules along the way. Both are talking about
the same person -- Harry Potter. Rarely has a fictional character been
so loved and so hated, so revered and so demonized as this adolescent
with a lightning bolt scar on his forehead. Harry Potter ranks seventh
among the most frequently banned books of 1990-2000, according to the
American Library Association. The good news is that "we haven't seen any
of the dire consequences that were predicted," said Edmund M. Kern,
associate professor of history at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wis.,
and author of "The Wisdom of Harry Potter." "Religious critics of the
book haven't been able to show that kids have been corrupted by an
increased interest in magic or occult topics," he said in a telephone
interview. And when there is an increased interest in magic, it is from
a historical -- rather than religious -- perspective, he said. "I have
seen no data to suggest that this has led to increased immorality or
conversion to neo-pagan beliefs or beliefs associated with modern
witchcraft," Kern said. In fact, even a number of fundamentalist
Christians have written strident defenses of the Harry Potter books,
Kern said. The result? The Potter doom and gloom furor has diminished
somewhat. But Potter's popularity has not. Kern sees that as a good
thing, because Harry Potter is filled with strong moral lessons of
stoicism "one that emphasizes personal responsibility in circumstances
beyond an individual's control. "Harry is both a victim of fate and a
hero free to chart his own future," he said. "That is one of the most
important moral lessons from the book. Everyone finds himself or herself
in circumstances beyond his or her control -- but that doesn't mean we
can abandon responsibility. So while we don't get to choose our fate,
we are free to respond to what chance throws our way."
Exclusively Yours magazine, Milwaukee
June 2004
Headline: The man in charge
Byline: Judy Jepson
Excerpt: For those of you associated with Lawrence University in Appleton, you know that much has been written recently about the university's president, Richard (Rik) Warch, and the fact he will be leaving Lawrence at the end of this month after 25 years as its president. You're already aware that receptions have been held, kudos directed his way and a host of other honors and celebrations have taken place. You are the fortunate ones. You know him and are part of his legacy. And while this article is for you, it's also for those readers who've never met Rik Warch, never read about him or even heard of him ... you have missed a lot. James S. Reeve, III, class of 1995, expressed great admiration for Rik, his accomplishments and how he attained them. "Rik was everywhere. He could be seen walking on campus and engaging students in conversation or cheering on the team at athletic events. Rik didn't rule from an ivory tower, he was involved." Reeve also admired Rik for his terrific ability as an orator "with an uncanny grace and pace." And when a difficult situation came up, "He dealt with it directly and fairly." When promoting a liberal arts education, Rik was among the finest anywhere. So explained Jane Voss Holroyd, class of '61. "Rik was an eloquent spokesperson for a liberal arts education. That inspired students, staff and faculty -- and he made a wonderful connection with the alumni." Accolades and positive sentiments regarding Rik come not only from Lawrence alumni, but from current students as well. Jacques Hacquebord, who will graduate this month, summed up his feelings this way: "Rik helped create the Lawrence University that I love -- that alumni love and care about."
The American Psychological Association's Monitor on Psychology, Washington, D.C.
June 2004
Headline: Sexist countries view men as "bad, but bold"
Byline: L. Winerman
Excerpt: A 16-nation study finds that in less egalitarian countries, both men and women are more likely to hold extremely negative and positive opinions of men's attributes and personal qualities. These opinions, researchers say, reflect and reinforce men's dominance in those countries, because both the negative attributes (such as arrogance and aggressiveness) and the positive attributes (including competence and intelligence) relate to dominance. The study was published in the May issue of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. The study supports "ambivalent sexism theory," a concept that the researchers -- psychologists Peter Glick, PhD, of Lawrence University in Appleton, Wis., and Susan T. Fiske, PhD, of Princeton University -- have been investigating for several years. Ambivalent sexism theory might seem counterintuitive, says Glick, because generally prejudice is associated with bias in favor of the dominent group. But, he says, gender bias appears to work differently. Several studies have shown that even in very sexist countries, women are generally rated more favorably overall because women's perceived positive characteristics, such as warmth, relate directly to likability. In an earlier study, Glick and Fiske found that "hostile sexism" -- hostility toward women who challenge the status quo -- and "benevolent sexism" -- casting women as wonderful but weak -- are mirror images of each other and occur together.
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Milwaukee
May 21, 2004
Headline: Symphony names new chairman. Philanthropist's presence elevates program's
credibility
Byline: Tom Strini
Excerpt: Christopher Abele, the most important arts philanthropist in
Milwaukee, was named chairman-elect of the Milwaukee Symphony at a
special meeting of the orchestra's board of directors Thursday. Landing
him is a major coup for the MSO. To date, his philanthropic attentions
have focused on social causes, the Milwaukee Art Museum, and theater
companies, especially Milwaukee Shakespeare. He was, briefly, a music
major during his undergraduate days at Lawrence University in
Appleton. Abele is known as a hands-on donor who makes sure that his
money is used effectively. His presence greatly enhances the MSO's
credibility and prestige in the donor and business communities. "Chris'
stature and commitment and evolving philanthropy would be good for any
organization," said Deborah Fugenschuh, president of the Donors Forum of
Wisconsin. "He has a really good sense of non-profit management. He
wants to be engaged at all levels of any organization he invests in."
Abele, 37, is president and chief executive officer of the Argosy
Foundation, president of CSA Commercial and CEO of SteriLogic Waste
Systems of Syracuse, N.Y.
Park Ridge Herald-Advocate, Glenview, Illinois
May 20, 2004
Headline: Former student high on school band programs
Byline: Danielle Braff
Excerpt: Shannon McCue started playing viola as part of her school's
orchestra program. Now, a little over a decade later, McCue has returned
from a 10-day tour of Vietnam, with her string quartet, and is hoping
one day to make it to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. In the midst of
budget cut debates throughout Park Ridge/Niles School District 64 -- and
music departments in other suburban schools -- McCue is an example of
someone whose discovery of an instrument in that district's orchestra
program has significantly altered her life. Since she started playing in
the 4th grade, McCue has performed with most of the Park Ridge and
Illinois civic orchestras, including the Lincoln Middle School Concert
Orchestra, Main South High School Symphony and Chamber Orchestras, Park
Ridge Civic Orchestra, Midwest Young Artists Symphonic Orchestra and the
Illinois All-State Orchestra. Now, she is a sophomore at Lawrence
University in Wisconsin and is planning to study either music
performance or musicology in graduate school before becoming a
professional violist. "I honestly think that I have no idea where I
would be if I didn't start playing music," McCue said. "Every single day
since the 4th grade, I was doing something with music -- whether it be
rehearsing or practicing or teaching music. I don't know what I would do
without it."
U.S. News & World Report, Washington, D.C.
May 17, 2004
Section: This Week
Photo Caption: Friends No More. Students at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wis., watch the final episode of the TV fave Friends, which ended last week after a 10-year run.
The Tennessean, Nashville, Tennessee
May 16, 2004
Headline: The cowboy way
Byline: A. Tacuma Roeback
Excerpt: For most, the call of the Old West fades like the rumble of
distant thunder, but for these men, it speaks to their very soul. During
the work week, Charlie Daniels Band manager David Corlew is your typical
hard-working Music Row executive. But on the weekends, the 53-year-old
sheds that persona and assumes one that's perhaps more fitting. Corlew
is a cowboy -- in the most traditional sense of the word. On most
weekends, he and a group of like-minded friends go out on his bucolic
110-acre spread in Wilson County to escape their professional duties and
live the cowboy life. Corlew and his cronies don't model themselves
after those silver-screen versions of cowboys who ride off into the
sunset after defeating the antagonist. Instead, they idolize the
lifestyle of the classic 19th-century American cowboy, the kind who
oftentimes had to drive thousands of cattle by horseback from Texas to
Wyoming, a trip that could take months. "You're inhaling the dust from
the animals; that's not healthy," says Rex Myers, who teaches the
history of the American West at Lawrence University in
northeastern Wisconsin. "You're gonna have bad water. They weren't
chefs, so they probably had bad food. There were stampedes. Unless they
had tents, they were unsheltered. You saw (the movie) City Slickers and
how they made that cattle drive fun? We've romanticized it a lot."
Corlew's crew performs the real duties of a cowboy, and sometimes it
isn't pretty. "It's dirty, nasty, dangerous work," says Myers. "You're
dealing with animals that weigh half a ton, a ton or more. Anytime you
work with large animals, it's a dangerous situation because they are not
prone to gentleness."
Charlotte Observer, Charlotte, North Carolina
May 15, 2004
Headline: Thomas Smith
Byline: The Associated Press
Excerpt: Thomas Smith, who was named in 1972 to the
President's Committee on the National Medal of Science, died Wednesday
at the age of 83. He headed Lawrence University in Appleton from 1969 until his
retirement in 1979, and his tenure as president began with a Vietnam War protest
disrupting his first faculty meeting. He won an appointment by then-Gov. Patrick Lucey
in 1973 as chairman of the newly created state Ethics Board.
[The Associated Press wire story also appeared in the Tallahasse Democrat, Duluth News Tribune, Chicago Daily Herald, and Grand Rapids Press (Michigan), and aired on the Ohio News Network (Columbus, Ohio).]
Carolina Morning News, Bluffton, South Carolina
May 14,2004
Headline: International Young Artists Music Festival premieres May 27-31
Excerpt: An international group of talented young musicians will perform
on Hilton Head Island during the inaugural Young Artists Music Festival
later this month. Nina Rodman, chairman, said, "This unique, world-class
event, which showcases internationally renowned pianist Christopher
O'Riley and six talented young musicians from around the world, has the
potential to bring Hilton Head Island national and even international,
recognition. O'Riley, host of National Public Radio's "From the Top,"
serves as artistic director of the festival. His weekly radio show
encourages and celebrates the development of pre-college youth through
music and is heard on more than 230 stations nationwide. The young
musicians who perform on his show are selected from a nationwide talent
search. O'Riley will bring six international young musical artists he
has personally selected to perform with him who have appeared on "From
the Top." They are: Caitlin Tully, 16, a violinist studying with Itzhak
Perlman; 17-year-old high school senior Alisa Jordheim, a soprano
studying voice at Lawrence University Conservatory of Music; clarinetist
Johnny Teyssier, a 16-year-old sophomore at Interlochen Arts Academy;
Melissa White, 19-year-old violinist and recent graduate of Interlochen
Arts Academy attending the Curtis Institute of Music; Bella Hristova, an
18-year-old violinist/violist from Pleven, Bulgaria, and a first-year
violin student at The Curtis Institute of Music; and 19-year-old Deanna
Talens, a cellist studying at the Hochschule fur Music in Berlin,
Germany, where she was born.
The StarPhoenix, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
May 12, 2004
Headline: Romance of Rachmaninoff. Award-winning pianist special
guest at SSO concert
Byline: Joanne Paulson
Excerpt: Michael Kim's playing of Rachmaninoff's piano concerto No. 2
was once described by a reviewer in volcanic terms: "explosive,
eruptive, fiery, steaming, awesome." The accomplished Canadian pianist
was "incredibly flattered" by that review in the Regina Leader-Post, but
he doesn't think the "Rach 2" always comes off that way. "I think the
way to describe the way I play, it can change from performance to
performance," said Kim in an interview from Appleton, Wisconsin. "One
time I might be in a more dramatic mood, so to speak, so I might play in
a more fiery, more dramatic manner. Another day I might be in a more
subdued mood, and I might play more lyrically and in a more subdued
fashion." Kim is the special guest at the Saskatoon Symphony's final
master series concert Saturday at the Centennial Auditorium. The
associate professor of music at Lawrence University Conservatory
of Music believes in going with the flow. "A lot of it just has to do
with spontaneity. I don't like to go into a performance with a preset
conception. As (famous pianist Vladimir) Horowitz used to tell his
students, if you practice something 100 times, you go out on stage and
play it for the 101st time, and the audience can feel that. You always
want an element of spontaneity there. That spontaneity comes from the
circumstances of the day, your own mood, your feel and read on the mood
of the orchestra and the audience, and you sort of go with that. I think
that is what distinguishes an exceptional performer." Born in Quebec
City, Kim moved to Calgary as a small child and considers that city
home. His studies eventually led him to Juilliard, where he completed
his doctorate and held the Vladimir Horowitz scholarship. He has played
with orchestras all across North America, and has won countless awards.
He was the grand prize winner of the Canadian Music and the CBC National
Radio Competition; he has been awarded many arts study, project, and
touring office grants from the Canada Council and the Alberta Foundation
for the Arts; and in 1994, received the Canada Council's prestigious
career development award.
Boston Globe, Boston, Massachusetts
May 6, 2004
Headline: Campaign ads can mislead voters
Byline: Liz Sidoti, Associated Press
Excerpt: Democrat John Kerry's campaign ad says, "Under George Bush, 3
million Americans have lost their jobs." When gains over the last few
months are factored in, the number is around 1.8 million. President
Bush's commercial claims, "John Kerry will raise taxes by at least $900
billion in his first 100 days in office." The candidate has never
proposed such an increase, and the figure is based on GOP calculations.
Welcome to the world of political advertising, where half-truths,
exaggerations and distortions can make it difficult for voters to tell
fact from fiction. While federal regulations require truth-telling when
advertisers sell soap on television, they don't regulate what candidates
for federal office say about each other. As a result, they can bend or
twist the truth by selectively choosing facts that suit their agendas,
giving voters only a slice of the picture. It's more difficult for
voters to figure out the truth when ads contain "lies of omission," said
Christian Grose, a campaign media expert at Lawrence University
in Appleton, Wis. Bush's campaign has based its ads, which portray Kerry
as weak on national security and favoring tax increases, on isolated
votes and quotes plucked from the Democrat's 19-year Senate career. Yet,
the truth isn't clear-cut in some of Kerry's ads either. One recent
commercial criticizing Bush on his abortion stance claimed the Supreme
Court is "one vote away from outlawing a woman's right to choose." That
was true at one point, but of the current justices, a 6-3 majority has
indicated that women have a constitutional right to end their
pregnancies. Positive ads can be misleading, too, when candidates puff
up their resumes. But those are fairly rare this year. Grose's advice to
voters: "If you want to learn about a candidate, a 30-second ad is not
the best place to go!"
[The Associated Press article also appeared in the London Guardian, Miami Herald, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, San Jose Mercury News, Philadelphia Inquirier, and The State, Columbia, South Carolina.]
The Sheboygan Press, Sheboygan, Wisconsin
May 6, 2004
Headline: City kid makes connection
Byline: Dave Lubach
Excerpt: Seventeen years ago, John Tharp was just like his listening
audience. The 1987 Sheboygan North graduate was one of the dozens of
area seniors attending the Elks Sports Banquet, which annually honors
graduating high school athletes for prep careers well done. When writing
Wednesday's address to the senior athletic letter winners from Sheboygan
North and South and Kohler high schools, Tharp didn't hearken back to
that night; he didn't even remember who spoke. Tharp turned back the
page even further, to Dr. Seuss, and a book Tharp read growing up. A
selection he reads his children today. The title? "Oh, the Places You'll
Go." Tharp has certainly gone places since that Elks Banquet in 1987.
Best-known in these parts as a key reserve guard on North's 1986 state
champion basketball team, today Tharp is the coach at Lawrence
University in Appleton, where he guided the Vikings to an Elite 8
appearance in the NCAA Division III tournament in March. Since taking
over at Lawrence in 1994, Tharp has a record of 122-86, which ranks
third on the school's all-time wins list. Coaches who are 34 years old
and quickly turn around basketball programs are often placed on the fast
track to bigger, more prestigious programs. Tharp dreams of matching
wits with the likes of the Mike Krzyzewski's of the world, but isn't in
any hurry to move up the college basketball rung. "You always think
about that, but I'm at a great academic institution," he said. "The kids
are outstanding and I can be a father and a husband and balance all
three (including coaching). Everybody wants to reach the highest level
in their profession, but I know a lot of people who have lost jobs and
marriages. I hear all the bad things about Division I athletes. Division
III is great. Our players are student-athletes first and foremost. They
play basketball because they love to play." There have been better known
Elks speakers during the 46 years of this event -- Bobby Knight, Bo Ryan,
Dick Bennett and Bart Starr are four that immediately come to mind. But
few could connect with the crowd of local kids like Tharp, a kid from
Sheboygan who's going places.
Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter, Manitowoc
April 10, 2004
Headline: Lutheran grad wins sound design title
Byline: Amy Weaver
Excerpt: Jonathon Roberts doesn't like to be in the spotlight on stage,
so it's no wonder he is modest about his newfound fame. By winning the
American College Theatre Festival's five-state regional sound design
competition at Illinois State University several weeks ago, Roberts
become the first Lawrence University student in any acting or
technical category ever to do so. Roberts, a 2000 graduate of Manitowoc
Lutheran High School and a Lawrence senior, said sound designers are
responsible for all sound elements in a theater production, which might
mean composing your own music, finding music or layering sounds. For the
competition, Roberts said he had to convey to the judges and the public
what he did for Lawrence's production of Shakespeare's "The Winter's
Tale," without having the play there. He put the sound cues on a CD and
used an 8- by 4-foot panel to show how his sounds were created and more
importantly, why. Roberts was responsible for all sound aspects of the
Lawrence production, which included composing nearly 25 minutes worth of
original music for scene changes and underscoring, as well as writing,
the score for four songs that were performed in the play. Roberts won't
graduate from Lawrence until May 2005 because he is working on two
degrees -- one in music composition and one in theatre and drama. He's hoping
to land an internship this summer with either the Steppenwolf Theatre in
Chicago, the Chicago Shakespeare Theatre or the Pacific Conservatory of
Performing Arts in Santa Maria, Calif.
Madison Capital Times, Madison
April 8, 2004
Headline: Steigers shone brightly on political scene
Byline: John Nichols
Excerpt: The death of Janet Steiger last Saturday at age 64 closes the
story of a husband-and-wife team who came as close as Wisconsin has
gotten to a home-state version of John and Jackie Kennedy. Bill and
Janet Steiger were the golden couple of Wisconsin politics in the 1960s
and '70s. Smart, photogenic and filled with personal and political
promise, they were the Republican dream team in the days when the party
was a far more progressive force than it is today in Wisconsin or
nationally. Bill Steiger, the scion of a wealthy and politically
connected Oshkosh family, was the boy wonder of state and national
Republican politics. When he died from a heart attack at age 40, in
1978, his passing was mourned by leaders of both parties, inspiring an
outpouring of genuine sorrow from Oshkosh to Washington. But the Steiger
name did not fade from the spotlight with Bill's death. Janet Steiger, a
Lawrence University graduate who had been a Fulbright Scholar in
Great Britain, was every bit her husband's equal. During the early years
of his political career, she wrote speeches for him and served as a
well-regarded campaign adviser. After his death, she was appointed by a
Democratic president, Jimmy Carter, to the commission that investigated
the crisis at the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant in Pennsylvania.
Carter then appointed her to a Republican seat on the U.S. Postal Rate
Commission. She chaired that commission through the presidency of Ronald
Reagan. President George H.W. Bush appointed her to chair the Federal
Trade Commission in 1989, and her fights against the tobacco companies -
she was the bane of Joe Camel's existence - marked her as such an
independent and courageous commissioner that Bush's Democratic
successor, Bill Clinton, kept her on the job until 1997. Both Bill and
Janet Steiger were old-school Wisconsin Republicans. Genuine moderates
who believed it was possible to forge coalitions across party lines,
they broke through the barriers of ideology and partisanship to create
remarkable legacies of accomplishment. Wisconsin has produced many
impressive political leaders. But, after Bob and Belle La Follette, the
Steigers were Wisconsin's most remarkable political couple.
Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles, California
April 7, 2004
Headline: Janet Steiger, 64. At FTC, she pushed antitrust probe of
Microsoft
Excerpt: Janet Steiger, who pushed the first antitrust investigation of
Microsoft Corp. as head of the Federal Trade Commission, has died. She
was 64. Steiger, the widow of Rep. William A. Steiger (R-Wis.), died
Saturday at her sister's home in Fort Myers, Fla., of an intestinal
infection after suffering from lung cancer. During her tenure as FTC
chairman from 1989 to 1995, Steiger helped restore confidence inside and
outside the agency. Her vote to send the Microsoft case to the U.S.
Justice Department, after the commission had deadlocked twice, was one
example of her decisive management and political skills. After the FTC
closed its Microsoft investigation, the Justice Department pursued the
case and reached a settlement in 1994 over the company's licensing
practices for operating software. Four years later, the Justice
Department filed its landmark antitrust case, which led to court
findings that Microsoft had illegally protected its Windows monopoly.
Under Steiger's leadership, the FTC joined the Justice Department in
1992 in issuing guidelines for analysis of horizontal mergers and
statements on antitrust policy in healthcare and licensing intellectual
property. She also led the FTC's battle against tobacco companies' use
of cartoon characters like Joe Camel to appeal to young people, took on
credit repair clinics and began efforts to thwart telephone solicitation
that evolved into the "do not call" list. A native of Oshkosh and a
graduate of Lawrence University in Appleton, Wis., the former
Janet Dempsey was a Fulbright scholar concentrating on medieval
literature at the University of Reading in England. In 1965, she
published the book "Law Enforcement and Juvenile Justice in Wisconsin,"
and in 1978 was coauthor of "To Light One Candle: A Handbook on
Organizing, Funding and Maintaining Public Service Projects."
The Guardian, London, England
April 5, 2004
Headline: Janet Steiger, congressman's widow, dies
Byline: The Associated Press
Excerpt: Janet Steiger, a congressman's widow appointed by four
presidents to several posts including head of the Federal Trade
Commission, died after a brief illness, her sister said. She was 64. In
her years of government service, Steiger investigated the nuclear power
plant accident at Three Mile Island and helped set postal rates. While
FTC chairwoman, the Oshkosh native was instrumental in the first
government actions against tobacco companies over the use of cartoon
characters to target youths, said her son, Bill Steiger, an assistant to
Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson. Steiger, a graduate
of Lawrence University in Appleton, was a Fulbright scholar who
studied medieval literature at the University of Reading in England.
Janet Steiger served in federal posts under presidents of both parties
-- two Democrats and two Republicans.
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
April 4, 2004
Headline: Steiger served presidents, and consumers, in U.S. jobs.
She led federal trade and postal rate commissions
Byline: Meg Jones
Excerpt: Janet Steiger took on Joe Camel and won, investigated the Three
Mile Island nuclear power plant accident, set postal rates and served
under four presidents. Not bad for an Oshkosh native who started her
career of public service by helping her husband campaign for the
Wisconsin Legislature and U.S. Congress. As chairwoman of the Federal
Trade Commission in the 1980s and '90s, she was instrumental in bringing
the first governmental actions against tobacco companies for using
cartoon characters to target youths. The Federal Trade Commission
administers federal consumer, truth-in-lending and antitrust laws. Under
her leadership, the commission expanded its duties to reach out more to
consumers. President Jimmy Carter appointed her to a commission
investigating the cause of the Three Mile Island accident. Then Carter
named her to one of the Republican seats on the U.S. Postal Rate
Commission. President Ronald Reagan appointed her to lead the commission
in 1981, and she did that for eight years. Under President George H.W.
Bush, she became the chairwoman of the Federal Trade Commission in 1989
and stayed on the job through President Bill Clinton's tenure. She was
head of the commission until 1995 and spent two more years as a member.
Her husband was Republican Rep. William A. Steiger, who represented the
6th Congressional District from Wisconsin and was widely regarded as a
rising leader in the House when he died of a heart attack in 1978 at age
40. A Lawrence University graduate, Janet Steiger was a Fulbright
Scholar who studied medieval literature at the University of Reading in
England.
The Times, London, England
March 27, 2004
Headline: Space odyssey
Byline: Jeffrey Podolsky
Excerpt: From desolate factories to concrete caves, no venue is too
unlikely for the shows dreamt up by modern art visionary Alanna Heiss.
Heiss, who with her tweed skirt, poloneck and hair in a bun could be
mistaken for a school marm, is nothing if not observant: she possesses
one of the keenest pairs of eyes in the art world. As founder and
director of P.S.1, the largest contemporary arts centre in the U.S.,
Heiss is at the forefront of the alternative space movement, which
exhibits art in abandoned buildings. Until Heiss came along in 1976,
P.S.1 was a deserted Victorian schoolhouse in Long Island City, Queens.
It has since displayed the works of countless contemporary artists,
including Robert Rauschenberg, Jean-Michel Basquiat (Heiss introduced
the then-unheard-of Basquiat in a 1981 show New York, New Wave), and,
more recently, English artists such as Tim Noble and Sue Webster and
photographer Paul Graham. Heiss is an originator who has reimagined how
to make the viewing of art possible in venues that could hardly be more
removed from the hallowed confines of traditional museums and galleries
- whether it be concrete caves underneath the Brooklyn Bridge
(accompanied by music by a fledgling Philip Glass), a desolate factory
in Coney Island, or a cavernous warehouse in the Bowery. No stranger to
royalty, Heiss recently met the King of Sweden to thank him for awarding
her "the order of the polar bear" (ie, the Royal Swedish Order of the
Polar Star). Heiss's life has had
all the quixotic novelty of a woman who would revolutionise
site-specific art. The daughter of teachers, she was brought up in
Illinois and graduated from Lawrence University in Wisconsin
after being awarded a scholarship from the Lawrence Conservatory of
Music. In the late Sixties, she moved to New York, where she first
encountered the abstract expressionist painters and began to rub elbows
with pop artists such as Red Grooms. At Max's Kansas City, a stamping
ground for comers of all stripes, she mingled with many of the minimal
and conceptual artists with whom she would later work, including
Laurence Weiner and Robert Smithson. Heiss -- considered one of the most
influential curators in the world -- has directed more than 500 shows.
Married to a Manhattan corporate lawyer, she sports a hefty diamond ring
that was given to her recently by her husband in honour of their 20th
anniversary. "It's almost too big to lift my hand," she quips. But it
will take more than an oversized ring to weigh down this slightly
eccentric genius as she travels the world championing innovative,
experimental contemporary art. It is her mission to enlighten others so
that they, too, can envision what she feels. "It's kind of an aesthetic
eye surgery," she says. "You can be blind and suddenly see. You see
through the eyes of an artist -- the way that artist is seeing something
-- and it shifts your visual images and your memories. Art really can
change your life."
Miami Herald, Miami, Florida
March 24, 2004
Headline: Appleton, Wis., riverfront continues development process
Byline: Pete Bach, The Appleton Post-Crescent, Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News
Excerpt: The year 2004 is shaping up as a sort of watershed moment -- no
pun intended -- in the revitalization of a long neglected riverfront.
Appleton, Neenah and Menasha are all embarking on a combination of new
residential, commercial and recreational uses that have been on the
books for years. At the same time, a massive environmental cleanup is
underway as officials seek to remove PCBs from the Fox. Appleton has a
solid private sector development base on which to build on along the
river. No where is the transformation more dramatic than Lawrence
University, which commissioned Sasaki Associates, Watertown, Mass.,
to come up with a campus plan in 1995. "Campus buildings essentially
ignored the river and its views," said Gregory A. Volk, executive vice
president at the university. "They told us to start embracing the river
rather than turning our backs on it." That was then. Now, in early 2004,
three bold new structures peer from the north bank toward the river, not
the campus green. Briggs Hall, the $11.5 million home to classrooms,
labs and offices for the social sciences, went up in 1997. Three years
later, Science Hall, a $19 million home of the natural sciences, was
built. Possibly the grandest is Hiett Hall, a residency facility that
houses 183 students which opened last year. "This state-of-the-art
residence hall with spectacular river views has become not only the most
popular place to live but a social gathering spot for the entire student
body," Volk said. That's $46 million-worth of new construction at LU in
six years, all of it thanks to the masters of the craft, The Boldt Co.
of Appleton.