• McMahon Assesses Democracy's Growth at Harpur Forum
• First Person Singular: Charles Doran `89
• Spanos Honored by Former Students
• Ruth Stone Wins Second Prestigious Prize
• Harpur's Gillan Writes "Italian Women in Black Dresses"
• Harpur Alumnus Recognized for Research at Penn State
• Harpur Friends & Family
• Shop Harpur Online
• Back Issues

McMahon Assesses Democracy's Growth at Harpur Forum

Will democracy continue to grow around the world? Will the Middle East ever see political freedom? Edward McMahon, director of the Center for Democratic Performance and the Dean's Professor of Applied Politics, addressed these questions and others to a packed audience at the Harpur Forum in a presentation titled, "The Global Democratic Revolution: Chimera or Certainty?"

Around the world, more governments are adopting democracy. Using information from Freedom House's Annual Survey of Political Rights and Civil Liberties, to which he is a contributor and which is a widely respected tool for gauging democracy around the world, "Between 1972 and 2002, the percentage of the world's population that lives in full democracies rose from 355 to 42%," said McMahon. The percentage in countries in the "partially free" category rose from 17% to 21%, but McMahon cautioned that "partially free" is a relative term and can include both countries that are becoming more democratic and those that are not.

Despite regional and ethnic rivalries, the threat of terrorism, negative reactions to globalization and economic disparities, McMahon argued that democracy is likely to continue its unprecedented global expansion. As part of this perspective, he assessed the pace and extent of democratic change in different regions around the world.

With the exception of Haiti and Cuba, all of Latin America is now considered to be either partly or completely free. McMahon noted serious problems of governance in many countries, but also emphasized that the military has refrained from taking power in unstable countries such as Argentina and Venezuela -- a clear break from previous patterns of governance in the region. The problems that Latin America faces, he suggested, are not those of whether democracy is the best form of government, but how best and effectively it can be implemented.

Eastern Europe has seen the most change in the last fifteen years. McMahon noted the differentiation between central Europe, which is mostly free, Eastern Europe, which is largely partly free, and the central Asian republics, which are not free. He attributed this to varying prior experiences with democratization and different levels of civic activism in the transition process.

McMahon is an expert in African democracy, having worked in over 25 countries on the continent (see related story). "We hear a lot of the negative, but many countries have made enormous strides," he said, citing recent peaceful political transitions in Kenya, Ghana and Senegal. Many other countries, such as Nigeria and Mozambique, are partially free and in a fragile state. "Gradual transition is key," McMahon said, emphasizing the positive example of South Africa in constructing a political system that minimizes the number of losers, and fosters participation in the process.

"The argument that Asian values aren't consistent with democracy used to be frequently made," said McMahon, "but over the past 15 years, there have been some important positive changes." South Korea and Taiwan have turned democratic because of economic growth and an emerging middle class. The Philippines and Indonesia represent countries seeking to address challenges of ethnicity and economic development in a democratic fashion. Japan has maintained its postwar democratic tradition, and India and Bangladesh reflect the reality that democracy is possible, even in developing world contexts. Some countries, like Pakistan, continue to experience a revolving door of civilian and military rule. China remains a wild card. "We can't predict if China will relax its political control as its economy grows," said McMahon.

The Middle East and North Africa have so far made little progress in adopting democratic institutions, but McMahon argued that Islam should not be viewed as the single critical factor. "Over 50% of the world's Muslim population live in democratic countries," he explained. In addition, some key countries' economies are not fueled by a middle class, but by oil revenues, which are controlled by a small ruling class which has impeded democratic development. However, some change is happening. McMahon cited calls for democracy in countries across the region and significant progress in Morocco, Oman and Bahrain, which recently held its first parliamentary election. He said while the region is not hopeless, it is "the toughest nut to crack." The Turkish experiment, in which an Islamic-oriented party has taken power with the expressed intent of proving that Islam and democracy can coexist, deserves considerable attention.

McMahon showed slides that highlighted some important features of the relationship between democracy and economic development. One demonstrated that a significant number of low-income nations also had democratic forms of government, which suggests that democracy is not solely a form of government for rich countries. Another showed a link between countries' gross domestic product (GDP) and democracy -- 89% of the world's GDP comes from free countries. McMahon also predicted that as freedom spreads around the world, America will have more disagreements with democratic countries. Democracy does not automatically ensure peaceful relations with the U.S. and we will have to respect other nations' rights to govern themselves. "Not everyone wants to do it our way," he said.

However, democracy will continue to grow and more nations will choose government for the people, by the people, and not look back. McMahon concluded, "A good version of Pandora's Box, one of democracy, has been opened. With the communications revolution and the spread of knowledge about democracy, it will be very hard for it to be closed again."

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First Person Singular: Charles Doran `89

Executive Director of Mediation Works Incorporated and President of the New England Chapter of the Association for Conflict Resolution

Must all fights end in the courtroom? Charles Doran `89, founder and executive director of Mediation Works Incorporated (MWI) says no. By bringing disputes to mediation, people can avoid lengthy court cases, embarrassing office fights, and painful custody battles that cost thousands and disrupt the lives of everyone around them. Doran told the Harpur Hotline about his career and some of his memories from Binghamton.

Conflict has always been fascinating to me. It takes on a variety of forms and still remains an enigma after ten years of practice. I graduated with a B.A. in Philosophy in 1989 and moved from upstate New York to Boston. I was considering law school, but I learned about mediation, which essentially is assisted negotiation. Instead of serving as an advocate for one party, as lawyers do, I studied how to help two disputing parties bridge a resolution. Boston is recognized as one of the pioneer territories for alternative dispute resolution (ADR). It helps people work out a mutually-beneficial resolution to their dispute. It preserves relationships, is less expensive than litigation, and has less of an emotional toll. I did training in mediation and completed a graduate program in dispute resolution at the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School in 1993.

At that time, I was eager to refine and hone my skills as a mediator, so I decided to start a company that would work to bring disputants to the mediation table. I set up Mediation Works Incorporated in 1994. MWI helps resolve employment disputes in businesses, governmental, and nonprofit organizations and we provide dispute resolution services to five of the seven trial courts in Massachusetts. We also train employees of all levels in mediation, negotiation and conflict-resolution skills.

Conflict seems to be a growth industry. People are realizing the benefits of mediation. Say there is a supervisor and employee who are having difficulty. Instead of the company firing or transferring one of them, which won't address the problem, we will sit down with both parties and have them explain their point of view to each other so they understand the other's core interests, such as having their ideas valued. Often times, there are personal or ego-driven impediments to that. A mediator will help them talk through a solution that works for both people. Mediation can also help a divorcing couple communicate respectfully as parents. Mediation helps them work out schedules and set a new tone for their relationship, even if it was previously unhealthy or unproductive.

Primarily, MWI's growth has been based on word of mouth. Mediation is its own best source of advertising. It's rewarding to see two people, who before starting mediation were more interested in causing pain to one another, work together and rebuild a healthy business or personal relationship. It's amazing to see people shift from a state of confusion and anger to an empathetic and creative stance.

Outside of work, I enjoy spending time with my family. My wife and I have two little girls, ages 3 and 3 months. It's great to see them grow. All three are the loves of my life. I also enjoy playing and writing guitar music. I'm still in touch with Dan MacLeod `91 and we still play music together. We used to play in the Broome Closet, part of the Broome RA dorms. I also used to play in the Commons at lunchtime and in the Pub on some weekends. Binghamton was a lot of fun. I remember taking a graduate seminar in metaphysics with Professor Ross and I was president of the Philosophy Club, which brought people together who liked to talk about their ideas. Maybe that contributed to where I am today.

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Spanos Honored by Former Students

Several Binghamton alumni and literary scholars met at Dartmouth last month to honor William Spanos, distinguished professor of English at Harpur College, for his research and writing. The conference, "American Studies After 9-11: The Example of William Spanos" featured presentations by some of Spanos' former students on his analysis of American power and its relationship with current global politics.

Donald Pease, Avalon Professor of American Literature at Dartmouth, and a self-described "new Americanist," invited three generations of Spanos' intellectual progeny: his current students, former students, and even the students of Spanos' former students. They included Paul Bové (M.A. `75, Ph.D. `76) from University of Pittsburgh, David Randall (MA `81, Ph.D. `87) from Bloomsburg University, Patrick McHugh (MA `85, Ph.D. `87) from Cyprus University, Giovanna Covi (MA `85, Ph.D. `95) now at Trento University in Italy, Robert Marzec (MA `93, Ph.D. `00) from Fredonia College, Assimina Karavanta (MA `95, Ph.D. `99) from the University of Athens in Greece.

Spanos' own interest in "neo-Americanism," the concept of America as the world's "superpower" began in 1969 during a Fulbright professorship at the University of Athens in Greece. This was the time of the military Junta, a period of dictatorship between 1967 and 1974, during which citizens lost democracy, freedom of speech, and the right to demonstrate. Spanos explained, "I encountered a police state supported by the US and bore witness to the emergence of a remarkable momentum on the part of students and intellectuals that resisted a form of political authority that was utterly indifferent to human life."

Spanos earned a Bachelor of Arts at Wesleyan University, a Master of Arts at Columbia, and a Ph.D. at the University of Wisconsin. After a brief stint at Knox College in Illinois, he accepted an offer at Harpur College in 1966 because of the institution's dual emphasis on research and teaching.

In 1972, Spanos founded the journal Boundary 2: A Journal of Postmodern Literature with his former colleague, Canadian novelist Robert Kroetsch. Postmodern, in this context, implies a reaction against the philosophy of modern thinking. (The subtitle later changed to An International Journal of Literature and Culture.) He explained, "Our project was basically to interpret power relations in the light of the transformation from modernity to post-modernity."

To this day, Boundary 2 publishes articles on postmodern issues, such as feminism and political protest. For instance, Spanos said the journal printed a special issue on Canadian literature "as a way of countering the great cultural authority of America over Canada." In the early 1990's, he gave Boundary 2 to his former student, Paul Bové (Ph.D. `76), who is now a literary critic and professor at the University of Pittsburgh.

Since then, Spanos has been able to devote more time to his own writing. Among his recent work, he considers the most important, "The End of Education: Towards Posthumanism" (1992), "Heiddigerr and Criticism: Retrieving the Cultural Politics of Destruction," (1993), The Errant Art of Moby-Dick: The Canon, the Cold War, and the Struggle for American Literary Studies" (1995), and "America's Shadow: An Anatomy of Empire" (2000).

Spanos said "America's Shadow" has had a considerable impact on American literary studies because, "it attempts to show that America's unilateral mission in the world can be traced all the way to the origins of America to the called Puritans, who claimed to be the elect of God who ordained them to carry out an ‘era in the wilderness' to build ‘the city on the hill'."

Spanos has always been a very popular teacher, as well as writer. In 1987, at the recommendation of his former students from his Fullbright year, the University of Athens granted him an honorary doctorate.

He said his students, especially the undergraduates, have always challenged and engaged him. Many have followed in his footsteps are are now well-established scholars in the area of contemporary postmodern literary studies. "They have always been, as I was, first-generation students with a tremendous will to learn."

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Ruth Stone Wins Second Prestigious Prize
by Yvonne Daley, reprinted with permission of the Rutland Daily Herald

Stone's most recent work is "In the Next Galaxy."

A few weeks after winning the National Book Award, Ruth Stone, professor emerita at Harpur College, has won the Academy of American Poets' Wallace Stevens Prize. Given annually, the $150,000 award recognizes outstanding and proven mastery in the art of poetry. Stone, 87, said she was "stunned, humbled and made jubilant" by the recognition.

The academy's executive director, Tree Swenson, said last week that she knew Stone was a finalist for the award in November when she saw Stone in New York. The occasion was the National Book Award, where Stone won the $10,000 prize in poetry for her collection "In the Next Galaxy."

"I was dying to tell her. It's a great thing, a wonderful recognition given to a great woman," Swenson said.

In explaining why the committee chose Stone, former Vermont Poet Laureate Galway Kinnell, one of the prize's five judges, wrote: "Ruth Stone's poems startle us over and over with their shapeliness, their humor, their youthfulness, their wild aptness, their strangeness, their sudden familiarity, the authority of their insights, the moral gulps they prompt, their fierce exactness of language and memory. Her poems are experiences, not the record of experiences. They are events, interactions between the poet and the world. They happen - there on the page before us and within us - surprising and inevitable."

Stone has had many awards over the years, but the larger national prizes have eluded her.

Author and scholar Leslie Fiedler, who has known Stone for 60 years, said: "These awards are bittersweet because they've come so late in life. It's great she finally got the recognition she deserves, but it's a shame it didn't come earlier when she could have really used it. After all, Ruth was always helping other writers. Sometimes you find someone who's brilliant but they're selfish with their genius. Not Ruth."

Stone's life has never been easy. She found herself a single mother of three young daughters when, in 1959, her husband, writer Walter Stone, committed suicide in London. Stone took refuge in the old farmhouse in Goshen that she had purchased with a little prize money she'd won a few years previously. Here, she and her daughters lived when she wasn't off teaching at one of the more than a dozen colleges and universities where she has been a kind of itinerant teacher of creative writing for four decades.

In "The House Is Made of Poetry: The Art of Ruth Stone," Poet Jan Freeman describes the Goshen house: "The walls are covered with books. Surfaces, stacked with notebooks. Piano, tables, typewriter, shelves, floors. Record jackets and old grocery lists, covered with drafts of poems. On the bathroom walls, poems by students, friends, her children, grandchildren. For years an early poem by Sharon Olds hung beside the light switch. Now, Mother's Day poems beside drawings and photos of Ruth, her children, grandchildren, friends and students. Everywhere, something connected to poetry."

Here, her daughters' creativity was encouraged and other writers were always welcome. Indeed, Stone's support of others, especially women poets, is legendary. "The Oxford Companion to Women's Writing in the United States" calls Stone the "mother poet" to many contemporary women writers.

Willis Barnstone, the poet and scholar who co-authored "A Book of Women Poets from Antiquity to Now," the bible of women's poetry, describes her as "a legendary teacher of poetry like no one on this side of the century, which has led to many ardent converts to poetry. ... Her poverties have, like all adversity, kept her lean and real and made her wealthy in her profession," while also making her a wonderful teacher.

Barnstone said the honors are long overdue.

"I'm amazed by this mixture of humor, profundity, pathos and sorrow," in her work, he said in a recent interview. "She's current and ancient at the same time. She handles the great problems of the world with minimal fullness. I have long believed she's the best writer of poetry that we have."

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Harpur's Gillan Writes "Italian Women in Black Dresses"

The author and her latest work of art.

Congratulations to Maria Mazziotti Gillan, director of Harpur College's Creative Writing Program, for her latest book of poetry, "Italian Women in Black Dresses." She is also the author of seven other books of poetry, including "Things My Mother Told Me" and "Where I Come From: New and Selected Poems." Gillan is also the editor of the Paterson Literary Review. With her daughter Jennifer Gillan, she edited "Unsettling America: An Anthology of Contemporary Multicultural Poetry", "Identity Lessons," and "Growing up Ethnic in America."

"Italian Women in Black Dresses" reads like a memoir, detailing the life of a family across generations and giving us a moving and haunting portrait of the Italian mother who is the center around which the family revolves. The mother's stories and words shape the lives of her daughter and granddaughter, but this book is about much more than ethnicity. Gillan succeeds in transcending any single identity category and explores instead the multiple ways in which each of us learns to identify him or herself.

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Harpur Alumnus Recognized for Research at Penn State

Harpur College alumnus, Marc Abrams `76, professor of forest ecology and tree physiology at Penn State University's School of Forest Resources has received the 2002 Alex and Jessie C. Black Award for Excellence in Research.

The honor, which includes a $1,000 cash award and a plaque, recognizes significant accomplishments in agricultural research at Penn State. Last year, Abrams was named the Nancy and John Steimer Professor of Agricultural Sciences.

After earning a Master's degree and Ph.D. in forestry from Michigan State University, Abrams joined Penn State's faculty in 1982. His research program deals with broad-scale temporal and spatial changes in forests of the eastern United States. He has focused on understanding how stresses such as drought, climate change, fire suppression and land-use alter forests. Abrams and his collaborators have contributed significantly to the understanding of how forests in the eastern United States have changed over the last 200 to 300 years and may change in the future.

"I would like to express my appreciation for receiving this distinguished award," said Abrams of the recent recognition. "It is a great honor because research has been the dominant and most satisfying aspect of my professional career."

In 1997, Abrams did forest ecology research and taught during a sabbatical in Japan. The following year, he received a fellowship from Harvard University for his research. In April 1999, the New York Times published a story about Abrams' research on red maple proliferation in the Eastern Oak Forest.

Abrams has served on the editorial board of a number of leading scientific journals including Ecology and Ecological Monographs, Canadian Journal of Forest Research, Tree Physiology, and Trees -- Structure and Function. He is presently on the "State of the Nation's Ecosystems -- Forests" committee for the H. John Heinz Center for Science, Economics and the Environment in Washington, D.C.

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Harpur Friends & Family

In response to your much-appreciated feedback, the Harpur Hotline has developed a regular feature of alumni news. Please send us anything you want: publications, promotions, marriages, babies, graduations, retirements, etc. Many thanks to everyone who shared their stories! Here's what some of your fellow Harpur alumni and friends are doing:

KUDOS to David Sloan Wilson, professor of Biology and Anthropology at Harpur College. The New York Times featured his new book "Darwin's Cathedral: Evolution, Religion and the Nature of Society" (University of Chicago Press) on December 24, 2002 in an article titled, "The Origins of Religions, From a Distinctly Darwinian View." Wilson proposed that humans adopted and preserved religion so strongly because it helps make groups more cohesive, cooperative and fraternal, and therefore better equipped to fight adversaries.

1951: Bill Warner told the Hotline that attending Homecoming in October was one of the high points of 2002 for him. He enjoyed meeting new people and seeing the expansion of the athletic facilities ("Hope I can get to a basketball game sometime," he writes.). Warner, who lives in Dearborn, MI, wishes all of his "new-old" friends a memorable season of joy and friendship.

1958: Congratulations to Dick Aswad, Esq. for the 30th anniversary of his successful Binghamton law firm, Aswad and Ingraham!

1961: Seth Koch received a Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine from University of Pennsylvania in 1965. In 1970, he established the first in practice in the Eastern U.S. specializing in animal eye care. Koch is also adjunct faculty at both the University of Pennsylvania and University of Vermont. Somehow, he's found the spare time to start a theatre group in Shelburne, VT and has produced two shows to date. Koch is married and has a son and a stepdaughter. In 2000, he received Penn's Alumni Award of Merit for his contributions to veterinary medicine.

1964: After graduating from Harpur, Jim Bertan went on to the University of Massachusetts for a Master's degree and doctoral study. He worked for the New York State government for 30 years and retired to Vermont and Florida. Bertan operates his own real estate business in Naples, Florida. Anybody looking for a vacation or retirement home can contact him at LCISLANDS@MSN.COM.

1969: George Zebrowski has published a new book! "In the Distance, and Ahead in Time" is a collection of ten science fiction stories that present glimpses of our near, middle and far futures. Zebrowski's short fiction has been recently praised by Publisher's Weekly for its "brilliance," "grittiness," "impeccible discipline," and "elegance." Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine described him as "One of SF's most visionary authors."

1969: Those who remember Dan Barton (known as "dirty Dan" on the line for Baccacia's football team, he explained to the Hotline), might be surprised at his career path. He serves as co-pastor at two congregations of the Disciples of Christ church in the Charleston, SC area. Barton also works as a licensed professional counselor and hospital chaplain. He and Melanie, his wife of 33 years, have two grown children and enjoy camping in their spare time, especially now that the nest is empty. Barton would love to hear from old classmates and can be reached at Bartfor@aol.com.

1973: Spero Pines, Esq. graduated from Oklahoma City University Law School in 1976. He is in his tenth year as Broome County Family Court Judge. Pines has been married for 28 years and has two children ages 22 and 17.

1974: Last month, John E. Miller (M.A.) directed the staged reading of a successful three-day run of "Messiah on Mott Street", written by Rod Serling and produced at the Curtain Call Theatre in Latham, NY. Derived from the Serling television series, "Night Gallery," the production is the story of a little boy who searches the streets of New York looking for a miracle maker while his grandfather is dying. Says Miller, a longtime Rod Serling fan, "It was our way of giving back to the community because it was presented free. It is also my way of reintroducing Rod Serling's work to the theatre audience."

1974: Gerald Mollen, Esq. graduated from George Washington University Law School in 1977. He has served the Broome County District Attorney's Office since 1980 and been District Attorney since 1987. He and his wife, Beth, an associate professor at Broome Community College, have two children, ages 19 and 23.

1981: Robin Barbara Salsberg has held progressive management positions in human resources and education. She is presently the Director of Human Resources-Training and Organizational Development for Winthrop-University Hospital, a 4600 employee Level One trauma, acute care, teaching, and research hospital in Mineola, Long Island. Upon graduation from Harpur College in 1981, Salsberg earned a Master of Arts from New York University and is certified in Human Resources Management from Cornell University's School of Industrial Labor Relations. Her expertise lies in the area of recruiting and retaining healthcare professionals in a highly competitive market. Salsberg has served as a featured speaker and facilitiator at academic and professional conferences, and has been seen on televised news programs focusing on employment trends in the healthcare industry. Anticipating the celebration of their twentieth wedding anniversary, Robin and Mark Salsberg `81 reside in Merrick, NY. They are active members of the Binghamton Alumni Admissions Committee and spend much of their leisure time with longtime friends who are also Binghamton alumni.

1990: Dr. Ruth (Karman) Gallatin says hello to all her classmates, especially the sisters of Alpha Xi Delta. She is working outside of Annapolis, MD as an internist, part-time in private practice. She and her husband live outside of Annapolis and have two sons, ages 5 1/2 and 2. Gallatin would enjoy hearing from her old friends at DocsDandR@aol.com.

1991: Christopher H. Palmer and his wife Rose had their second child, Meghan Rose, on August 20, 2002. She joins her older brother, Chrisopher. Palmer graduated from St. John's University School of Law in 1994 and is a partner at Bleakley Platt Remsen Millham & Curran LLP in New York City.

1991: The stork also visited Rebecca M. Stevens -- twice! She and her husband are raising twin daughters, Lila and Isabella, in New York City.

1992: Peter Okulski earned a Master of Business Administration in Marketing from Hofstra University in May 2002. He has started a career in modeling and acting, and recently appeared in the film "Sweet Home Alabama," starring Reese Witherspoon. Okulski would enjoy hearing from old friends at peteyoh603@aol.com.

1999: Lillian Mikucki and Jim DeAngelo `00 are happy to announce their engagement! They are both teaching in Syracuse, NY.

2001: Classmates Raymond J. Sosler III and Sally Ann Rapp are engaged! Sosler is a sales manager at Sosler's Garden & Farm Equipment, Inc. Rapp works in the corporate offices of RAL Bath & Plumbing Supply, Inc. They are planning a Winter 2005 wedding in Middletown, NJ.

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