Harpur College's Okpewho Named Distinguished Professor
by Katie Ellis

Isidore Okpewho, professor of Africana Studies at Harpur College, has been named a distinguished professor by the SUNY Board of Trustees. Okpewho has been recognized for playing a seminal role in the development of the scholarly understanding of the oral traditions in African literature.

The distinguished professor title, granted only by SUNY trustees, is the highest academic rank possible and is conferred on individuals who have achieved national or international prominence.

Okpewho joined Harpur College's faculty in 1991. His extensive research into oral traditions and African tales involves ethnographic investigations and the collection of narratives.

Named a Guggenheim Fellow last year, he will spend the next academic year researching African mythology in the New World. His research will help construct an identity for those who were brought to America from Africa.

"When you examine a tale from Africa, you must look at the society from which it comes and study the background of a tale's transformation," he said. "Away from Africa, these people have a way of fashioning their own identity and it's reflected in the tales they tell."

In nominating Okpewho, President Lois B. DeFleur said, "His prolific writing demonstrates great diversity ranging from African oral literature, to literary criticism and finally, to creative writing. One is struck by the overwhelmingly positive assessment of his contributions by distinguished national and international scholars."

"It certainly makes a difference when you are recognized by your peers," Okpewho said. "When your colleagues listen to you, you know you're doing something worthwhile."

Okpewho earned a bachelor's degree from the University of London, his Ph.D. in comparative literature from the University of Denver and a doctor of literature degree from the University of London. Prior to coming to Binghamton, he taught at SUNY Buffalo, Ibadan University in Nigeria and Harvard University.

He served as associate dean of graduate studies at Ibadan University and as chair of the Department of English there. He has also chaired the Department of Africana Studies at Binghamton.

A prolific writer, Okpewho is the author, co-author or editor of 14 books and dozens of articles. He has served on the boards of the African Studies Association and the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis. He is a member of the Research Advisory Council for Harvard's Center for the Study of World Religions and is a member of the American Literature Association and the American Folklore Society. Okpewho also serves on the editorial board of Oral Tradition and Research in African Literatures and he has served on numerous campus committees.

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Harpur Faculty Receive Dean's Research Semester Awards

This year, eight Harpur College faculty representing seven departments applied for the Dean's Research Semester Awards for the Fall or Spring semesters of the 2004 - 2005 academic year. They may take a full course reduction for one semester or divide their course reduction over two. Based on the recommendations of faculty committees established to review the proposals, Dean Jean-Pierre Mileur has made awards for the following Harpur College faculty:

	Ali Bouanani, Classics, will show how and why Morocco became the USA's first "other" outside its colonies and the doorstep from which later intervention in the Arab world was to begin. His study gives special focus to travel writing and the so-called Barbary literature, showing that even before the US attack on Tripoli in 1804 and later imperial escapades, US writers were prone to defining the Moroccan-Arab, Berber, or Jewish as simultaneously exotic, barbaric, outlandish, idolatrous, childlike, depraved, and sexually thrilling.
	Arlene de Vera, History and Asian and Asian-American Studies, will conduct oral history interviews and archival collections and revise her manuscript about the tension between American liberal democracy and the creation of an American political empire. Using Filipino migration and nationalism in California as a case study, she will look at the larger social and cultural effects of migration and nationalism on both the Philippines and the U.S.
	David Hacker, History, will rely on 19th and early 20th-century census data to investigate the long-run decline of fertility in the United States. The study will construct new estimates of fertility between 1800 and 1940 and identify economic and social correlates of marriage and fertility.
	William Heller, Political Science, is researching how institutions that divide decision-making authority affect policy outcomes and politicians' behavior. He plans to produce a series of papers and, ultimately, a book linking formal models with real-world data on the differences in joint decision making when decision makers are political allies or enemies.
	Matthew Johnson, Psychology, will write about data collected from the Binghamton Transition to Marriage Project, a longitudinal study of couples from engagement to the early stages of marriage. He and his graduate students observed videos of couples discussing their problems, coded their behavior, and will analyze the data to determine predictors of marital discord that could lead to divorce. Johnson plans to extend this work to larger populations.
	Donald Loewen, Russian, will study how 20th-century Russian poets present themselves as poets when they shift to prose in writing their autobiographies. The most significant shift happens in the 20th century because the poets are willing to claim the title "poet" openly when writing prose. Loewen will use his findings for a multibook project where he will look at autobiographies from the 19th century and the era of the late 19th to the early 20th-centuries.
	Nancy Um, Art History, is preparing a book manuscript on the 17th and 18-century environment of the Mocha trade network in Yemen. The study will present a spatialized account of the Mocha trade network as understood through the architectural and urban structures and social spaces of exchange that marked its landscape and defined its sphere within the extended Qasimi Dynasty.
	Weixing Zhu, Biological Sciences, will prepare the submission of an NSF-CAREER proposal. His research-education foci are in the area of nitrogen (N) biogeochemical cycling. Broad scale fertilizer usage and fossil fuel combustion has led elevated atmospheric N deposition and caused forest decline and water pollution worldwide. The proposal will target N cycling and N retention in several human-settled ecosystems. He will also prepare several manuscripts on N cycling.

"The proposals were all outstanding," said Dean Mileur "Junior faculty like these are the future of this institution and their disciplines."

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Harpur Alumna to Volunteer in African Refugee Camp

Arianna Eisenson `03 has some unconventional post-graduation plans. This June, she will depart her hometown, Woodstock, NY, for Zambia, Africa to volunteer for 6 weeks in a camp of 30,000 Angolian refugees through the World Refugee Academy, a student-initiated organization that educates youth in Southern African refugee camps.

Eisenson will be in a group of 27 students and recent college graduates from the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico, who will share their skills in the refugee camps. Some will teach basic school topics, some will provide health education, some will teach the older children how to tutor the younger ones, and Eisenson said one of her fellow volunteers hopes to teach music. She also said the volunteers would like to implement and teach solar cooking, which uses reflectors and insulation to capture the sun's heat to cook food.

Eisenson learned about the World Refugee Academy as a senior while she took part in a Semester at Sea program, which enabled her to travel all over the world. Seeing so much poverty made her wish to help improve the lives of those less fortunate. While abroad, she applied for and was accepted for a volunteer position with the World Refugee Academy. "It will allow me to do something humanitarian and travel at the same time," she said.

Eisenson remembers how badly local citizens wanted books when she traveled through Africa and India during her Semester at Sea. Therefore, she hopes to join other volunteers in establishing a library in the refugee camp.

Eisenson is aware of the challenges that lie ahead. Even with preventive medicines, malaria is a high risk. "We're going in the dry season but there are always mosquitos," she said. Eisenson also realizes Zambia has a high concentration of HIV and AIDS. "If you get cut, it's an issue," she said, matter-of-factly.

The language is another potential barrier that Eisenson anticipates. She'll be working with Angolian refugees who speak Portuguese and English. Although the teachers will be speaking mostly English, Eisenson is still learning Portuguese on her own.

Eisenson is educating herself as much as possible in the months leading up to June. "I've been in contact with a number of people who've been to Zambia and I have tons of books on Zambia so I've been reading up," she said.

Looking back on her experience at Harpur College, Eisenson says Benita Roth, associate professor of sociology, was a wonderful influence on her as an undergraduate. "Professor Roth's got so much integrity and she really makes you work," Eisenson said. "She has higher expectations that force you to have high expectations of yourself, which is fabulous." Eisenson plans to eventually attend law school and continue helping those less fortunate.

Eisenson is excited but nervous about the health and safety risks. But the benefits far outweigh the risks. "I'm even more excited about giving back, educating people, and sharing what I have with others," she said. "That's something people can't take away from you once you have it. The new experiences, the traveling, and meeting new people will be very inspiring and life changing."

To raise money to cover her expenses, a friend of Eisenson's parents offered to raffle off the week of June 19, 2004 in her timeshare in Orlando, 1 mile from Disney World. The timeshare has 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and is in a resort setting. Chances are $10/each. The drawing is March 29. Send checks, made out to the World Refugee Academy, and contact information to World Refugee Academy, PO Box 1350, Woodstock, NY 12498. For more information, please call 845-679-5676 or write to bj90130@binghamton.edu. The World Refugee Academy is a nonprofit organization.

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Alumni Link Students With Jobs and Internships

Nearly 2,000 students attended the Career Development Center's biannual Internship and Job Fair took place February 5, 2004 in the Mandela Room. Eileen Bauer-Hagerbaumer, employee relations coordinator, said the CDC sponsors a job fair every semester, but the Spring event always sees greater attendance from both recruiters and students because sophomores and juniors are on the hunt for Summer internships. Meg Mitzel, experiential education coordinator, said many companies won't consider applicants who haven't had internship experience.

BU alumni represented many of the 35 companies that recruited at the Internship and Job Fair. Though they came from a variety of professions, all enjoyed returning to campus and found it particularly rewarding to help students who stand where they once stood.

Kristin Jeffrey `98 majored in Geography at Harpur College and is now on the national program staff in Teach for America's NYC office. This was her first trip back to campus since graduating. She said she enjoyed recruiting from such a diverse student body. "They're really involved and there are a lot of leaders."

Richard Leff `87 was also back on campus for the first time since earning a B.A. in History from Harpur College. Now a financial representative with Northwestern Mutual Financial Network in Melville, NY, he said, "The campus has changed a lot. It's so great to be back. These students are our top shelf candidates. I've got more resumes than I know what to do with." Leff is married to Sharon (Lublin) `88.

Steve Goldblatt `02 and Michael Sang `03 represented Price Waterhouse Cooper. "It's fabulous to come back and support Binghamton students as they try to find jobs," said Goldblatt, a campus recruiter. "BU has a strong accounting program and they're one of our priority schools."

Melinda McGuire `02 represented Americorps to recruit volunteers for state and national programs. After graduating from Harpur, McGuire joined the National Civilian Community Corps and spent last year traveling throughout the West coast. Americorps has many jobs to suit a variety of interests.

Azod Mohit `01 spoke with Gabriel Salem `04 about job opportunities within Federated Merchandising Group (FMG), a company that sources and markets private label goods to a select group of department stores, such as Bloomingdales and Macy's.

Robert McNamara `03 (left) and John Irushalmi `96 (right) answered students' questions about Earnst & Young.

Jennifer Chang `03 said being on the other side of the resume was "really nice, but a little surreal since I just graduated last year."

Matt Becker `02, Adam Berman `00 and Ira Wishe `98 recruited for the accounting firm, Deloitte & Touche. "The campus is a lot different now from when I graduated, but it's nice to see so many changes," said Wishe. "It's great to give something back to the institution from which you graduated."

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Harpur Alumnus Shares New Violin Techniques

Hsien-cheng Lin `89 (M.M.), first violinist with the National Symphony Orchestra of Taiwan, made the long trip back to Binghamton to present "Opening Windows to New String Color: Expanding Our String Techniques," to the string players of the University Symphony Orchestra on February 2, 2004.

He taught his own, personally-developed methods of pizzicato (plucking the strings), tremolo (rapidly repeating the same note), col legno (striking the strings with the wood of the bow), springbogen (rapidly lifting and dropping the bow on the strings), use of the fast detaché (playing with the middle of the bow which produces a seamless tone from one note to the next), and vibrato (a slight and rapid variation in pitch).

Lin started playing violin at age 6, but gave up the instrument to study for his high school entrance exams. He resumed violin just for fun at National Taiwan University while he earned a B.S. in Agricultural Engineering. In spite of his technical degree, his interest in music prevailed.

After two years of compulsory military service, Lin joined the Taipei City Symphony in 1985, an orchestra which Harpur College Professor Timothy Perry had conducted in 1979. In 1987, he started graduate school at BU and studied violin under Harpur College Associate Professor of Music, Janet Brady, who was associate professor of music at Harpur College. As a student, he played in the University's orchestra and performed the Bach Brandenburg Concerto #4 as a winner of the orchestra's Concerto Competition before he graduated in 1989.

With his new Master's in Music Performance from BU, Lin returned to his home country and won a position in the National Taiwan Orchestra. During a brief period as string coach for National Taiwan University, Lin developed new methods of playing the violin that differ from conventional techniques, and as far as he knew, had never been used before.

Lin returned to Binghamton in 2004 to present his new techniques and learn how to present and publish them in English-language situations and publications. "My competitors are already starting to imitate how I play," he said. Lin plans to write about his methods, but the language barrier has been a challenge. "It's hard to explain in English a physical technique that I've only explained and thought about in Chinese," he said.

Eventually, Lin would like to establish a violin school and create a method of teaching that makes the music easier to learn and memorize. In the meantime, he will continue using the skills he developed at Harpur College and carry on performing, dazzling his country with the beauty of music.

Lin and his wife, Chih-guan Hsu, an architect, have a 6-year-old daughter and 3-year-old identical twin boys. They reside in Taipei.

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Explore Ottawa With BU
Alumni, Employees and Friends Welcome

Continuing Education & Outreach at Binghamton University is sponsoring an art and history trip to Ottawa, Canada, May 13 - 16, 2004. Please join us and learn about this beautiful, historic city.

From the majestic Parliament Buildings (pictured left) to its many historic sights, houses and streets, Ottawa is a city entwined with the history of Canada. It proudly displays the best and brightest Canada has to offer: art, science, technology, and history. The capital of Canada, Ottawa is filled with elegance, nobility and beauty.

The trip will include visits to the Frederick Remington Museum in Ogdensburg, NY, the National Gallery of Canada, Byward Market, Laurier House (home of former Prime Minister King), Billings Estate Museum, the Canadian Parliament Buildings, Rideau Hall (home of the Governor-General), the Canadian Museum of Civilization, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Musical Ride Stables, and Fort Henry in Kingston, ON. Accommodations are at the Comfort Inn - Downtown, which includes a daily breakfast buffet.

The registration fee is $445/person and includes travel by luxury coach, driver tip, all site entrances and tours, three nights double occupancy at the Comfort Inn, three breakfasts, Sunday brunch at Fort Henry's Officer's Mess, and experienced travel leadership throughout the trip.

For more information, please call 607-777-6857 or go to http://continuinged.binghamton.edu. The registration deadline is April 16, 2004.

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BU Alumni Happy Hour in NYC

Have some food and warm up with a BINGHAMtini at the next Binghamton Happy Hour!!!

All BU alumni are invited to have some food and warm up with a "BINGHAMtini" in the Club Room at Etoile on 109 E. 56th Street, between Park and Lexington in Manhattan on Tuesday, February 17 from 7:00p.m. to 10:00p.m.
Complimentary hors d’oeuvres from 7:00pm - 8:00pm.
Drink specials: $4 domestic beer and $6 BINGHAMtinis
COST: $2 - Proceeds will benefit SOM Young Alumni Advisory Council Scholarship

P.S. Mark your calendars: The sixth annual SOM golf tournament is set for Thursday, May 20th, 8:30 AM at the Scarsdale Golf Club, Hartsdale, NY. All alumni and their guests are invited to attend.

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Many Harpur College professors have been quoted in the press, particularly in large, national newspapers. Read what English Professors Liz Rosenberg and Bernard Rosenthal, Psychology Professors Steven Lynn and Anna Klintsova, Biology Professor David Sloan Wilson, and History Professors Kathryn Kish Sklar and Thomas Dublin have said in the media lately: Faculty In The News

1969: Marketing guru Bernice Kanner (M.A. `73) has published a new book, Are You Normal About Sex, Love and Relationships?, which tells us what we really want to know: how we compare with everyone else in some of the most intimate circumstances. Loaded with statistics, Kanner's book tells us if we're just like - or totally different from - everyone else. She also recently published The Superbowl of Advertising: How the Commercials Won the Game, a historical walk through Superbowl commercials' innovation and financial impact over 36 years. (Click both books for more information.)

1976: Bob Schalit, pictured with his wife, Margaret Foye Schalit, on their wedding day in 1989, will be among the nation's highest achievers in the 2004 edition of Who's Who in America. Schalit is a senior writer with Rueckert Advertising Public Relations in Colonie, NY. He is a member of The Ad Club, the American Marketing Association, and the Chamber of Schenectady County, and was the first president of the Albany Creative Club. In his spare time, Schalit enjoys travel, hiking, playing blues harmonica, and solving word puzzles. He has kept in touch with Frank Weaver `76, who works for Mountain Media in Saratoga Springs.

1984: Two recent issues of The New York Times featured famed drummer, Sherrie L. Maricle, leader of Sherrie Maricle and the DIVA Jazz Orchestra, an all-women's concert jazz orchestra based in New York City. The January 11, 2004 Times discussed Maricle's use of a plexiglass screen to prevent hearing loss from playing drums. The January 30, 2004 Times article described how Maricle was inspired to take up drums after hearing Buddy Rich play at a jazz concert in Binghamton, and also the evolution of her career as a musician. Maricle is director of percussion at NYU, where she earned both her Master's and Ph.D.

1989: Jennifer Miller is pleased to announce that she just finished her Master of Science in Education in guidance and counseling at Hunter College. While pursuing the degree, she married to Pablo Aguilar and had two children, Jonah and Sara. Miller is an assistant professor and career counselor at the Fashion Institute of Technology.

1990: In October 2003, Michele and David Slotnik became the proud parents of Miranda Shea, whom they adopted from an orphanage in Eger, Hungary. She is the biological cousin of the Slotnik's older daughter, Sierra Vanessa, whom they adopted from the same orphanage. Miranda is 17 months old and Sierra is 27 months old. The Slotniks report they are very busy and very happy.

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Shop Harpur Online

Shop the campus bookstore from the comfort of your PC or Mac. Want to pick up a copy of the new Harpur history book The Cornerstone? Visit The Campus Bookstore.

For more Harpur College merchandise, such as hats, shirts and window stickers, contact the bookstore at 607-777-2745.

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Back Issues of the Harpur Hotline

Miss an issue? Want to read more? Check out: http://harpur.binghamton.edu/hotline

Harpur College Development Team Mission Statement:

The Harpur College of Arts and Sciences Development Team encourages alumni, students, faculty and friends to identify with Harpur College's past, present and future by engaging them in events and programs that connect them to the college. We facilitate ways for our constituents to enrich Harpur College through their financial contributions and personal talents and resources.

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