Red Sox join NU effort on domestic violence

2 Library makes e-journal push 7 Top law-man 8-9 Answers on tsunami Voice The Northeastern An engineering researcher hopes to create a center dedicated to medical robotics advances. Page 5. January 18, 2005, Vol. 15, No. 6 www.voice.neu.edu Against the headwinds Red Sox join NU effort on domestic violence BY BRIAN LEE Mary Frances Berry recalled civil-rights leaders’ humor and talked about the ‘headwinds’ facing the poor and dispossessed today, during the university’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. Convocation. See story, Page 3. Health chief vows focus on ‘wellness’ BY BRIAN LEE University braces for Pell cutbacks Berrien BY SUSAN SALK Dr. Roberta Berrien joined Northeastern two weeks ago as executive director of university health and counseling services. It is a new position, reporting to the Division of Enrollment Management and Student Affairs, overseeing the newly merged Lane Health Center and university counseling. Berrien, whose specialties are in clinical and internal medicine, with an interest in women’s health, has been a health administrator since 1992. She most recently served as medical director of a community center in her home state of Rhode Island. Berrien held a similar position at the University of Maine, and also has extensive experience leading homeless programs in East Harlem and Boston (she is former director of the program Boston Healthcare for the Homeless). Berrien says of Northeastern: “There’s something very vital about this campus. It’s global and it’s growing academically. The students here are demanding, in positive ways.” Lane, continued on Page 10 Although it is still unclear whether a proposed Bush administration change to the Pell Grant eligibility formula —forecast to knock 90,000 needy students off its rolls nationally —will go into effect, university financial aid officials are preparing to assist the small number of students who may be affected, according to financial aid Dean Seamus Harreys. Approximately 15 percent of students receive Pell Grants, but only a small number of that group would be affected by formula changes, proposed to go into effect in the fall of 2005, Harreys said. He was unsure how many students could see their assistance either disappear or partially cut. “It’s a little early to predict where all this is going,” he said. “We’re watching it closely so we can respond” with additional financial aid relief, if necessary. He stressed that the university’s goal is to keep students enrolled. The university provides $8 out of every $9 in financial aid to students, totalling $100 million annually, he said, noting that any reduction in federal assistance will be keenly felt. Students receiving Pell Grants are stretched so thin fiPell, continued on Page 11 The Boston Red Sox became the first professional baseball club to pick up on Northeastern’s Mentors in Violence Prevention (MVP) curriculum, through the Center for the Study of Sport in Society. The partnership was announced at a Jan. 10 press conference at the Curry Student Center Ballroom. At the conference, Red Sox Vice President and General Manager Theo Epstein said MVP’s anti-violence > World Series trophy makes training will benefit each of sort of homecoming: 16. the organization’s 150 minor leaguers, some as young as 16 years old and hailing from as far away as the Dominican Republic. He said the club is always concerned about how the youngsters, now leaders-by-default, “survive on the road.” “I’ve never been as confident that we will succeed in those lofty goals (of helping them manage their personal lives) until now,” Epstein said. MVP’s “train the trainer” program utilizes an empowered bystander approach to social change, and its curriculum, the “MVP Playbook” refers to scenarios as a segue to real, frank and in-depth conversations on how to manage those situations, according to Sport in Society Director Peter Roby. The Red Sox join the New England Patriots in signing Red Sox, continued on Page 11 CRAIG BAILEY Freeland’s contract extends through ’06 Neal Finnegan, chairman of the board of trustees, has announced an agreement with President Freeland that extends the president’s contract through 2006. “In 1996 we appointed Richard Freeland president with a charge to continue the transformation of Northeastern as a ‘smaller and better’ academic institution,” said Finnegan in a statement. “President Freeland has defined the challenge very specifically: to position Northeastern among the top 100 universities in the country in this decade. “We have made wonderful progress, but there is work still to do,” he said. “The board is pleased to have reached an agreement with President Freeland that assures continuity in leadership as we work toward top 100” as Contract, continued on Page 11 2 The Northeastern Voice January 18, 2005 2005 Excellence in Teaching Awards You’re invited to participate in the selection process. The selection committee is now accepting letters supporting the nominations of the following faculty: Library makes big push on e-journals BY SUSAN SALK L List of 2005 Excellence in Teaching Awards nominees: Amilcar Antonio Barreto, political science Eugene Bernstein, pharmaceutical science Jessica Blom-Hoffman, counseling and applied psychology Michael Dukakis, political science Rashmi Dyal-Chand, law Rein Kirss, chemistry and chemical biology Felicia Lassk, CBA marketing Susan Picillo, communications studies Emmett Price, music Sheila Puffer, CBA general management group Jennifer Rivers, earth and environmental sciences Jennifer Robinson, criminal justice Tim Rupert, CBA accounting group Ron Sandler, philosophy and religion Joel Weinstein, school of engineering technology Katherine Ziomer, chemical engineering O FFICE OF THE P ROVOST AND A CADEMIC A FFAIRS 112 Hayden Hall Phone: 373-2170 Fax: 373-8589 Web: www.provost.neu.edu E-mail: provost@neu.edu BOSTON HOUSE OF PIZZA ibraries Dean Ed Warro hopes to sweep out the era of the dogeared, tattered- journal and usher in a modern age with a major E-journal initiative designed to free up access to important scientific materials. A major effort to convert in-print materials to online journals was begun in earnest last spring, after a user survey of faculty and students found that the availability of e-journals topped the list of desired services, Warro said. “There are many disadvantages to print, a primary one being that (printed material) often only allows for user at a time,” he said. “With e-journals, you can have as may users as you want; you never have to go to the library, because you can check them from home.” He added, “People find it so much easier to sit down at home, or in their laboratory, and read and print research journals than to come into the library to use them.” So far, the library has subscribed to more than19, 600 electronic journals, an endeavor requiring skillful contract negotiations with many of the publishers, he said. Licensing contracts took months of attention and many hours of the legal team’s time. Students, faculty and staff can now access electronic journals all day, every day, from points throughout campus by logging onto www.lib.neu.edu/ejournals. In many cases, the journal sites also provide links to related data, back issues, and a more readily available Ed Warro access to new issues — there’s no lag between the print and electronic versions, according to a press release. Associate dean for collections William Wakeling called the electronic journal conversion as a major project that makes it so much easier to read publications such as Science and Nature that once arrived at the library in single issues. Although some smaller publications within the “learned community” have yet to make it on line, the venue is part of a growing trend, he said. “For a high percentage of students and researchers, electronic journals are the natural and first way they look for material,” Wakeling said. “For these researchers, the electronics have been food and drink to them.” Matthews Distinguished Professor of chemistry and chemical biology Phyllis Strauss, herself a major proponent of the conversion, said better electronic access is “essential” for graduate students and faculty. “The research community expects e-journals,” she said, adding that many also want to access to hard copies as well. Although the library conversion is a positive step, Strauss said more needs to be done. Some expensive journals are still out of reach for many researchers, she said. We Deliver! (617) 266-4605 Buy 1 CALZONE Get 2nd CALZONE Buy 2 PIZZAS Get 2-LITER SODA Two earn promotion at office on conduct S 1/2 PRICE Cannot be combined with other discounts. Higher price prevails. Limit one per customer. FREE Cannot be combined with other discounts. Higher price prevails. Limit one per customer. 360 Huntington Aveneue (across from the YMCA) (617) 266-4605 • www.BostonHouseOfPizza.net landah Dieujuste and Tanner Chesney have been named assistant directors of the Office of Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution. Dieujuste has been judicial program coordinator for the office, which handles allegations of student misconduct, since August 2003. She holds a bachelor’s and a master’s degree from Boston College. Tanner has been residence director of Speare Hall, but served as interim assistant director of the office from February to May 2003. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Colorado and a master’s from Northeastern’s College of Criminal Justice. Associate director Wendy Kirby Olson continues as interim director in the wake of former director William Fischer’s departure late last year. The university is conducting a search to fill the position permanently. — Jim Chiavelli CRAIG BAILEY January 18, 2005 The Northeastern Voice 3 Working against ‘headwinds’ MLK Convocation speaker decries roadblocks to progress, recalls leader’s humor BY SUSAN SALK literature quiz FREEDOM FIGHTERS freshman Author, printer and publisher of “Poor Richard’s Almanac.” s o p h o m o r e Author of “Letter from the Birmingham Jail.” middler Author of “Women in Love.” junior Author of “The Second Sex.” senior Author of “Cry, the Beloved Country.” Answers appear below. Panel to pick top teachers ixteen professors have been nominated for an Excellence in Teaching Award, an annual honor recognizing exceptional effort by full-time teachers who go above and beyond for their students. Nominees are associate political science professor Amilcar Barreto; pharmaceutical sciences lecturer Eugene Bernstein; counseling and applied psychology assistant professor Jessica BlomHoffman; political science distinguished professor Michael Dukakis; law assistant professor Rashmi Dyal-Chand; chemistry and chemical biology associate professor Rein Kirss; business assistant professor Felicia Lassk; communications studies lecturer Susan Picillo; assistant music professor Emmett Price; business management professor Sheila Puffer; earth and environmental sciences assistant academic specialist Jennifer Rivers; assistant criminal justice professor Jennifer Robinson; associate accounting professor Tim Rupert; assistant philosophy and religion professor Ron Sandler; engineering technology academic specialist Joel Weinstein; and assistant chemical engineering professor Katherine Ziemer. Now for the hard part: A committee of faculty and students will evaluate each nominee’s teaching prowess based on about a dozen criteria, to arrive at winners by March, according to Donna Qualters, director of the Center for Effective University Teaching. Winners will be announced in April, and recognized at commencement. “It’s really hard to draw the bar at excellence,” Qualters said. “It takes a lot of soul searching and a lot of agonizing before we pick the winners.” The awards are a tradition at Northeastern dating back to 1980, she said. — Susan Salk F is for future S University planning for Super Bowl ith the prospect of the Patriots’ second consecutive Super Bowl appearance looming, university officials are looking forward to a peaceful celebration if the hometown gridders go all the way again. For the playoff game Sunday against the Pittsburgh Steelers, and for the Super Bowl on Feb. 6, if the Patriots beat Pittsburgh, the university will be showing the games in Afterhours at the Curry Student Center and in the Stetson West dining hall. The game will also be shown in common areas in residence halls. After the Super Bowl, officials will host indoor programs, with activities and prizes, “where students can continue to celebrate when our team wins, in a way that doesn’t impact our neighbors,” said Ed Klotzbier, vice president for student affairs. Klotzbier noted that the student code of conduct was revised after last year’s Super Bowl to cover “riotous behavior.” “It’s a grievous violation under the code, and any student will be dealt with harshly,” he said yesterday. In the wake of last year’s game, seven students were expelled, four suspended and three placed on deferred suspension. “That’s in stark contrast to what happened after the World Series,” with just two students facing discipline for their behavior, Klotzbier said. “The message is getting out.” “We want our students to celebrate, as long as they do so responsibly,” he said. — Jim Chiavelli W Boston Mayor Thomas Menino speaks at the Dec. 10 groundbreaking ceremony for the future West Village F building, flanked by President Freeland, left, and Joseph Warren, special assistant to the vice president for public affairs, at the O’Bryant African-American Institute. The institute will be housed in the new building, along with the honors program. Presidential Scholars named welve sophomores have been named 2004 Presidential Scholars. The students will receive fulltuition scholarships for their next three years, provided they maintain a gradepoint average of 3.5 and successfully complete their co-op placements. This year’s scholars are: Elizabeth Brown of Cooperstown, N.Y.; psychology. Christopher Burns of West Hopkinton, N.H.; computer science. Kara Forgues of Auburn, Mass.; physical therapy. Christina Hilgendorf of Mill Creek, Wash.; philosophy. Mariko Howe of Charlemont, Mass.; behavioral science. Heather Milton of Warren, Maine; T cardiopulmonary science. Andrea Mutz-Mercier of Franklin, Mass.; computer science. Alan Priest of Waterville, Maine; civil engineering. Elizabeth Ridge of Londonderry, N.H.; sociology. Thomas Shuster of Minneapolis, Minn.; international business. Lindsey Tessier of Ashland, Mass.; electrical and computer engineering. Emily Volkert of West Boylston, Mass.; international affairs. Established in 1997 by President Freeland, the scholarships are awarded to students entering their middler year who have demonstrated excellence in their major, their liberal arts courses and cooperative education. CRAIG BAILEY senior Alan Paton junior Simone de Beauvoir middler D.H. Lawrence sophomore Martin Luther King Jr. hings are better today than they were when Martin Luther King Jr. first shook his fist in the air and demanded equality for blacks — “The civil rights movement was a great success; we’ve come a long way,” Mary Frances Berry told a crowd of 250 at the annual Martin Luther King Jr. convocation on Wednesday. But the roadblocks to fairness, which she termed “headwinds,” maintain the inequities between rich and poor, minority and majority, she said. “While many in this country are prospering, many are not,” Berry said, noting that low-wager worker s in rural communities do without child care and leave their offspring alone while they work two or more jobs, and that the war in Iraq has a disproportionate number of poor soldiers with few other economic opportunities. Social Security privatization, the spread of AIDS, exploitation of immigrants and educational disparities — all are “headwinds against opportunity,” said Berry, founder of the Free South Africa Movement and the Geraldine R. Segal professor of American social thought at the University of Pennsylvania. Laughing at the ribald jokes she and fellow activists told one another at a Shell Oil building occupation during the antiapartheid movement — “Dr. King had some jokes that Bill Clinton would love; I can’t repeat them here, but if you talk to T me after, I’ll whisper them” — Berry waxed nostalgic about the legacy of the great man they’d all come to remember. “What many don’t know is that Dr. King was a funny man … who was about a lot of things,” she said. “We’ll never see MLK into his old age like we’re seeing Nelson Mandela, and we’ll all miss a lot about him.” President Freeland, in opening remarks, asked those who value King’s legacy to consider what they can do to make the city, or the world, a little bit better. The Pacific tsunami, he said, is a disaster that should inspire individuals to unite to assist those in need. “That wave was a brutal reminder of how much work we all still have to do to ensure a just and civil life for everyone,” Freeland said. “May Dr. King’s memory and legacy be an inspiration to us all.” Shane Lloyd, psychology major and president of the Northeastern Black Student Association, commented on King’s legacy by recalling a 1967 speech in which the civil rights leader decried the worldwide poverty marring 40 million lives. “We need a broader distribution of wealth,” Lloyd said. “An edifice that produces beggars needs to be restructured.” World poverty is a “sobering reminder” of the work that still needs to be done, a crying out for renewal of commitment by those working for social justice, said Dean Lula PettyEdwards, director of the John D. O’Bryant African-American Institute. freshman Benjamin Franklin 10 The Northeastern Voice January 18, 2005 Expansion seen for club sports he Marino Center offered 24-hour access last fall to students, faculty and staff, and a mandatory activities fee of $100 was tacked to students’matriculation fees. Part of this fee went toward adding 14 club sports, for a total of 34 at the university. The goal, proposed by Athletics Director David O’Brien, would make Northeastern an area leader in recreational programming. “We are on our way,” said Jerry Foster, who is directing the new campus recreation and enhancement program, through athletics. “We’ve either organized or are in the process of having 31 functioning as a club (this semester).” Club sports are service-oriented programs for students who want to continue competing. Faculty and staff are encouraged to serve advisory roles or assist with fund-raising that could draw credible coaches looking to break into the business. A few of the club sports programs, such as dance, switched from the auspices of student activities to athletics, but most — including women’s golf, squash and team handball — are new. “Club sports are student-initiated and structured with executive boards,” said Foster, whose title is coordinator of facilities operations and fitness. “Some of them delegate to the nth degree: many of them have match and travel secretaries, and floor captains. Club presidents are accountable to me.” Roughly 700 students are involved in club sports this semester. The largest group is men’s rugby, with about 70 participants on three teams. “I think that as far as Boston goes, we’ve aligned or gone beyond club sports among our counterparts,” Foster said. “(Massachusetts Institute of Technology) is the most extensive in the area, but theirs is almost a mixing of varsity.” The criterion for a new program is that it focus on competitive physical activity. “We’re always willing to listen,” Foster said. “Being more of a residential school, we’re trying to program as much as we can recreationally. Most freshmen come in having played a sport in high school or participated in a discipline like martial arts. We’re trying to meet those needs whatever way we can.” Meanwhile, access to the Marino Center has been reduced this semester — it is closed from 1 to 5 a.m. Foster said there was limited use during those hours. — Brian Lee T Let Henderson House host your next corporate or social event. Corporate events Social events Department Retreats • Seminars • Educational Functions S. he U. d on t ent’s Liste partm or De c i istori Inter r of H gist e Re s Place Wedding Receptions • Bar/Bat Mitzvahs • Graduation Parties • Showers • Retirement Dinners • Birthday Parties • Christenings • School Reunions • Anniversary Receptions • Engagement Parties • Family Reunions 99 Westcliff Road,Weston, MA 02493 (781) 235-4350 (781) 235-8517 Fax (781) 235-5847 www.neu.edu/henderson t.petrin@neu.edu Member International Association of Conference Centers CENTER FOR THE A R T S NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY upcoming events NU Ticket Center, Ell Hall 617.373.2247 Friday, 2/4/05, 8 PM Harlem Gospel Choir — Christened “Angels in Harlem” by U2, the worldfamous Harlem Gospel Choir’s theme for every performance is bringing people and nations together and giving something back. Tickets $25; seniors, students and NU faculty, staff and alumni, $20; NU students, $15. Barrien takes Lane helm Lane, continued from Page 1 Already, Berrien has met with the Student Government Association, and has a goal of rekindling ties with the student advisory group. Berrien says the biggest challenge would be the integration of counseling and physical health, because “they come from different perspectives.” She says she was impressed upon her initial assessment of Northeastern’s service providers. “They are wellqualified, well-educated and experienced. A lot of them have been here a long time and have certainly shown they’re committed to the university.” Berrien says she’d like to increase outreach programs, and would advocate for general wellness throughout campus. Since starting the job she has yet to take the elevator though it’s steps from her third-floor office in Ell Hall. A resident of Providence, Berrien takes the commuter rail into Back Bay, but walks along the Southwest Corridor rather than make the two-stop commute by subway. Berrien attended Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania, then earned a master’s in biology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a medical degree at the University of Tennessee-Memphis. She served her medical residency at Bay State Medical Center in Springfield, Mass.; she also had a private practice in Northampton. January 18, 2005 The Northeastern Voice 11 Sox join anti-violence effort Red Sox, continued from Page 1 on for MVP’s curriculum. Sport in Society has a working goal to build relationship with all of Boston’s professional sports organizations. When the National Hockey League resumes play, the center expects to announce a similar partnership with the Boston Bruins, Roby said. Further, discussions are developing with the Boston Celtics’ brass, he said. The Patriots have trained their rookies and free agents using MVP’s curriculum for the past six years. Having another defending champion on board is significant because of “the message this will send to other pro franchises and youngsters who idolize the Red Sox,” Roby said. President Freeland also spoke briefly, noting the university’s longstanding affiliation with the local nine — as site of the first World Series win in 1903, to the “three clean hits” the Huskies registered off Curt Schilling in spring training in Florida last March (the Huskies will compete against the Red Sox this year as well). Freeland also remarked on the Center for progress at nu DIVERSITY From left, Northeastern police Officer Peter Stanley, Sgt. Robert Maloney, Officer Jay Connolly and Lt. Michael Dwyer keep their eyes on the prize. CRAIG BAILEY the Study of Sport in Society’s “increased interaction with educational programs at Northeastern.” Before and after the press conference, employees and students took advantage of the photo opportunity with the World Series trophy, as more than 750 turned out for a peek at the trophy inside Cabot Gymnasium. Asian-American Advisory Group Over the next six editions the Voice will profile each of the president’s diversity advisory groups. In this issue we look at the Asian-American group. Members: Freeland: ‘My focus is on goals’ Contract, continued from Page 1 ranked annually in U.S. News & World Report. Freeland expressed his pleasure in the vote of confidence from the trustees. “I love being president of Northeastern,” he said in the statement. “I deeply believe it is our destiny to be recognized as one of the best universities in the country and the best place in the world for an education that combines classroom study in the arts and sciences and professional fields with workplace experience. “I look forward to continuing to work with colleagues on the governing boards, in the administration, faculty and staff and with our students and alumni to fulfill this vision,” he said. “There are no arbitrary limits on age or how long a president can serve at Northeastern University,” Freeland said in a brief interview Thursday. “My focus is on the goals we have established.” The Northeastern presidency, he said, is “still the best job in higher education.” Finnegan praised Freeland for the significant accomplishments that have been achieved thus far in his presidency. “Dr. Freeland leads Northeastern during a period marked by dynamic change and unparalleled improvement at the school,” Finnegan said in the statement. “The president and the board of trustees share the vision of reaching our top 100 goal and our collective focus continues to be on accomplishing this objective. We are privileged to be able to work together to help Northeastern establish itself among the premier universities in the United States.” Added Freeland: “We still face many challenges, not only in continued academic improvement but also in campus life, fund-raising, alumni relations, facilities development and community relations. There is much work ahead.” Freeland also noted that he has recently accepted nomination to a three-year term as a director of the American Council on Education, the nation’s leading institutional association for colleges and universities. The president also serves on the boards at Citizens Bank of Massachusetts, The Boston Globe, the Boston Chamber of Commerce, the Boston Plan for Excellence, the Private Industry Council and WGBH. Jin Chen, manager, information technology, facilities; Michael Elgarico, senior assistant director, international admissions; Surendra M Gupta, professor, mechanical and industrial engineering; Ban-An Khaw, professor, pharmaceutical science, and director, Center for Cardiovascular Targeting; Catherine Kim, associate dean for administration, School of Professional and Continuing Studies; May Lee, senior consultant, Human Resource Management; Chieh Li, associate professor of counseling and applied psychology; Sheila Magee Beare, assistant director of graduate student services, College of Arts and Sciences; Eugene Mahr, senior officer, University Corporate Partnerships; Magdalena Mateo, associate professor, School of Nursing; Dirk Rodericks, assistant director, Student Center operations; Ketty Munaf-Rosenfeld, associate director, career services; Srinivas Sridhar, vice provost for research; Fareena Sultan, associate professor, marketing; Bonnie TuSmith, associate professor, English; Lihua Wang, coordinator, women’s studies; Margaret Woo, professor, School of Law History: The group was established about six years ago to guide implementation of an Asian-American Center – to be launched later this semester upon the hiring of a director. Because there is no typical “identifiable Asian-American,” the group says a professionally trained leader of the student-focused center is “a major accomplishment.” The group has worked over the last two years toward implementing the “Pan Asian American Celebration,”a week of culture, conversation, community,and connections. The center will also emphasize the “American” heritage of AsianAmericans, an important issue for some of the group. “Many people perceive us as foreigners, when we’re really talking about people of Asian ancestry who are Asian-Americans,” said TuSmith. “That’s a shortcut that’s very dangerous.” The unit says it was also initially charged with helping to alleviate the “perceived glass ceiling for Asian-Americans ” on senior governing boards. They cite Sridhar’s appointment to the academic leadership team as a pioneering milestone for Asian-Americans. “Our original goal was to change the perception that Northeastern was not an Asian-American-friendly campus, despite having more students of this ethnic group than any other minority group,” says Gupta, the 27-year veteran of the university who wrote the proposal for the center. “We are in the process of achieving those goals.” NU wary of change to Pell Grant formula Pell, continued from Page 1 nancially that a $100 to $300 cut per year in aid is significant, he said. He decried the proposed change to the way the needs analysis system considers taxes that families pay. According to The Associated Press, the Bush proposal depends on more recent state and local tax data paid by low-and middle-income families to calibrate the need for a Pell. Prior to this proposal, Pell Grants were allocated based on tax table information that had not been updated in 15 years, The Associated Press stated. Because taxes have actually decreased over the years in states such as Massachusetts and Michigan, it will appear that some families have more capacity to pay for tuition under the new formula. Pell Grant recipients receive an average of $2,500 a year, with a maximum of $4,050, according to Harreys. Because Pell eligibility often qualifies students for additional state financial aid, the proposed change could have a painful ripple effect, Harreys said. But nothing is set in stone. Democratic Reps. Timothy Bishop of New York and Rush Holt of New Jersey have filed counter-legislation to reinstate eligibility to affected students. Noting a 12 percent increase in student eligibility for aid, Harreys said this is the wrong time to be making it more difficult to pay for college. “Now is not the time to retrench on our commitment to the education of our young people,” he said. “It’s bad enough that the maximum yearly amount of a Pell Grant has remained unchanged at $4,050 for four years, but we’re now losing ground to inflation. The price of peanut butter hasn’t remained unchanged.” The group says: “We are diverse within Asian-Americans, including subcontinents such as Asia, South Asia,East Asia and Southeast Asia. Our members are in different management levels, ranging from the provost’s office to students … Stay tuned for the opening of the Asian-American Center.” 4 The Northeastern Voice January 18, 2005 Reyes of sunshine CCIS senior wins top honor Grimes’ research, passion feted by national computer group BY GENEVIEVE HAAS A The Latino/a Student Cultural Center hosted a Jan. 6 visit by the Reyes Magos — the three kings of the Bible’s Nativity story — to Raytheon Amphitheater, to present gifts to tots from the Children’s Center and from staff families. The ‘reyes’ were student Josue Garcia, in foreground, Scott Quint, director of the International Student and Scholar Institute, and Mark Harvey, coordinator of the Legacy 2000 mentoring program. Journal lauds Karger as bio-research ‘pioneer’ BY SUSAN SALK ndrea Grimes, a senior computer science major, discovered her passion for human-computer interaction while teaching low-income adults computer literacy as a step toward higher pay. Her research, achievement and commitment to “bridging the digital divide” is what earned her top honors from the Computing Research Association (CRA). The CRA is an association of more than 200 North American academic departments of computer science and engineering, government laboratories and industry leaders. Its mission is to strengthen research and advanced education in the computing fields, expand opportunities for women and minorities, and improve understanding of the importance of computing and computing research in society. Each year, the CRA honors two undergraduates with the CRA Outstanding Undergraduate Awards, sponsored this year by Microsoft Research. Grimes, in addition to a stellar academic record and a commitment to helping low-income adults become tech savvy, was honored for her research: designing software that identified language patterns in biology texts. This is a first step toward creating better computer programs to aid in biology research. Grimes was chosen over hundreds of nominees from the nation’s top universities. “When I started my degree, I wasn’t really that passionate about computer science,” she said. “But I got really interested in how people reacted to computers and then I discovered that there’s a whole field dedicated to human computer interaction.” Grimes criticized what she sees as a tendency in the computer science field to develop technology without putting enough thought into how that new technology will be integrated into the cultural landscape. Currently, she's applying to grad school with hopes of changing the status quo. Grimes praised the College of Computer and Information Sciences, saying, “I’ve received so much support for my research here.” The award includes a cash prize of $1,000 and will be presented at a computing research conferences sponsored by CRA. CRAIG BAILEY employee spotlight L ongtime Barnett Institute Director Barry Karger, internationally known for developing separation science instruments necessary for the human genome mapping project, was feted in a recent Journal of Chromatography for his landmark work, an honor to be further recognized at a luncheon Jan. 31. Nine editors, among them chemistry and biomedical science professor Roger Giese, decided the honor should go to Karger after several magazine planning meetings. “When we put it all together, one name kept coming up: that was Barry Karger,” Giese said. “He has such a (great) expertise in developing technologies for modern biotechnology med- Voice The Northeastern EDITOR IN CHIEF Jim Chiavelli (ext. 7225) j.chiavelli@neu.edu EDITOR Susan Salk (ext. 5446) s.salk@neu.edu WRITER/EDITOR Brian Lee (ext. 5451) b.lee@neu.edu S TA F F P H O T O G R A P H E R Craig Bailey (ext. 5450) c.bailey@neu.edu ART DIRECTOR Megan Littlejohn (ext. 5427) m.littlejohn@neu.edu The Northeastern Voice, the newspaper of the Northeastern University community, is published 15 times a year by the Division of Marketing and Communications, 598 Columbus Place. (617) 373-7225 (Phone) (617) 373-5430 (Fax) www.voice.neu.edu icine” that his discoveries still fuel research today. “Barry Karger is one of the rare people who have made discoveries that have had a huge impact in the real world,” Giese added. Karger holds 30 patents related to separation technology, processes that make automated analysis of DNA fragments possible at high rates of speed, a boon to the human genome-mapping project. Under his leadership, the Barnett Institute of Chemical and Biological Analysis has become a flagship of the university’s research mission, boasting 150 graduates who have gone on to hold key positions in the $6 billion biotechnology industry. “People have been talking about biotechnology for years. Barry was one of the first who finally said, ‘Let’s get going!’ ” Giese said. Indeed, the Karger name has lent credibility to the university’s research efforts, which recently pushed forward with three major hires — William Hancock, the Bradstreet chair and professor of chemistry and chemical biology; Alexandros Makriyannis, the Behrakis chair of pharmaceutical biotechnology and director of the Center for Drug Discovery; and Michael Sitkovsky, the Black chair of the New England Inflammation and Tissue Protection Institute. The three hires built upon the foundation laid by Barnett, according to Arts and Sciences Dean James Stellar. “Dr. Karger has been a great asset to this university for a long time,” Stellar said. "This is wonderful recognition of the tremendous contributions that Barry Karger made in this field,” said Provost Ahmed Abelal. In the journal edition, Yale professor Csaba Horvath described Karger as a “pioneer of modern bioanalytical chemistry.” Frances McSherry Title: Costume designer/theater professor Department: Theater Time of service: four months How did you find this calling? I started at Smith, where I went to college with the intention of being a sculptor. I found the solitary life in the studio wasn’t for me, though, and that I needed the interaction with people — that lead me to costume design. How do you train for costume design? After I shifted to the theater department and got my undergrad degree, I went to the Tisch School of Arts at N.Y.U. and studied theater and film design for three years. What was your professional experience after that? I worked freelance in New York City and ran a costume construction shop for five years making costumes for theater, dance and the movies. And you have a related hobby, we hear. I have a small handbag business. I make them out of great fabrics I find, and I sell them at fairs. SUSAN SALK January 18, 2005 The Northeastern Voice 5 Researcher hopes to build on invention to create center on medical robotics Hi, robot T BY SUSAN SALK scholarship he engineering professor who recently graced the pages of The New York Times with his “smart” fluid knee brace is hoping to parlay his inventiveness into a National Science Foundation research center. Constantino Mavroidis, associate professor of mechanical and industrial engineering, and 14 fellow researchers will seek NSF funding this spring to create the Center for Medical Robotics Associate professor Constantino Mavroidis Technologies. with his robotic ‘smart’ knee brace. The plan is to conduct visionary research and development in bio-nano robotics, rehabilitation robotics and MRI-guided robotic systems — all hot research areas in medical and manufacturing science, he said. “This is a really dynamic research area, and we’re well positioned” to tap into the market, Mavroidis said. The center’s proximity to Boston’s hospitals, and its established relationships with giants such as Massachusetts General and Spaulding Rehabilitation hospitals, as well as a growing interest among industry investors, are factors adding oomph to the proposal, he said. After the NSF application in March, Mavroidis and associates will take a year to generate investments from targeted industry affiliates, which include research and development, technology, bioscience and medical companies. Once they are locked in, a lengthier proposal will be submitted to the NSF to garner funding for the new center. If all goes according to plan, a team of undergraduate, graduate and visiting researchers will go to work designing a wide range of products, such as nano-scale robots for use in targeted drug delivery, which could be injected into a patient in order to deliver drugs to damaged cells, Mavroidis said. Robots would be constructed using proteins and DNA, and would be capable of reacting to their environment, he said. He admits this possibility is a way away; the center’s research would focus first on identifying which proteins could be used for robot creation, he said. In another project, researchers are working to equip magnetic resonance imaging machines with miniature robots capable of performing biopsies. The idea is to perform biopsies on suspected areas once they are detected, while a patient undergoes a scan, Mavroidis said. Rehabilitative medical devices using smart materials is another avenue the center would pursue. A “smart” brace for injured joints, developed in Mavroides’ laboratory, was featured in an October New York Times story focusing on exciting discoveries. Mavroidis and his collaborators used electro-rheological fluids to simulate exercise equipment by changing the resistance to the movement of an injured joint. The prototype for a knee brace, which he proudly displays in his 161 Egan Center lab, looks like a standard brace except for the two round attachments. These devices contain sets of small plates and “smart” fluids that change viscosity in response to computer controlled electric charges, which ultimately create resistance as the knee flexes. These and other research endeavors are driv- “We are developing technology that we believe can bring a big benefit to a number of fields, and to the university itself.” ing Mavroidis and associates to bring the center to fruition. His mission is to perform high level, vision-driven research into robotics. Additionally, he hopes to generate intellectual property and see success in technological transfer to market. “We are developing technology that we believe can bring a big benefit to a number of fields, and to the university itself,” he said, noting that robotics are already used in medical field and in space, where Mars exploration would not have been possible without the technology. He points out, “Robots can go where humans can’t.” Mavroidis joined Northeastern as an associate professor a year ago, after concluding a medical robotics project for Massachusetts General Hospital. He worked three years at a Massachusetts Institute of Technology postdoctorate robotics project after receiving his master’s and doctorate in the field from the University of Paris. CRAIG BAILEY 6 The Northeastern Voice January 18, 2005 Law co-op chief Alexander retiring Advertise in the voice There’s no better way to promote your business or product to Northeastern employees and students. To get started, call Jim Chiavelli at (617) 373-7225. BY SUSAN SALK 2004-05 publication dates Sept. 14 Oct. 12 Oct. 26 Nov. 16 Dec. 7 Jan. 18 Feb. 8 March 1 March 29 April 19 May 10 May 31 June 21 July 19 Aug. 16 The Northeastern Voice • 716 Columbus Ave., Suite 598 • Boston, MA 02120 Isn’t it time you joined the NU Credit Union? wenty years ago, Alice Alexander was the first black woman at the senior administrative level at the School of Law. But she didn’t feel particularly brave — she was focused on her single-mother mission of “putting bread and butter on the table.” Now retiring, her office cleared of all but a crystal and some files, the assistant dean and director of cooperative legal education looks back with pride on her accomplishments. Chief among them was the creation of law student handbook, which she coauthored with her colleague, Jeffrey Smith. The publication, which advises students and employers on conduct standards and other matters, has worked so well it got widespread coverage in law journals, and has been adopted at a number of law programs nationwide. Smith said Alexander has “created an incredibly solid foundation for the co-op operation, which runs so smoothly and efficiently.” On Alexander’s watch, the number of actively hiring co-op employers has climbed into the 700s, and 35 percent of law school graduates have been hired full time by a co-op employer. Considered the “architect” of law school’s co-op office, she created a framework to foster flexible systems to aid students in the job search process. In addition to helping 400 students each quarter in their job search, Alexander also worked to develop and promote opportunities in the law for minority students. She conceived and developed the popular Connections Program, which pairs a first-year student with alumni, and served as the university advocate for undergraduate students in a sexual harassment proceeding. She served a three-year term on the Boston Bar Council, and also sat on the school’s admissions committee. A 1979 graduate of the law school, Alexander returned to the fold in 1985 after a brief stint with a Boston firm. “I was trying to figure out what direction I wanted to go toward at the time, when I decided on law school administration,” Alexander said. “That’s when I got a call from Brian Lutch (then an associate dean) asking me if I’d be interested in the job. And I said, ‘Yup.’ ” The School of Law is honoring Alice Alexander’s legacy by establishing the Alice Alexander Judicial Internship Stipend Fund. Each year, two stipends will be awarded to students undertaking judicial internships as part of their co-op experience. T Students plan for TJX ubbing themselves the “Fab 4” after TV’s popular makeover show for fashion-inept men, a group of business school freshmen presented TJX executives with their own vision of a sleeker, more sophisticated image for off-price clothing stores. Business-plan suggestions, presented to TJX Vice President David Spooner as part of a Dec. 9 competition, ranged from sprucing up dressing rooms at the corporation’s retail clothing stores, TJ Maxx and Marshalls, to constructing better merchandise displays to the creation of a reality TV show and incorporation of selfcheckout into the mix. The plans were presented by 20 students of associate business professor Raymond Kinnunen. “Remember, these presentations were done by freshmen. I’ve taught plenty of seniors, and these were easily as good as any I’ve seen in the upper-level classes,” he said. For the second year in a row, Kinnunen’s students have partnered with TJX to introduce freshmen to realworld corporate issues, including marketing, human resources, budgeting and financing. The opportunity to connect fresh student ideas to an existing corporation enhances their experiences, and may provide fodder for TJX, Kinnunen said, noting that last year’s student presentations included creation of a better Web site, which the company did later that year. D The Intelligent Choice for Financial Services NUFCU members benefit every day from access to a wide array of highly competitive financial services. We offer an abundance of money-saving opportunities, plus fast, friendly and personalized service you can depend on. That's why the smart money is with us! • Checking and Savings Accounts • Certificates of Deposit • Individual Retirement Accounts • Personal, Auto, Holiday, and Home Equity Loans • ATM/Debit Cards • Direct Deposit • Payroll Deduction 315 Richards Hall • (617) 373-2900 • www.nufcu.neu.edu • Hours: M–F, 9:30 to 3:30 January 18, 2005 The Northeastern Voice 7 Vin Lembo BY JIM CHIAVELLI q&a incent Lembo, a double Husky, has worked for Northeastern since 1979, first in government relations and development, then as university counsel for two decades. But of all the hats he’s worn, the one he may be most proud of is a baseball cap. The onetime backup first-baseman at Norwood High has been a Little League and Babe Ruth League coach (his teams have always, ironically, been the Yankees), a Husky baseball patron, and a relentless booster of the Northeastern-Red Sox connection. How’d you end up at Northeastern? My twin brother, Peter, and I had no ability to pay for college. He went to the University of Massachusetts at Boston; I wanted to go someplace else. Allen Mackey, the registrar in 1967, and my mother had a mutual friend, and he convinced me to come here. … I had some very good co-ops (at law firms and the State House), and after law school, I was privileged to work for Justice John Doris at the Rhode Island Supreme Court. I came back at the request of (then-President) Ken Ryder in 1979. In what capacity? For the president, I helped with government relations. I did a lot of city and community relations, drafting legislation, testifying before the BRA, the Zoning Board, acting in a quasi-legal capacity. For the Law School, I helped with the capital campaign. From 1982 to 1984, I was halftime university counsel. Then I finished the Law School commitment and took on a larger clientele as full-time counsel. What does the counsel’s office do? Everything — faculty immigration issues; contract review; we advise student activities; we get involved if there’s an employee who’s disgruntled; tenure issues; taxation and probate issues. The only way you can learn that is by doing it. When I became university counsel, I was 32 years old and (the office) was just myself and a co-op student. I learned a lot of this as I went along. How is it different from, say, corporate work? If I worked for Gillette, Raytheon, EMC, and sent a memo as legal counsel to some division head, I’d be speaking for the CEO and that’s policy. At V “We have to convince people that our advice is the best policy to follow. It’s about relationships. We have to be priests, psychologists, mediators, counselors.” a university, it’s a lot of consensus, negotiation, mediation. We have to convince people that our advice is the best policy to follow. It’s about relationships. We have to be priests, psychologists, mediators, counselors. Seems like a lot of heavy lifting. Lisa Sinclair, Janet Faulkner and Deanna Jantzen are the people who deserve the credit. They do the bulk of the work. And my administrative assistant, Karen Brown, has been with me for about 15 years — she’s terrific. Do you deal much with students? Lisa handles the student activities organization, contract issues, advises the student judicial process. I mentor a couple of students from my hometown, so I’m seeing students directly there; in my legal capacity, though, when I’m seeing students they’re usually accompanied by a lawyer, and that’s not a fun job. Talk about music. My brother worked in the music business for 20 years, and I was privileged to meet a lot of people. I’m a big fan of a variety of types of music. I’m a huge fan of entertainers in general — how they get up on stage in front of all those people, the mind boggles. It meant a lot to me to be part of giving (Beach Boys founder) Brian Wilson an honorary degree. (When Wilson played in London). I was grateful to be there. Sir Paul McCartney was there, and Roger Daltrey, and of course in this country the highest honor we bestow is the honorary doctorate. To hear him introduced as Dr. Brian Wilson of Northeastern University — it’s really neat. You’re a huge fan, but you never played ball for Northeastern. I played through Little League and Babe Ruth League, but my skills were mediocre. In my senior year (of high school) I had the choice to be a backup first baseman or work for (presidential candidate) Eugene McCarthy. I chose politics over athletics. Later I started coaching the young kids. I’ve always been a financial supporter to the athletic program, through a scholarship named for my parents. And I was proud to be part of bringing the Cy Young statue here. … it put Northeastern on the sports map. My son and Jack Curry’s grandson got to make a presentation to Roger Clemens and Frank Viola, the two Cy Young award winners who were pitching for the Sox at the time of the dedication. Busloads of tourists stop here to see the Cy Young statue — that’s a real thrill. Twenty Hall-of-Famers played baseball on this site. People should know NAME Vincent Lembo AGE 54 POSITION University counsel EDUCATION B.A. ’73, and J.D. ’76, Northeastern University OTHER DUTIES Secretary to the board of trustees FAMILY Children Elisabeth ’01, Julianne ’00, and Michael ’07 CRAIG BAILEY 16 The Northeastern Voice January 18, 2005 A Sort of Homecoming Photographs by Craig Bailey ust in case you hadn’t been informed yet, Northeastern University stands on the site of professional baseball’s very first World Series — a series won by nine young men representing Boston. That Boston team, now known as the Red Sox, later went nearly 90 years without another World Series victory, until the self-proclaimed “bunch of idiots” tore through the St. Louis Cardinals in four straight games last fall. As part of the New England-wide celebration of that historic win, the Sox have taken their World Series trophy on a victory tour of the region, stopping most recently right here, where it all began — the old Huntington Avenue Grounds, within earshot of the statue commemorating the pitching of the legendary Cy Young. There may be no truth to the rumor that Cy was grinning ear to ear last week when the trophy came home ... but it’s certainly true that hundreds of Northeastern students, faculty and staff lined up to get a peek at the prize. The Sox combined their victory roll with a major announcement — that the team will partner with Northeastern’s Center for the Study of Sport in Society to begin training its minor-leaguers about domestic violence, through the university’s innovative Mentors in Violence Prevention program. J Clockwise, from top: Husky cheerleaders find something to shout about as they gather ’round the World Series trophy; Peter Roby, director of the Center for the Study of Sport in Society, lays out details of the MVP partnership with the Red Sox; students gather, gawk and snap photos as the trophy shines in Cabot Gymnasium; trustee Carol Shapazian, in Husky colors, pauses to admire the prize; Sox general manager Theo Epstein lauds the MVP program. 8 The Northeastern Voice January 18, 2005 January 18, 2005 The Northeastern Voice 9 Tsunami NU, with the world, struggles to understand the Asian tragedy The prayerful response SHELLI JANKOWSKI-SMITH DIRECTOR, OFFICE OF SPIRITUAL LIFE. “I have not been hearing a lot of the ‘What kind of God would do this?’ questions,” says Shelli Jankowski-Smith, moments after a spiritual gathering Friday to pray and reflect about the tsunami. “The response I’ve been hearing is more, ‘What a horrible thing this is; what are the ways we can help? What can we do?’” She says Northeastern has turned to donations and volunteer opportunities, rather than despair, in response to the Pacific tragedy. Of the service, she says “I felt a deep connection among the people there, and a kind of tangible desire to do good. “People who believe in the spiritual life believe prayer has real power,” she says. “It isn’t just a symbol.” Several dozen gathered to “pray for those who’ve died, to pray for those who are alive and suffering terribly, to pray for the damaged earth and to pray for ourselves,” says Jankowski-Smith. “It then began to lead more into praying for the guidance, the wisdom and the strength to be, ourselves, powers for good in the world.” In weighing responses to the catastrophe, she says, “I haven’t seen divisions along religious lines — I’ve seen divisions among types of people. “Overall, the way that the theologies of our faiths have us look at something like this is much more accepting … We can disagree with what happened, but we don’t necessary understand.” The public-health woes JEAN FLATELY MCGUIRE SNELL VISITING PROFESSOR, URBAN HEALTH INSTITUTE The tsumami was a “layering of a tragic circumstance on top of inadequate public health infrastructures,” says Jean Flately McGuire, a former Massachusetts public-health official. “So the risks are exacerbated.” For survivors, acute needs range from first aid for broken bones, cleansing and suturing wounds, to internal injuries that might not get first priority, McGuire says. However, of equal concern are diarrheal diseases (with young children and the elderly most susceptible), and mental health repercussions — “something we do least well in relieving,” she says. For public health administrators, the top priority is restoring the region’s water supply, keeping victims hydrated, and getting food to them in a “manner that makes sense,” she says. Here in the United States, McGuire called for better coordination of multiple donor agencies. “This country is incredibly generous, but we’ve never seemed to work out who’s on first for humanitarian need,” she says. “What happens if you send the wrong aid or duplicate aid?” The worry at home PETER ROSEN ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR AND CHAIR, EARTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES The scene in Asia JESSE STERN COMMUNICATIONS STUDIES SENIOR ON CO-OP WITH BRITISH BROADCASTING CORP. He wishes the Asian tsunami last month “never happened.” Nonetheless, the tragedy framed the breaking-news experience of a lifetime for Jesse Stern, who had spent the fall on international co-op in Bangkok, Thailand, working for the British Broadcasting Corp. (BBC). After the earthquake struck, the BBC commissioned the television production company InFocus Asia to produce a one-hour documentary of the event. Stern, who had impressed the “Beeb” on co-op, was asked to serve as an assistant producer. The Summit, N.J., native says he got the call about 24 hours after the wave hit. “Nobody knew the full extent of the damage,” Stern says. “Nobody knew the extent of what this documentary would be. At first it was going to be a series of home videos, focused on survivors. We settled on looking at British volunteers.” According to the BBC, 36 British in Thailand were confirmed dead as a result of the disaster as of last week. That brought the total to 49, including Sri Lanka and Maldives. Nearly 400 British were unaccounted for. “Being down here, you hear amazing things about the heroics people performed, risking their lives for people on the beach that they’d never seen before. You hear some of these stories and you don’t really know how you’d react in the same situation. That was the really interesting component to this experience.” The production crew finalized the documentary on Jan. 6, and it aired in the United States (Discovery Channel) two days later. “It’s an absolute disaster down here,” he says. “Eight-hundred meters from the beach, it’s like nothing happened. But once you move in, you see that the entire beach was demolished. People’s lives, peoples businesses are just gone.” How you can help NORTHEASTERN TSUNAMI RELIEF FUND Northeastern has established a fund for the relief of victims of the Pacific tsunami For the next several weeks, contributions to the Northesatern Tsunami Relief Fund will be matched by the president’s office, up to a total of $25,000. There are drop locations for cash and checks: the International Student & Scholar Institute, 206 Ell Hall; the Spiritual Life Center, 311 Ell Hall; the Office of Community Affairs, 304 Columbus Place; and the student activities business office, 226 Curry Student Center. The money will be distributed to the United Nations Children’s Fund, the American Red Cross, the National Coordinating Agency for Natural Disaster Relief and Refugee Relief in the Republic of Indonesia, and the Royal Thai Embassy’s Relief Fund. The wide, shallow continental shelf that parallels New England’s coast line is a barrier further protecting our shores from the very unlikely event of a tsunami, according to Peter Rosen. He notes, “If you’re worrying about tsunamis in New England, you should also be worrying about meteorites. “The possibility is so remote,” he says. “The thing you should really be worried about in New England is getting into an accident on the Mass. Pike.” Tsunamis, caused either by earthquake or a submarine movement of massive amounts of sediment, have been recorded in the Caribbean in past years, not here: the shelf prevents formation of deep-water waves, and the scarcity of earthquakes also factors in, Rosen says. By contrast, the earthquake-prone Pacific has no shallow shelf, and while it’s great for surfers, it also makes formations of tsunamis more likely. “We could possibly feel the impact of a submarine shift of sediment sliding off the African continent, but even the largest of waves would lose their (strength) going over the continental shelf,” Rosen says. “And, earthquakes are smaller in the Atlantic” than in the Pacific “and this makes the probability of a tsunami hitting the New England coast incredibly low.” Photographs by Jesse Stern Co-op student Jesse Stern, at top left (in Vietnam), sent these pictures of the devastation he witnessed in Phuket, Thailand, in the wake of the Dec. 26 tsunami. 12 The Northeastern Voice January 18, 2005 January 18, 2005 The Northeastern Voice 13 calendar 1/18>2/23 Music at Noon Free Concert Feb. 9, Raytheon Amphitheatre. Featuring performances by Arthur Rishi, tenor; Robert Ward, guitar. Music at Noon Free Concert Feb.23, Raytheon Amphitheatre. Featuring Greg Wall, avantgarde saxophonist in a joint presentation with the Jewish Studies Program. LECTURES Communicating with the Quantum World Using a Dynamical Bifurcation Jan. 18, 4 p.m., 114 Dana Research Building. With Irfan Siddiqui, Department of Applied Physics, Yale. Contact Kathie Simmons at ext. 2902. Presenting History on Film: Issues and Problems Jan. 19, noon to 1:30 p.m., 90 Snell Library. Featuring Carma Hinton, who will speak on her two award-winning films — Gates of Heavenly Peace (1989 Tiananmen Square protests); Morning Sun (Chinese cultural revolution). Contact professor Inez Hedges at ext. 3654. Multilayered Thin Films for Device Applications Jan. 19, Noon, 129 Hurtig. With William McGimpsey, Worcester Polytechnic Institute. Refreshments served at 11:40 a.m., 124 Hurtig. Offered by the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology. Call ext. 2822. The Soft and the Fold: Male Computer Programmers and the Politics of Embodiment Jan. 20, 2:50 to 4 p.m., 344 Curry Student Center. Featuring Dr. Michele White, Mellon post-doctoral fellow in art history, Wellesley College. White teaches courses in Internet and media studies, queer and gender theory, and visual culture. Hosted by Women's Studies. Contact Lihua Wang at ext. 4984. Sexualities and Legalities: Queering the State in Contemporary India Jan. 20, 3:30 to 5 p.m., 306 Egan. Featuring Jyoti Puri, associate professor of sociology, Simmons College. Hosted by Interdisciplinary Research Seminar in Global and Transnational Studies. Contact history professor Laura Frader at ext. 2662, or sociology professor Kathrina Zippel at ext. 3852. Spin Polarized Tunneling and Spin Transport in Mesoscopic Metal Systems Jan. 20, 4 p.m., 114 Dana Research Building. With Sergio O. Valenzuela, Physics Department, Harvard University. Contact Kathie Simmons at ext. 2902. Coping with Extreme Pollution: Molecular Mechanisms of Evolved PCB Resistance in Fish Inhabiting a Superfund Site Jan. 24, Noon, 90 Snell Library. Featuring Mark Hahn, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute. Hosted by professor Phyllis Strauss. Contact Lillian Fairhurst at ext. 2260. Panel Discussions on Current Architecture Jan. 24 and 31,6p.m., Raytheon Amphitheater, Egan. First session featuring Boston Globe architecture critic Robert Campbell. Second session with Eric Mumford, architectural historian, Washington University, St. Louis. Sponsored by the Department of Architecture. Call ext. 4637. Snell Library Book Talk — Why We Hate Feb. 2, noon, 90 Snell Library. Northeastern Professors Jack Levin and Gordana Rabrenovic will deliver a book talk on their recently published work. Examining the troubling aspect of human nature and feelings of hate in the wake of Sept. 11. These experts reveal their new, original and surprising findings. Levin is ‘Unforgivable,’ unforgettable Panel discusses boxer Jack Johnson, new documentary on his colorful career. BY BRIAN LEE Praise the Lord The world-famous Harlem Gospel Choir brings its message of peace, love and harmony, and the thunder of its passionate voice to the Blackman Auditorium Feb. 4, beginning at 8 p.m. Founded in 1986 by Allen Bailey, who took his inspiration from a Martin Luther King Jr. celebration, the assembly travels the globe raising money for impoverished children. Tickets are $25; $20 for faculty and staff; $15 for students. Call the Northeastern Ticket Center at ext. 2247. SPECIAL EVENTS Ribbon Cutting Ceremony for 435 Mugar Jan. 18, 10 to 11 a.m., 435 Mugar. Marking the renovation of biotechnology laboratory space. Hosted by Behrakis Chair of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology Alexandros Makriyannis, director, Center for Drug Discovery. Call ext. 2627. Spring Volunteer Fair Jan. 19, 11:30 a.m., Indoor Quad, Curry Student Center. Join other Northeastern students and dozens of local nonprofits in networking exercises. Find internships and volunteer positions, work-study or co-op opportunity. Call ext. 5809, or send e-mail to communityservice@neu.edu. Ribbon Cutting Ceremony for 111 Mugar Jan. 20, 1 to 2 p.m., 111 Mugar. Marking the renovation of biotechnology laboratory space. Hosted by Black chair of immunophysiology and pharmaceutical biotechnology Michael Sitkovsky, director of the Tissue Protection Institute. Call ext. 2627. HEALTH AND WELLNESS Alcoholics Anonymous Tuesdays, noon to 1 p.m., Sacred Space, 201 Ell. Call ext. 2728. Blood-Pressure Screenings By appointment only, 111 Dockser. Call ext. 3173. Eating and Weight Concerns Project Mondays, 4 to 6 p.m., 111 Dockser. Call ext. 3173. Quit Smoking Group Wednesdays, noon to 1 p.m., 313 Ell. Call ext. 2142. Rape Aggression Self-Defense Class for Women Jan. 22, 29 and Feb. 5, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., multi-purpose room, SquashBusters. Cost is $10. Workout clothes required. Offered by the public safety division. Register at ext. 2696. Weight Watchers Ongoing sessions, 177 Dodge. $130 for 12 weeks. Call ext. 3244. Yoga Tuesdays, noon to 1 p.m., Sacred Space, 201 Ell. Dahn yoga,1:15 to 2:30 p.m., Sacred Space. Call ext. 2728. So, You Wanna Build a Web Site, Huh? Jan. 27, 10:30 a.m. to noon, 50 Dockser Hall. Offered by the EdTech Center. Materials available at . MEETINGS Faculty Senate Jan. 19 and 26, 11:45 a.m. to 1:25 p.m., Raytheon Amphitheatre, Egan Research Center. Call ext. 3353. Vincent Stabile, vice president for people at JetBlue, and president Dave Barger speak to a breakfast forum of area business leaders. Send us your listings The Voice welcomes your calendar listings. Send them to Susan Salk, 598CP; e-mail to s.salk@neu.edu; or submit via the Web at . Blue is the 10th largest airline in the United States. Vincent Stabile, JetBlue’s vice president for people, said the airline’s pillars are safety, caring, integrity, fun and passion. “We seek these (qualities) aggressively during the interview process,” he said. The forum was moderated by Leonard Glick, an associate academic specialist in human resources, and followed by smaller round-table discussions about human-resources practices JIM CHIAVELLI The Studio Theatre presents “Lower Depths” by Maxim Gorky, a grimly realistic view of a desperate circle of lost souls. 8 p.m., Feb. 16 to 19 and 23 to 26. Directed by Janet Bobcean. the Brudnick professor of sociology and criminology, and director of the Brudnick Center on Violence and Conflict. Contact Maria Carpenter at ext. 2821. Physical Therapy & Athletic Training Clubs Lecture Feb. 2, Noon to 1:15, location TBA. Featuring associate mechanical and engineering professor Constantino Mavroidis, director of Robotics and Mechatronics Laboratory. Discussing his work with “smart” brace restraints for injured joints. Call ext. 3321. WORKSHOPS College of Arts and Sciences Undergraduate Research Session Jan. 18 and 19, Noon to 1 p.m. (first session), and 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. (second session), 162 Meserve. Hear first-hand testimonials of faculty and students. Call ext. 5811. Planning and Organizing Web Sites Jan. 18, 10 to 11:30 a.m., 50 Dockser Hall. Offered by the EdTech Center. Get materials at . Build a Basic Blackboard Course Jan. 20, 8:15 a.m. to noon, 50 Dockser Hall. Offered by the EdTech Center. Visit . clip and discussion of Ken Burns’ new documentary, “Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson,” drew about 300 to the latest installment of the Ford Hall Forum lecture series Thursday night at Blackman Auditorium. Ron Borges, The Boston Globe’s boxing writer, joined Northeastern associate professors Robin Chandler (African-American studies and women’s studies) and Robert Hall (AfricanAmerican studies and history) on a panel moderated by Peter Roby, director of the Center for the Study of Sport in Society. Johnson was pro boxing’s first prominent African-American athlete; he became heavyweight champion of the world in 1908 with his defeat of Jim Jeffries. Johnson’s abilities and social status allowed him to do whatever he wanted, but in an era of racial injustice, those decisions came with consequences. He was ostracized by spectators, and imprisoned for violating morality laws (he twice married outside his race). His reign as champ also led to race riots throughout the country, according to the twopart documentary that premiered on WGBH2 last night, with part two set for tonight at 9. Hall noted that Johnson’s 1908 defeat of Corbett in Sydney, Australia, led to massive race rioting in Illinois; this spurred conferences that branched off advocacy groups like the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). Racism was at the forefront of everything about Johnson, even the media’s analysis of his fighting style. One of the earliest strategic and defensive boxers, Johnson was a diversion from free-swinging brawling. Writers saw him as “lazy,” “shiftless” and “yellow.” A Robert Hall, right, makes a point; from left are Peter Roby, Ron Borges and Robin Chandler. Challenger Corbett, meanwhile, also utilized defensive tactics, but to warmer reviews (he was dubbed “Gentlemen Jim.”). Outside the ring, Johnson was an entrepreneur who frequented exclusive clubs of his home city Chicago, and preferred to date white women. Chandler compared Johnson to some of the cultural heroes of today, “a bling-blinger and bad boy,” whose defiance came at a time when scientific racism made a case for racial inferiority. Borges, who’s been with the Globe 23 years, considers Johnson one of the six to 10 greatest heavyweight world champions of all-time. Johnson’s story, Borges said, inspired the “sad concept” of the “Great White Hope” in sports — the hope for a white challenger to dethrone a black. Borges said this reared its head 80 years later, when heavyweight boxing was championed by African-American Larry Holmes, while white challenger Gerry Cooney made the cover of Time magazine. “All the feelings were there,” he said. At the end of the discussion, the group was asked to compare Johnson to other breakthrough athletes. Borges said Johnson is tough to compare to Jackie Robinson, who broke baseball’s color line, because the Brooklyn Dodgers hand-selected him, partly because Robinson “was willing to patiently endure” things that “Johnson would have never put up with.” “That’s one of the things I love about boxing,” Borges said. “In the end, it’s all about you and somebody else, and nobody else.” Chandler said Johnson, who did not concern himself with African American causes, was not much different from the “self-involved, non-conformist” Babe Ruth. The event was co-sponsored by the Center for the Study of Sport in Society, Northeastern University, the Institute on Race & Justice and WGBH. ‘Best practices’ companies preach HR sermon BY JIM CHIAVELLI Media critic Danny Schechter, the ‘News Dissector,’ analyzed the press and took questions from students on Friday in Shillman Hall. o hear these executives tell it, the key to a thriving business is in the staff. “People are the secret recipe for our success,” said Senior Vice President Kevin Casey of Comcast, the television/internet/telephone giant, at a Dec. 9 breakfast in the Curry Student Center Ballroom. “Everyone is, one way or another, a key driver in the company,” affirmed Dave Barger, president and chief operating officer of JetBlue. The communications and airline officials spoke to a capacity crowd of area business leaders at “Best Companies, Best Practices: Keeping the Competitive Edge,” a symposium sponsored by the College of Business Administration and the Office of Institutional Advancement. The discussion focused on human resource practices. Casey, joined by organizational-effectiveness vice president Kerry St. Jean, laid out the history of Comcast, which now operates in 35 states and has 59,000 employees, and said the company operates with three key principles: putting the customer first, increasing shareholder value, and being a great place to work. The company’s employee bonus program is predicated on individual accomplishments in those three categories, he said. When hiring, Casey said, Comcast managers look for the “Comcast DNA” in future employees — “conviction and passion.” St. Jean said that when Comcast bought AT&T’s operations in New England, it “very quickly moved to reorganize the company to a more decentralized model,” giving local managers more authority. It also created Comcast University, a management training organization to focus on leadership development, she said. Startup JetBlue airline was almost named “Taxi,” noted COO Barger, but then the founders considered the implications of that name for perceptions of “safety, courtesy and cleanliness.” Now with 7,500 “crew members” and 68 planes, the five-year-old Jet- T scene on campus CRAIG BAILEY MUSIC CRAIG BAILEY 14 The Northeastern Voice January 18, 2005 January 18, 2005 The Northeastern Voice 15 notable quotable NOTABLE Robert Case, associate professor of mathematics, wrote the cover article for the February 2005 issue of “Mathematics Teacher. “The publication circulates to 50,000 teachers through the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. Case’s article, “Report from the Netherlands: The Dutch Revolution in Secondary School Mathematics,” compares math education there to the United States, as both countries’ urban school populations have seen increased immigration patterns. Laura Frader, associate professor and chair of history, delivered an invited lecture titled, “Regardes Croises: Genre, Race et Classe dans la Pratique de l’Histoire” in the Seminar of the Groupe d’Etudes et de Recherche en Sociologie at the Institut de Recherche sur les Societes Contemporaines in Paris, France on Dec. 2. Roger Giese, professor of chemical and biomedical science in the Bouvé College of Health Sciences and the Barnett Institute, has become a charter member of the National Institutes of Health study section in bioengineering/instrumentation and also a member of the external advisory committee at the Eppley Cancer Institute at the University of Nebraska. He recently gave a talk, “Mass Discovery of DNA Adducts,” to the environmental carcinogenesis section of the Environmental Protection Agency in North Carolina. Robert Gilbert, professor of political science, wrote a column in the Dec. 5 Boston Globe about the history of U.S. presidents’ second term. “For many presidents,” Gilbert wrote, “the joy of a second term soon turns to disappointment. There’s rarely any honeymoon, and the political elite is far less gentle. Also, problems that carry over into the second term often disrupt the political agenda, as Nixon learned with Watergate, Reagan with Nicaragua, and Clinton with Paula Jones. With Bush, it could be terrorism/Iraq.” Robert Grier, director of operations for the Curry Student Center, was presented the Distinguished Service Award by the Association of College Unions International, Region 1. The award cited Grier as a mentor, teacher and guide, and a longtime active member of the ACUI. Paul Hickman, director of the Center for the Enhancement of Math and Science Education, was selected to serve on the steering committee for the U.S. Department of Education’s science committee for the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The unit will be responsible for identifying key issues in kindergarten through 12th grade science education, discuss current and proposed assessment models, and provide recommendations on the structure and content of the NAEP Science Framework and Specifications. William Kirtz, associate professor of journalism, introduced speakers at and published articles about December's three-day Nieman Narrative Journalism Conference. More than 1,000 writers attended the Cambridge, Mass., sessions presented by Harvard's Nieman Foundation for Journalism. Speakers included Robert Coles, Norman Mailer, Seymour Hersh and Daniel Ellsberg. Kirtz's stories appeared as the “Centerpiece” on the Poynter Institute's Web site and in the National Newspaper Association's monthly, “Publishers' Auxiliary.” Mary Loeffelholz, associate professor and chair of English, was re-elected chair of the American Literature Section of the Modern Language Association for 2005. profile McDevitt, institute to eye citizen-police interaction Northeastern’s Institute on Race and Justice is studying the Boston Police Department’s handling of civilian complaints, aided by a grant from the federal Community Oriented Policing Services program. “We’ll come up with a series of recommendations about ways to strengthen or improve various aspects of the citizen complaint process,” said Jack McDevitt, associate dean of the College of Criminal Justice and director of the institute. “We’ll be interviewing people who’ve filed complaints, talking to them about how the process worked for them, and doing outreach to other communities to learn how they handle” complaints against officers, he said. If he has any preconceptions, he said, it’s that “some of the quick fixes that people talk about haven’t worked in other jurisdictions.” McDevitt has studied many cities’ complaint processes and was involved in the 1991 Boston commission that established the current civilian complaint process, which he said has “fallen out of use.” “Is it because people didn’t know (the process) existed? Is it that there isn’t that much concern” about police misconduct? ... I don’t know that it’s as glaring an issue in Boston as in some other places.” Fewer than 10 percent of complaints against police are upheld nationwide, McDevitt said — though in Boston, the figure is closer to 18 percent — and “some of that is because citizens don’t go through the whole process. Some (citizens) see it as not a fair process, that (police) don’t create a more fair playing field for the citizens.” CRAIG BAILEY story about President Bush’s shuffling of nine Cabinet members entering his second term as president of the United States. The article pointed out Bush’s less-than supportive Cabinet during his first term. Gilbert pointed out that Bush is trying to control his Cabinet and prevent excessive independence from his agenda. Regarding former Secretary of State Colin Powell’s resignation, for Condoleeza Rice, Gilbert added, “Powell was more independent than Bush wanted, and he had reservations about the Iraq war, whereas Rice has been much more supportive.” Robert Hall, associate professor of AfricanAmerican studies and history, was quoted in a Jan. 9 Boston Sunday Globe story about the dynamics of inner-city neighborhoods that have school-age children. Students in Boston are scattered among public, charter, and private schools and the Metco program, through which minority students are voluntarily bused to suburban schools. Said Hall, whose daughter attends a charter school, “We are operating to a certain extent in isolation from other people on the street.” Jack Levin, director of the Brudnick Center on Violence and Conflict, was quoted in a Jan. 12 Washington Post story about an employee who went on an apparently unprovoked rampage in a Virginia nursing home, injuring six people. “Most of these cases are cases of vengeance,” Levin said. “The worker of exworker seeks sweet revenge” against coworkers or managers. Richard Melloni, associate professor of psychology, was quoted in a Dec. 7 (Lowell, Mass.) Sun story on the impact of steroid use among athletes in light of pro player Barry Bonds’ recent troubles. Said Melloni: “We know testosterone or steroids affect the development of serotonin nerve cells, which, in turn, decreases serotonin availability in the brain. The serotonin system is still developing during adolescence and the use of anabolic steroids during this critical period appears to have immediate and longer-term neural and behavioral consequences. What we know at this point is that aggressiveness doesn’t simply cease after the ingestion of steroids does.” Steven Morrison, professor and chair of economics, was quoted in a Dec. 2 New York Times story about the outdated Wright amendment of 1979 in Texas. The act restricts flights from Dallas’ Love Field to popular U.S. cities to protect business at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, built 25 years ago. “The premise of the Wright amendment was an infant-industry argument. That’s 25 years ago. That’s some infant.” Monique Pillow Gnanaratnam, assistant director for off-campus student services, was quoted in a Jan. 12 Boston Globe story about college students’ management of rent and utilities, with debts sometimes lingering years after graduation. Students “often don’t take the time to set up systems of how they are going to pay their bills,” she said. Peter Roby, director of the Center for the Study of Sport in Society, wrote a column in the Dec. 8 Boston Globe on alleged widespread steroid use in Major League Baseball. “It is time for the owners and the player’s union to put aside their self-interest and do what is in the interest of the game — and the nation. Their drug problem is one that affects our entire society; we are becoming a nation of cheaters. This should not be what we teach our youth, the future leaders of our country. The national pastime must put its house in order.” Roby was also quoted on the issue in the Dec. 8 New York Times, in regards to Barry Bonds’ on-field accomplishments in light of the perception of steroid use. “I don’t think in his mind he’s missing an opportunity here because I don’t think he cares. He was more interested in putting up numbers and letting them speak for themselves. If he were more concerned about how he was perceived, maybe he’d have thought twice about risking everything.” Andrew Sum, director of the Center for Labor Market Studies, and Carol Lyons, director of career services, were quoted in a Jan. 12 Associated Press story about the decline of working teens in Massachusetts aged 16 to 19. According to the story, the Commonwealth Corp. recently published a study that showed only 39 percent of this group was employed by 2003, a 9 percent drop from 2000. Due to displacement, “There’s been a growing share of college graduates over the last four years taking clerical jobs, sales jobs, waiting and waitressing, and taking call-center jobs they wouldn’t have taken four years ago,” Sum said. Added Lyons, “It wasn’t until the class of 2004 graduated that I thought, ‘We’re really out of the woods now, and things are getting back to a normal employment outlook.’” TRANSITIONS New hires: Peter Bennett, HVAC systems technician, residence halls; Zoe Cohen, communications specialist, professional and continuing studies; Shawntelle Dillon, assistant research coordinator, pharmaceutical science; Jessica Dockendorff, administrative assistant, earth and environmental science; Brian Dunbar, collections representative, finance; Tracy Hajduk, outreach program assistant, Marine science center; Brian Kane, grant coordinator, computer and information science; Jon Litchfield, assistant director, sports information; Dmitriy Lukashev, senior research scientist, pharmaceutical science; Michael Mazzola, administrative assistant, electrical and computer engineering; Kengo Moriyama, principal research scientist, Bouve College of Health Science’s dean’s office; Akio Ohta, assistant professor, pharmaceutical science; Steven Rebello, InfoCommons supervisor, academic computer service; Katherine Tibbitts, receipt & resource control assistant, library-acquisition department; Polly Uffens, senior budget analyst, professional and continuing studies. Rehire: Dexter Jenkins, director, violence prevention and diversity, Center for the Study of Sport in Society. New positions: Bonnie Brock, assistant coop coordinator-business administration, cooperative education; Tanner Chesney, assistant director, Office of Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution; Ray Cielencki, systems administrator, student info system; Stephanie Hudner, cataloguer-law library, law school library; Elizabeth Johnson, director of communications, business administration, dean’s office; Joseph Roffi, recycled materials handler, residence halls; Robert Sugiura, system administrator, student info system. Powell was more independent than Bush wanted, and he had reservations about the Iraq war, whereas Rice has been much more supportive.” Robert Gilbert, professor of political science, in the Dec. 25 Straits Times, discussing the change of U.S. secretary of state. It wasn’t until the class of 2004 graduated that I thought, ‘We’re really out of the woods now.’” & >> Jack McDevitt has questions for Boston’s citizens, police. Alexandros Makriyannis, professor of biotechnology and bio-organic chemistry, was featured in the Nov. 29 edition of “Mass High Tech: The Journal of New England Technology.” Makriyannis is studying the scientific benefits of cannabinoids, or marijuana. The manipulation of the substance by researchers has been in review by the U.S. Supreme Court recently. Makriyannis, whose most advanced research involves a neuropathic compound that focuses on pain and has licensed an intellectual property to MakScientific, an incubator at the University of Southern Connecticut, said, “We have received fast-track status and will be filing an IND (indication of new drug).” Constantino Mavroidis, associate professor of mechanical and industrial engineering, was featured in “Popular Science” magazine’s “17th Annual Best of What’s New,” for top technological inventions during 2004. Mavroidis’ Smart Fluid Orthotics is a computer-operated knee device for rehabilitation, and could replace bulky physical therapy equipment. The professor said the device would not be available commercially for another five years. Mary Jo Ondrechen, professor of chemistry and chemical biology, this month began her three-year term on the board of directors for the Telluride Research Center in Telluride, Colo. The center provides workshops on frontier problems of newly developed fields. Kwamina Panford, associate professor and chair of African-American studies, presented a paper “The Transition from the Organization of African Unity to the New African Union,”at the annual meeting of the African Studies Association in New Orleans on Nov. 12. Aleksandar M. Stankovic, professor of electrical and computer engineering, has been elected a fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, for his contributions to modeling, analysis and control of transients in energy-processing systems. The institute’s board annually elects as fellows those who have made outstanding contributions to the electrical and information technologies and sciences for the benefit of humanity and the profession. QUOTABLE Barry Bluestone, director of the Center for Urban and Regional Policy, and Daryl Hellman, professor of economics, co-wrote a column in the Dec. 7 Boston Globe on the consequences of the proposed Stabilization Act that would have permitted low-income, elderly, and disabled households to contest annual rent increases of more than five percent. (Boston’s City Council defeated the proposal, 8-5, on Dec. 8). “One problem is housing supply,” the duo wrote. “Landlords who try to avoid raising rents to prevent costly litigation are less likely to maintain their properties, speeding deterioration of the existing rental stock. The measure could also provide greater encouragement to condominium conversion.” Landlords would have also been less willing to rent these groups, according to Bluestone and Hellman. Stephen Burgard, associate professor and director of the School of Journalism, was quoted in a piece in December on “fly-by-night blogs.” “Generally speaking, more information is better,” Burgard said. “But since the new wave of opinion writing online hasn’t been accompanied with a corresponding expansion of the 24-hour day, the burden falls more heavily than ever before on the reader to find good, trustworthy sources who think twice before firing.” CRAIG BAILEY profile Gilbert Rosengaus granted help with education plans Biologist Rebeca Rosengaus used to think big: Growing up in Mexico City, she longed to study the social behavior of large cats. But the impracticality of heading to Africa for long periods led her to think smaller — about the sociology of insects. Rosengaus’ study of the latter recently earned the Northeastern assistant professor the National Science Foundation’s prestigious Career Development Award, a five-year grant worth $503,000 for up-and-coming faculty engaged in new research topics. The grant has educational and research components. “It’s still a surprise,” says Rosengaus from her lab recently. The lone winner among 16 grant submissions, Rosengaus studies the complex world of termite sociobiology. She’s intrigued that termite colonies are an ecologically successful insect group despite inhabiting environments loaded with a variety of potential pathogens such as bacteria, fungi and viruses. With the grant, Rosengaus hopes to develop labs for high-school students and teachers. A former high-school teacher herself, she grew interested in the survival of animals as a graduate student at Boston University. Still enamored with cats, Rosengaus said, “Working with social insects allows me to ask the same kind of questions about the evolution of social behavior of big felines. “(But) they are very convenient. You can bring thousands of them into the lab, and as long as you put them in the right conditions, they’re very happy. You can’t really do that with lions.” << Rosengaus will use her NSF grant to develop high-school programs. Carol Lyons, director of career services, in a Jan. 12 Associated Press story about the decline of working teens in Massachusetts in 2003. We are operating to a certain extent in isolation from other people on the street” Robert Hall, associate professor of African-American studies and history, in a Jan. 9 Boston Sunday Globe story, about his daughter’s attendance at a Boston charter school. Send us your listings The Voice welcomes your Notable/Quotable submissions. Send them to Brian Lee, 598CP; e-mail to ; or submit via the Web at . Robert Gilbert, professor of political science, was quoted in a Dec. 23 Singapore Straits