Schedule of Inauguration Events

Celebrate the Authentic St. Lawrence Experience

Registration Center
Center for Teaching and Learning
62 Park Street
Please visit the Registration Center upon arrival to pick up materials you will need for the weekend.

The Center will be open at the following times:
Thursday, October 22, 12 noon – 8 p.m.
Friday, October 23 8:00 a.m. – 10 p.m.
Saturday, October 24, 8:00 a.m. – 10 p.m.

While on campus:
Brush Art Gallery
Thursday and Friday,10:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m., Saturday, 1;00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Sister Corita: The Joyous Revolutionary

Wednesday, October 21

Thursday, October 22

Friday, October 23

Visit St. Lawrence Classes
Faculty will welcome guests to the classes that meet on Friday mornings. Classes meet at 8:30 a.m., 9:40 a.m. and 10:50 a.m. A complete class schedule will be available at Registration. 

12:00 noon
Organ Concert
"Music for an Inauguration"
Sondra Proctor, Organist-in-residence
Gunnison Chapel

Lunch in Dana Dining Hall
Join our students and faculty in Dana Dining Hall for a delicious variety of menu options, including some recipes offered by our families in our famous “Recipes from Homes” program. Ticket required for off-campus guests.

Inauguration Seminar Series: Civil Rights and Social Justice
St. Lawrence’s Contemporary Issues Forum in 2009-2010 focuses on the theme of Civil Rights and Social Justice.  We have invited faculty, students and alumni to team up for panel discussions on topics that contribute to exploration of our theme.  Open to all.

1:00 p.m.- 2:30 p.m.   

Science and Justice
Carnegie 10

Liberal arts colleges such as St. Lawrence generally require students take some courses in the sciences.  Science courses foster an approach to knowledge that has great power to help students understand, and live, in the natural world.  Science also helps students think about issues critical to their lives as citizens, providing them with information and skills necessary to work for social justice.  For example, biotechnology increasingly affects our lives.  As citizens, we should be informed about how scientific discoveries in biotechnology have an impact on how we think about humanity, health, and life.  That is, this is an area where we need scientists who think about ethics, and citizens who think about science and the impact it can have on fundamental social questions.  Similarly, scientists working on environmental issues can help students understand the impact people and corporations have on the environment, and to work to lessen that impact.  A grounding in scientific principles and an appreciation for scientific processes and reasoning equips us to be active citizens.  In this panel, we discuss the ways that science can contribute to a more just society, and how liberal arts education can further this contribution.

Panelists:
Jim Hennessy’71, member of the Alumni Council
Jon Rosales, Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies
Alexander Schreiber, Assistant Professor of Biology
Nicole Szucs ’10, La Paz, Bolivia, Global Studies and Environmental Studies Major
Karl Schonberg, Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs, moderator

The Cosmology of Jug Band
The Underground, Noble Center for the Arts

The Arts departments at St. Lawrence believe it’s vital to engage the whole world of artistic practice intellectually, socially and physically.  Last year the Music department’s Griffiths Resurrection Jug Band -- comprised of students, alumni, faculty and community members – explored a broad range of issues.

James (Rip) Westmoreland’80 (Brooklyn, NY, attorney) describes the moment in the history of the African-American blues tradition when black musicians in Louisville and Memphis developed a lucrative, crossover street trade that provides a means of entering the popular music market.  The group performs Jim Kweskin’s Jug Band Music.

Traci Fordham-Hernandez (Associate Professor of Performance and Communication Arts) notes that while it’s easy to perceive what we do in the arts as entertainment, responsible performance is a deep physical and intellectual engagement, often with folks whose perspective is not our own.  We also face the ethics of representing people who are less privileged than ourselves.  Mwelwa Bwalya ’10 (Manlius, NY, sociology major)   performs Mahalia Jackson’s  Hand on the Plow.

Cody Witherell ’10 (Parishville, NY, Global Studies major) describes the jugband’s role in addressing social justice on campus and civic engagement. Cody is the distillate of a wealth of North Country musicians who play traditional, acoustic instruments.  He notes that SLU has many women musicians who are never heard owing to the reigning fashion -- male jam-bands. 

Traci Fordham-Hernandez performs Helen Hume’s Mound Bayou.Michael Farley (associate professor of music) describes his desire to put together the jugband in response to an “American depression” (Jani Scandura) and the “need in my community for music that’s light and cheerful.”  The group performs Jim Kweskin’s Borneo.


Community Partners: SLU and North Country Correctional Facilities
Richardson 15

America finds herself in what can only be characterized as an incarceration crisis—a February 2008 New York Times article reported that more than 1 in 100 Americans was behind bars and that states had spent more than $44 Billion on corrections, a 127% increase over the last twenty years when adjusted for inflation. Prisons have long been part of the North Country landscape, as plentiful as Wal-Marts, employing thousands and housing thousands more, and though they seem a reasonable place to ask some of our society's most pressing and difficult questions—about race, poverty, inequality, and education—they’ve been a resource rarely tapped by St. Lawrence University.  Attend this panel and discover how SLU’s Community-Based Learning Programs are working to create partnerships with local correctional facilities, for the good of citizens on both sides of the bars.

Panelists:
Lori Pompa, National Director, Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program
Brenda Papineau ’02, ’06, Assistant Director, Community-based Learning
Lisa Stickney, Education Director, Gouverneur Correctional Facility
Amanda Sheridan, Coordinator of Volunteer Services, NYS Department of Correction, Cape Vincent Hub
Bob Cowser, Associate Professor of English
Allie Friedman ’09, M’11, Student in pilot “Inside-Out” Course
Ben Augliano’09 Student in pilot “Inside-Out” Course


2:45 p.m. - 4:15 p.m.  
Gender Studies, Sexuality and the Law
Carnegie 10

The relatively young program, Gender and Sexuality Studies at St. Lawrence University, focuses on various intersecting systems of oppression (including racism, classism, and homophobia, among others) to see how they affect social relations.  This seminar will look at human rights and social justice issues, specifically in the area of how gender and sexuality has influenced people in their thinking about responsible citizenship. Seminar participants will share case studies on gender discrimination, sexuality (particularly sexuality practices outside what is considered the norm), “coming out” stories, instances of homophobia, and same-sex marriage experiences.  The panelists will also discuss the delicate balance on the U. S. Supreme Court with respect to a woman’s right of choice, despite Roe v. Wade, which was decided over thirty years ago, and the right of privacy established in its recent decision on Lawrence v. Texas.

Panelists:
Jennifer Hansen, Associate Professor of Philosophy
Jessica Willis, Visiting Assistant Professor of Gender and Sexuality Studies
Margaret Bass, Associate Professor of English
Danielle Egan, Associate Professor of Gender Studies
Epiphany McGee’11, English and Sociology  major from Schenectady, NY
Yessenia Chimelis’11,  Performance and Communication Arts major from Bronx, NY
Sydney Siefert’04, Education and Employment Specialist, San Francisco, CA
Hugh Biele ’65, Retired Attorney and Adjunct Professor of Gender Studies

Planning for Peace and Justice
Richardson 15

Peace only lasts where justice prevails, because injustice creates the suffering and anger that can grow into violent conflict.  But how is justice built?  Some theorists, such as Gene Sharp, argue that only nonviolent action has the power to transform an unjust structure of power into a just one.  Violence, in contrast, often only serves to keep unjust and oppressive systems in place.  Another theorist, Helena Meyer-Knapp, discusses how difficult it is to end a war and restore a lasting and just peace, because of all of the harm that war causes.  Not only do the difficulties that caused the war need still to be solved, but many other additional problems need also to be solved as well in the wake of the destruction of war.  Why not bypass all of the harm that wars cause, and try to address tensions and injustice before they escalate into violence? It is possible to do so, but it requires careful planning and an understanding of the methods and dynamics of nonviolent action.  The members of this panel will discuss the basic principles of nonviolent action, and dispel some common misconceptions about nonviolence, and will share real-life examples of various ways of working for peace and justice in today’s world.

Panelists:
Tsewang Lama ’10, Davis United World College Scholar , Asian Studies and Government major from Nepal.
Steve Molnar, Board member, Peace Brigades International. 
Laura Rediehs, Associate Professor of Philosophy and Coordinator of Peace Studies.
Steven Symansky ’73, Economist with the International Monetary Fund.  He has worked on rebuilding economic institutions after wars in Kosovo, East Timor, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Liberia.
Eric Weinhold ’80, Associate Director of Admissions and Director of International Admissions.
David Weissbard ’62, ’65 (MDiv), is a retired Unitarian-Universalist minister and works for a local nonprofit organization.  He was active in opposition to the Vietnam War and worked for other causes concerning peace and nonviolence.

Access and Equity in Higher Education
The Underground, Noble Center for the Arts

Starting four decades ago, federal and state policies growing from civil rights work and intended to create more equitable access to higher education have been enacted, implemented and evolved. Many of these policies have been focused on making college affordable through financial aid, others provide for tutorial and other academic support structures, while still others provide for both. More recently K-12 reform efforts have been focused on the secondary level to ensure that students graduate, and are ready for college and work when they do.

According to statistics published in the New York State Board of Regents Statewide Plan for Higher Education 2004-2012, black and Hispanic six-year graduation rates still lag far behind white and Asian students, at about 42% for black and Hispanic vs. about 65% for white and Asian students. Given the emphasis at both ends of the equation on closing this gap, these data suggest a lack of integration between K-12 reform and college access initiatives.

Dr. George Kuh’s groundbreaking work in studying student engagement through the National Survey of Student Engagement, or NSSE, clearly indicates that college student success is more directly correlated with extent of engagement on campus than with SAT scores or high school GPAs. An intentional link between secondary and post-secondary programs built on a framework of encouraging a culture of engagement would likely improve degree attainment among black and Hispanic students.

This panel will provide a brief overview of college access and financial aid policies and programs, an update on current research into college access issues from both the secondary and post-secondary perspectives, an overview of Kuh’s student engagement work, and then explore ways in which student engagement might be encouraged by both secondary and post secondary programs and serve as a link between the two.

Panelists:
Steve Todd’92, Principal, Watertown High School
Samantha Rodriguez ’10, New York, NY, fine arts major
William Short, Director, St. Lawrence Higher Education Opportunity Program


6:00 p.m.        
Reception and Dinner with President William L. Fox and Lynn Fox
Sullivan Student Center and Eben Holden Center
By invitation.

9:00 p.m.
SLU’s Got Talent! A Showcase of Student Performances
Gulick Theatre
Free ticket required of all.

Saturday, October 24

12 noon
All-campus Reception
Owen D. Young Library
Open to all.

2:00 p.m.
Men’s Soccer vs. Vassar
Open to all.

3:00 p.m.
Women's Hockey vs. University of New Hampshire
Ticket required.

6:00 p.m.
Reception for Inauguration Guests
Eben Holden Dining Center
By invitation.

7:00 p.m.
North Country Dine-Around
We invite you to join with fellow Inauguration guests and representative Laurentians for a meal at one of our local restaurants.  We’ll transport you from the reception to the restaurant, where warm North Country hospitality awaits you.  Each restaurant will offer a three-course meal with your choice of three or four entrees, with wine and soft drinks included.  Please indicate your three choices for your dining destination; each restaurant is no more than 30 minutes from Canton; dining in the North Country is casual and friendly, all serve excellent food!  By invitation, advance reservation required.

Participating restaurants

9:30 p.m.
Nik and the Nice Guys Concert
Leithead Field House
Nik and the Nice Guys, a world-famous, high-energy rock and roll band featuring 11 multi-talented musicians/performers, was formed at St. Lawrence in the 1970s and still owned and managed by
St. Lawrence alumni.
Free Ticket required.

Sunday, October 25

8:30 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.
Open House
Sykes Common Room

President and Mrs. Fox invite you to stop by for a light brunch before your departure. Open to all.

Inauguration Committee Members