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AUDIENCE GROWS FOR NEW UA DRAMA
Performing a scene from “Winesburg, Ohio” in this photo by Neil Sapienza are, from left, Christopher Buck, Jamie Russell and Jacqueline Wren.
The Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival (KCACTF) just announced that it has selected “Winesburg, Ohio,” a University drama that premiered in October, for its 36th annual regional festival competition.
A dramatic adaptation of the Sherwood Anderson classic, “Winesburg, Ohio” is one of only six full-length plays chosen for performance during the KCACTF regional festival at Illinois State University in Normal, Ill. The UA performances are Jan. 16 at noon and 4 p.m. in the 525-seat Center for the Performing Arts Theatre at Illinois State.
Directed by James Slowiak, professor of theatre, “Winesburg, Ohio” is the first University of Akron production ever selected by KCACTF. Based on the performances at its regional festivals, KCACTF will invite several productions to perform in spring 2004 at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C.
A pre-festival performance of the play is set for Jan. 11 at 2 p.m. at Sandefur Theatre in Guzzetta Hall, with a reception to follow. Tickets are $30, with all proceeds supporting UA’s participation in the festival. Seating in Sandefur Theatre is limited to 100 — tickets must be reserved in advance by calling ext. 7890.
The 10-member cast includes students from the School of Dance, Theatre, and Arts Administration, as well as members of the New World Performance Lab, an internationally acclaimed professional theatre company in residence at UA.
“Winesburg, Ohio,” originally published in 1919, is a collection of stories that revolve around the residents of a small fictional town in rural Ohio at the beginning of the 20th century.
Slowiak and company have adapted Anderson’s novel for the stage. Through dramatic story telling and original music, the UA production reveals the secret inner lives of the residents of Winesburg as seen through the eyes of a young boy as he comes of age.
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BLISS INSTITUTE OFFICIAL HONORED
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| Gail Garbrandt |
One of the University’s own has been honored through the national “Women of Worth” program.
Gail Garbrandt, internship coordinator and campaign trainer for the Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics, has “demonstrated a special degree of excellence” in her career, according to officials from the Worth Collection Ltd., the company that sponsors the awards.
Garbrandt was recognized in the program’s “Philanthropic Innovator” category, which honors recipients for significant and innovative contributions to a voluntary organization. She and her fellow honorees received their awards at a luncheon on Dec. 6 in New York City.
In addition to her work with the institute, Garbrandt has conducted training for attendees of the National Women’s Political Caucus 16th biennial national convention. She also co-chaired the convention, held June 11-15 in Washington, D.C.
“As a company that owes its own success to working women, Worth recognizes the importance of women in the world of business,” says Caroline A. Davis, president of the Worth Collection Ltd. “Gail Grabrandt exceeds the status quo with her sincere commitment, her unselfish gift of time and experience, and her sheer passion for her work in politics. She has engaged and empowered hundreds of students and helped them to understand the importance of civic engagement and responsibility.
“She has been an inspiration to many — a voice for thousands of women who sit on the fringes of power,” Davis adds. “Gail Garbrandt is without question ‘A Woman of Worth.’”
“I am extremely pleased and honored to receive this important national recognition from the Worth Collection,” Garbrandt says. “I continue to be inspired and energized by the hundreds of women I have trained across the United States, and I have yet to meet a woman who isn’t worth it.”
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’TIS THE SEASON FOR HELPING
If you’ve got an unpaid parking citation, now you can get it dismissed and help area residents who are hungry at the same time.
Now through Dec. 19, the Office of Parking Services will dismiss one $10 citation per person in exchange for a donation to Harvest for Hunger. Just bring a nonperishable food item to the Parking Services’ office in the North Campus Parking Deck, 255 E. Buchtel Ave., between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays.
Individuals who don’t have a citation but would like to make donations can drop those off at Parking Services as well.
For more information, call the Office of Parking Services at ext. 7213.
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COME BLOW YOUR HORN — IT'S TIME FOR TUBACHRISTMAS
An Akron holiday tradition now in its 24th year, TubaChristmas returns to the Akron Civic Theatre, 182 South Main St., on Dec. 20. Free performances are scheduled at noon and 2:30 p.m. as a holiday gift to the community from the Civic and the School of Music.
Tucker Jolly, founder of Akron’s TubaChristmas and a UA professor of music, will conduct. Robert Jorgensen, professor of music and director of bands at UA, will be the guest conductor.
Guest soloists will be David Giffels, a columnist for the Akron Beacon Journal, for the noon performance, and Ray Horner, early morning host for radio station WAKR-AM, for the 2:30 p.m. performance.
Musicians pay a $5 registration fee to participate. Low brass musicians can register at the Civic between 8:30 and 9:30 a.m. on Dec. 20. Rehearsal will be from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m.
Last year’s TubaChristmas performances were the largest yet in Akron and among the largest in the country, with nearly 600 musicians crowding the Civic stage and spilling into the orchestra pit and the front rows of the theatre to play to capacity audiences.
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MORE PARTNERS JOIN UNIVERSITY PARK REDEVELOPMENT EFFORT
The Akron Metropolitan Housing Authority, the Akron Public Schools and the Greater Akron Chamber have joined the University Park Alliance in a partnership to promote the redevelopment effort the 40-block neighborhood surrounding the University.
The effort was launched in December 2001 through a $2.5 million grant from The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. The community development program is designed to increase home ownership, rejuvenate housing, build new townhouses and condominiums, establish new businesses and attract new residents to one of Akron’s most promising neighborhoods.
The newest members join UA as well as the city of Akron, Summa Health System and the University Park Development Corp. in the University Park Alliance.
The Akron business community is eager to commit to the effort as well, says Dan Colantone, president and CEO of the Greater Akron Chamber.
“This is a viable and necessary project,” he says. “Redevelopment efforts at institutions such as The Ohio State University have shown that a vibrant neighborhood can be created that will benefit the University’s students, area businesses, the city tax base and the general public.”
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GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY HONORS PROFESSOR
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| Ira Sasowsky |
Ira Sasowsky, director of UA’s Center for Environmental Studies, recently joined an elite group of geology professionals as a fellow in the Geological Society of America.
His fellowship is based on his broad-based contributions to the hydrogeology profession and the field of geology. An associate professor of geology who joined the University in 1995, Sasowsky, is a member of numerous organizations, including the American Association of Petroleum Geologists, Geological Society of America, National Speleological Society and the National Association of Geology Teachers.
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PROFESSOR RECOGNIZED FOR CONTRIBUTIONS TO HIS FIELD
PR News, a national magazine for the public relations industry, has named David Ritchey, a professor of communication, as the PR Professional of the Year in its education category.
PR News presents the citation in 10 categories: corporate, government, agency, nonprofit, community relations, public affairs, account executive of the year, media relations, crisis communication and education.
Ritchey and the other award recipients were profiled in the Oct. 13 issue of PR News.
Ritchey, who joined the faculty in 1990, spent five months in Romania this year as a Senior Fulbright Scholar, researching the country’s public relations programs and teaching at the University of Bucharest. Ritchey has traveled extensively in other countries and led UA student study groups abroad. These travels, he says, have had a positive impact on his work as a public relations educator.
“Students need an international perspective,” Ritchey explains. “Many PR agencies now are asking to see applicants’ passports during their interviews. They want to know that applicants have traveled internationally or are interested in world affairs.”
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UA FOUNDATION BOARD
Ten community leaders have been appointed to serve on the board of The University of Akron Foundation. They are:
R. Cary Blair, retired chairman, Westfield Group; Joseph T. Bolognue, president, Bolognue Management Co.; Dorothy Gaffney ’74, chair and CEO, Air Enterprises Inc.; Robert J. Keegan, chairman, president and CEO, The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company; Robert L. Leibensperger ’70, retired executive vice president, The Timken Company; Walter N. Mirapaul, founder of Ohio Pure Foods Inc. and the Mirapaul Foundation;
Donald T. Misheff ’78, Northeast Ohio managing partner of Ernst & Young; George P. Paidas ’79, president, wealth management services, FirstMerit Corp.; Philip L. Rice of Medina ’80, president, Northern Ohio region, National City Bank; and Gary L. Taylor ’75 and ’77, president and CEO, InfoCision Management Group.
The new members join executive committee members Roger T. Read, president; Philip A. Lloyd, vice president; Robert F. Linton, secretary; Pamela S. Williams, assistant secretary; Roy L. Ray, treasurer; and Kathryn W. Dindo, assistant treasurer. The foundation’s executive director is Timothy R. DuFore.
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AKRON PLAYER JOINS ALL-STAR ROSTER
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| Matt Cherry |
Zips’ senior wide receiver Matt Cherry has been selected to play in the Findlay Toyota Las Vegas All-American Classic, a college all-star football game, on Jan. 17 at Sam Boyd Stadium in Las Vegas.
Cherry, who will play for the East squad, is among 110 college seniors selected to play from among the top football schools in the country. He finished his career as the Zips’ all-time receptions leader (149) and third on the all-time receiving yards list (1,997). He had a UA single-season record 66 catches and 907 receiving yards this year.
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FISHER INSTITUTE CURRICULUM HONORED
The University’s sales and marketing program is among the tops in the country in training students to enter the sales workforce, according to a national sales and marketing training organization.
The Fisher Institute for Professional Selling received the Professional Society for Sales and Marketing Training Sales Certification Award at the organization’s 2003 annual conference recently. The nonprofit society is dedicated to accelerating business results for their members and their companies by improving sales performance.
Also presented with awards were Baylor University, Northern Illinois University, the University of Houston and Illinois State University.
“This recognition further documents our national leadership within the field of sales education,” says Jon Hawes, director of the Fisher Institute.
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SURGICAL ASSISTING PROGRAM AWARDED 10-YEAR ACCREDITATION
The Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs has awarded 10-year accreditation to the Surgical Assisting Technology Program in the Department of Allied Health Technology.
“The reaccreditation of the surgical technology program is an important external validation of the program,” says LaVerne Yousey, department chair. “This recognition shows that we are doing an excellent job training people to work in this very important profession.”
CAAHEP accreditation has been awarded to and is maintained by all four of the allied health programs — medical assisting, radiology, respiratory care and surgical technology — that are offered by the Community and Technical College.
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LAW SCHOOL TEAM WINS TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS
Four student advocates from the School of Law have won the National Invitational Trial Tournament, besting mock trial teams from 15 other law schools.
The annual tournament, one of the leading trial competitions for legal students in the nation, was hosted on campus in early November. The National Institute for Trial Advocacy at Notre Dame University, South Bend, sponsors the tournament.
Stuart Baker, Jessica Morrison, Adam Stacy and Kristen Yukish represented UA. Baker also was named “Best Advocate” in the competition. The team was coached by Akron trial team alumni Sean Leuthold ’95 and Ben Thalrose ’02. Lawrence Sutter ’89 served as tournament director.
The final round was presided over by Senior Judge David Dowd of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio.
Among the other law schools competing in the tournament were the University of Denver; University of Florida, Gainesville; University of Maryland; Northwestern University; and Temple University.
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DINING SERVICES GARNERS TOP AWARD
Foodservice Equipment and Supplies magazine has presented its 2003 Catering/Banquet Tabletop Award to University Dining Services.
The University opened the 800-person Student Union banquet facility in January. This state-of-the-art banquet facility offers upscale and elegant catered events for the community, as does Martin University Center.
For more information or to make reservations, call catering sales at the Student Union at ext. 7668, or the Martin University Center at ext. 7711.
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