2003-2004
Steven M. Burke wins The Rome Prize
Next month Steven M. Burke will take leave from his post as music faculty member in composition at Sarah Lawrence College to accept a one-year residency at the American Academy in Rome. Winner of The 2004 Rome Prize for Musical Composition, one of the most prestigious prizes in the field, Burke is following in the footsteps of his teacher, mentor, friend and colleague, Chester Biscardi, composer and director of Sarah Lawrence’s music program who himself won The Rome Prize in 1976. Burke received the Frederic A. Juilliard/Walter Damrosch Rome Prize at an awards ceremony at the Metropolitan Club in Manhattan on April 29.
Grace Paley, author and activist to address, 75th Commencement
Award winning author, political activist and beloved Sarah Lawrence College Professor Emeritus Grace Paley, will be the speaker for Sarah Lawrence College’s 75th Commencement on May 21at 10 a.m. One of the most respected writers of the last 40 years, Paley will address the 284 candidates for the Bachelor of Arts degree and 152 candidates for Master’s degrees.
Meredith Monk to Speak and Present
Renowned composer, singer, interdisciplinary performance artist and Sarah Lawrence alumna Meredith Monk will present a piece from her Plateau series of dances on May 7 and 8 at 8 p.m. in the Bessie Schöenberg Dance Theatre in the Performing Arts Center at Sarah Lawrence College.
Take Back the Night
On Thursday, April 22 a march through campus at 8 p.m. will open “Take Back the Night” an event to speak out against violence against women, specifically domestic violence, sexual assault, and sexual harassment.
SLC Celebrates the Music of 1928
The College Orchestra and returning Sarah Lawrence Orchestra alumnae/i will perform 1928, on Tuesday, May 4 at 8 p.m. in Reisinger Concert Hall. The musical celebration of the college’s 75th anniversary includes four monumental works that debuted between August and December of 1928—Sarah Lawrence’s inaugural semester.
45th Annual Mayfair Celebration
Sarah Lawrence College welcomes children of all ages to its annual Mayfair on Saturday, May 1 on Westlands lawn from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. This year, the college presents “Down the Rabbit Hole,” an Alice in Wonderland theme. Mayfair will include activities based on this favorite children’s classic, including croquet with the “Queen of Hearts” and a tea party with the “Mad Hatter” as well as traditional rides, games and more.
Teach in Addresses Issues of Race, Bias and Exclusion
Sarah Lawrence College took the unusual step of canceling all classes on Thursday, April 8th to devote an entire day to give serious attention to issues of race relations and diversity.
Congressman Rahm Emanuel and Former Congressional Candidate Jean Elliott Brown to Speak
The Sarah Lawrence College Politics Faculty will present a panel discussion, “Looking Forward, Looking Backward: The 2004 and 2000 Elections,” on Friday, April 16 at 3:30 pm in Reisinger Concert Hall. The program, featuring Congressman Rahm Emanuel (D-IL), Sarah Lawrence class of ’81, and Jean Elliott Brown, class of ’72, a candidate for Congress in 2000 from West Palm Beach, Florida, one of the hot spots of the recount controversy, is to be the first in a series of events presented by the politics faculty leading up to the 2004 national elections.
Grammy Winning Composer George Crumb To Perform
Innovative composer George Crumb will perform with the ensemble that bears his name at Sarah Lawrence College’s Reisinger Concert Hall on Wednesday, April 21 at 8 p.m. During 2004, the George Crumb Ensemble will tour throughout the USA in celebration of the composer’s 75th birthday. Tickets are $10 regular admission, $8 for individuals 55 and over and students. For more information, please call (914) 395-2411.
Poetry Festival
Sarah Lawrence College will host its first Poetry Festival Saturday and Sunday, April 17 – 18. This event is believed to be the first major poetry gathering of its kind in Westchester County and coincides with National Poetry Month. The Sarah Lawrence College Poetry Festival is free and open to the public. For more information, please email: poetryfestival@slc.edu
Jonathan Franzen to Read
Jonathan Franzen, winner of the National Book Award and the American Academy’s Berlin Prize for his novel The Corrections will read at Sarah Lawrence on Wednesday, April 21, 6:30 p.m. in Suzanne Werner Wright Theatre. The reading is free and open to the public. For more information, please call (914) 395-2411.
Pianist Carsten Schmidt Performs
Pianist and Sarah Lawrence College music professor, Carsten Schmidt will make his New York Solo Recital Debut on Sunday, April 4 at 8 p.m in Merkin Concert Hall at Kaufman Center, Goodman House, 129 West 67th Street. The program will consist of Pause Ininterrompue by Toru Takemitsu; In Time’s Unfolding by Chester Biscardi; Piano Sonata No. 7 by Ernst Krenek; Chiaroscuro by Willem Jeths; Yugen, Aware and Interno Cupola by John Hilliard; and Sonata A- major, D.959 by Franz Schubert.
Center for Continuing Education Hosts Open House
Sarah Lawrence College’s Center for Continuing Education’s Open House informational session with the professors teaching during its seven week summer term will be held Friday, April 2 from 11 a.m.–1:30 p.m. in Slonim House. Lunch is provided. The Center for Continuing Education offers a range of courses designed for non-traditional students who are beginning or resuming their college careers. All summer study courses are offered at a 25 percent discount. For more information and reservations, please call (914) 395-2205 or email cce@sarahlawrence.edu.
Mayor Proclaims Sarah Lawrence College Day in Yonkers
Yonkers Mayor Philip A. Amicone pronounced March 3, 2004 Sarah Lawrence College Day in Yonkers and called upon city residents to join him in extending warmest wishes and sincere congratulations to the College as it celebrates its 75th anniversary with an exhibit: Sarah Lawrence College: Past and Present.
Meeting of Women Who Gave Birth to Women's History
Women's History Month was born at Sarah Lawrence College 25 years ago this summer. On Monday, March 8, six of the women responsible for its creation - participants at the 1979 "Women in History Institute" - met to reflect on how far women have come and to look to the future.
SSSF Annual Auction Raises Over $23,000
Sarah Lawrence hosted its most successful Students for Student Scholarships Fund annual auction last Friday, February 27. The fund-raiser brought in over $23,000, more than doubling last year’s proceeds.
Anti-Violence Advocate Geoffrey Canada to Speak
Sarah Lawrence College’s Child Development Institute will host the 17th Annual Longfellow Lecture featuring Geoffrey Canada on Thursday, April 1 at 4:30 p.m. in Reisinger Concert Hall. Canada, author and award-winning expert on issues concerning violence, children and community redevelopment will speak on “Violence and Education: The Twin Crises Facing America’s Children.” This event is free and open to the public. Reservations are required. For more information, and to place reservations, please call (914) 395-2412.
Journalist Amy Goodman to Speak
Amy Goodman will speak on “Independent Media in a Time of War and Elections” on Friday, March 5 at 7 p.m. in Reisinger Concert Hall. The event is free and open to the public. For more information, please call (914) 395-2411.
SSSF Annual Auction
A painting by Alexander Calder, the gown actress Jane Alexander wore to the 1970 Academy Awards, a Vera Wang dress valued at $2500, a Zac Posen dress valued at $1800, autographed books by Alice Walker, and tickets to The Producers starring original cast members Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick are just a few of the items to be auctioned off at Sarah Lawrence College’s Students for Student Scholarships Fund (SSSF) to be held on Friday, February 27 at 7 p.m. in Reisinger Concert Hall.
Balanchine Performance
"Barefoot Balanchine,” a performance celebrating the centennial of George Balanchine’s birth-date, will be given on Monday, January 26 at 4 p.m. in the Bessie Schoenberg Dance Theatre of Sarah Lawrence College’s Performing Arts Center. The event is free and open to the public. For more information and reservations, please call (914) 395-2433.
Friends of the Library Offer Two Mini-Courses
“19th Century Music” and “Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens” are the themes of two mini-courses to be held over three days, January 14-16, in Marshall Field House at Sarah Lawrence College. The mini-courses are sponsored by the Friends of the Esther Raushenbush Library and are free to members.
Study of Black Music
Inspired by the work of Amiri Baraka (LeRoi Jones), particularly his 1963 history Blues People: Negro Music in White America, a generation of scholars in the field of jazz and blues music criticism was born, creating a legitimate space in the academy for the serious study of African American music. “Blues People: 40 Years Later, A Symposium” to be held at Sarah Lawrence College February 6 – 7, will honor Baraka’s artistic legacy as well as focus attention on the pioneering scholarship that has grown out of those early years of the study of this uniquely American culture.
Childhood Asthma
The Sarah Lawrence College Health Advocacy graduate program and the Health Science and Society faculty will sponsor a program on “Childhood Asthma and the Community,” Wednesday, December 3rd from 3–6:15 p.m. at Slonim House. The event, which will present two community-based asthma initiatives, is presented without charge to the community. Please call Crystal Greene at (914) 395-2371 or email cgreene@sarahlawrence.edu for reservations. Refreshments will be served.
SLC Drops Standardized Test Requirement for Admission
Sarah Lawrence College announces that beginning with the high school graduating class of 2005, students will no longer be required to submit standardized test scores as part of their applications for admission. Though considered for several years, the decision was precipitated by changes to the SAT that will go into effect in 2005. Among those changes is the addition of a brief writing section that the College has determined would not be helpful in its admission process given the nature of the writing required at Sarah Lawrence.
SLC Honors Young Local Writers: News and Events at Sarah Lawrence College
The Women of the Little Magazine Movement Exhibit
An exhibit chronicling and highlighting the Little Magazine Movement, a landmark in American letters, will preview at Sarah Lawrence College during the month of November. An expanded exhibit will be on view at the Cervantes Institute in Manhattan in late spring. Acclaimed writer Barbara Probst Solomon and her graduate writing class at Sarah Lawrence College created the exhibit, which will tour the country next year. For further information and exhibit hours please call (914) 395-2470.
H.E. Riaz H. Khokhar, Foreign Secretary of Pakistan, to Speak
Sarah Lawrence College’s annual Adda B. Bozeman Lecture will feature H.E. Riaz H. Khokhar, Foreign Secretary of Pakistan speaking on “Pakistan and the War on Terror” on Wednesday, November 12 in Titsworth Lecture Hall. The lecture begins at 5 p.m. and is free and open to the public. For further information, please call (914)395-2411.
Genetic Testing for Women
The New York Breast Cancer Study, published in the October 24 issue of Science reports on the high rate of cancer among a certain group of women with inherited mutations in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes. While the study breaks new ground about the lifetime risks of developing breast and ovarian cancer, it also provides useful information regarding medical options for women with or at risk of cancer. Jessica B. Mandell, MS, CGC genetic counselor and research coordinator for the study has provided answers to the following frequently asked questions.
Landmark Breast Cancer Study
A landmark study of Ashkenazi Jewish women with inherited mutations in the genes BRCA1 and BRCA2, called The New York Breast Cancer Study, was published by the journal Science magazine on October 24, and reveals some surprising findings that will contribute significantly to the scientific knowledge in the field of breast cancer management. The study was the first to incorporate pre- and post-test genetic counseling, offered through the Sarah Lawrence College graduate program in Human Genetics, for enrolled subjects.
Campbell Corner Sponsors NYC Reading
Winners of the Campbell Corner poetry prize will read from their work on Monday, October 20 at 8 p.m. at Poets House in New York City. The program will begin with a reading from Campbell Corner judges poets Phillis Levin, David Baker, and Beth Ann Fennelly. Winner V. Penelope Pelizzon, “The Monongahala Book of Hours” and finalists Genine Lentine, “Fifteen Thousand Useful Phrases” and Brian Teare, “Begin, Beware---“ will each read their winning entries and another selection of their poetry.
Lorayne Carbon named director of Early Childhood Center
Lorayne Carbon, M.S.Ed. of New Rochelle, has been appointed director of Sarah Lawrence College’s Early Childhood Center (ECC), a school for young children and a placement center for Sarah Lawrence students interested in child development and teaching. Carbon comes to the ECC from the Virginia Marx Children’s Center at Westchester Community College in Valhalla where she was education coordinator since 1996.
Matilde Zimmerman Book Receives Acclaim in Nicaragua
Due to its widespread popularity, the first biography of the legendary Sandinista leader Carlos Fonseca Amador, which was recently translated into Spanish, has almost sold out in Nicaragua only weeks after its publication. Authored by Sarah Lawrence College history faculty member Matilde Zimmermann, Sandinista: Carlos Fonseca and the Nicaraguan Revolution was first published in English in 2000 by Duke University Press.
Shakespeare in Yonkers
Communicable Arts, a theatre company composed primarily of graduates of the Sarah Lawrence College Theatre Program, will perform Shakespeare’s Much Ado about Nothing at two venues in Yonkers this summer. The free performances, which will be preceded by workshops open to children ages 6-16, will be held on Saturday, August 23rd at 7 p.m. at Untermyer Park and Sunday, August 24th at 6 p.m. at Schultz Field in Crestwood. The Yonkers performances are part of a summer tour that also includes parks in Brooklyn and Queens.
Raymond Clarke wins National Science Foundation Grant
As many as six undergraduates at Sarah Lawrence College will be given an opportunity to participate in high-level scientific research, rarely enjoyed by students attending small liberal arts colleges. Thanks to a National Science Foundation grant awarded to SLC biology professor Raymond Clarke, the students will be part of a team investigating a potential consequence of habitat destruction to certain coral reef fishes, research which Clarke believes may break new ground.
Dual Degree in Child Development and Social Work
Sarah Lawrence College has joined with the New York University School of Social Work to offer a dual degree program in Child Development and Social Work. The program will admit its first students this fall. The course of study will combine the theoretical knowledge bases of clinical social work and developmental psychology.
Alumnae/i Collaborate on Fringe Festival Production
Four recent Sarah Lawrence graduates are working on a production of Escape from Pterodactyl Island, a sci-fi musical adventure that will have its U.S. premiere at the New York International Fringe Festival, a large multi-arts festival running August 8–24.
Music From Copland House
This fall, Sarah Lawrence College will begin a collaborative exchange with Music from Copland House, the acclaimed ensemble in residence at the historic, restored Cortlandt Manor home of the late composer Aaron Copland. The College, which has a conservatory-level music program, will serve as a performance and recording base for the ensemble in southern Westchester County. The group will present concerts, master classes, and workshops to music students and area residents. Music from Copland House’s first concert at the College will be held on Wednesday evening, November 12.
Faculty Member Valerie Martin Wins 2003 Orange Prize
Valerie Martin, a writing faculty member at Sarah Lawrence College, has been awarded the 2003 Orange Prize for Fiction for her novel, Property. The Orange Prize is a prestigious British award for the best English-language novel written by a woman. Last year, Sarah Lawrence alumna Ann Patchett won the award for her novel Bel Canto.
The Thomas H. Wright Lecture
Nurturing the Remarkable Powers of Children,” the 2003 Thomas H. Wright Lecture at Sarah Lawrence College, will be held Monday, July 7, at 11:30 a.m., in Reisinger Concert Hall. Dr. William Crain, teacher, author, and social activist, will deliver the annual lecture that features speakers who are national leaders in the fields of education and child development. The lecture launches the 2003 Empowering Teachers Summer Institute sponsored by the College’s Child Development Institute.
Writing and Puppetry Summer Programs
As one of the nation’s “inkiest” colleges, Sarah Lawrence is devoting much of its summer programming to students of writing. A Summer Seminar for Writers, a Playwriting Intensive, and a High School Writer’s Workshop will help new and experienced writers develop their craft. Adding to the atmosphere of creativity on campus will be a workshop on the multidisciplinary art form of puppetry.