Newsmakers is published in First Monday by the Public Affairs and Publications offices at SFSU. 415/338-1665. E-mail: pubcom@sfsu.edu

Send submissions to: pubnews@sfsu.edu. Please include a contact person and extension.
Note: To reach an extension from off-campus, dial 415/33-and the extension.

October, 2000

The culture of disability	Reaching for teaching
SFSU police: true life-savers	Linking the people
Venezuela helps drive gas prices

The culture of disability

On July 25, USA Today ran a feature about a summer institute held at SFSU that explored disability studies. The fledgling field of study, which emerged a few years after the passage of the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990, looks at disabilities in ways similar to ethnic, women, and gay and lesbian studies. The summer institute, funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), was co-directed by History Professor Paul Longmore, who said: "We think it's a signal from the NEH to humanities funders as well as humanities scholars that this is something we all need to look at."

The San Francisco Chronicle reported on July 19 that the CSU is taking various steps to simplify its admissions and transfer processes for education students, with the hope of helping California produce the 250,000 new teachers it expects to need in the next 10 years. The story stated that the CSU, which trains 60 percent of the state's teachers, also aims to streamline admission and transfer requirements for all of its campuses and the UC system. Thomas La Belle, SFSU provost and vice president for aca demic affairs, said: "There has been a great deal of attention put on this issue, and we are big players. We are trying to facilitate that production of teachers for the classrooms. Each one of the CSU campuses has been relatively autonomous, and this brings them together."

An Aug. 11 article in the Brentwood News, a weekly supplement of the Contra Costa Times, recognized SFSU police officer Marco Albano for helping save the life of a 19-year-old man during the spring 2000 semester. The man, who was found sitting against a wall in a Residence Apartment hallway, was unconscious and had no pulse. Albano, who lives in Brentwood, and his partner, Cindy Ogle, were awarded "Life-Saving" medals by the University Police for their effort. Albano said he doesn't mind his daily 63-mi le commute from Brentwood to SFSU "because I enjoy my job and I like the people I serve."

An Aug. 4 story in the San Francisco Chronicle profiled Communications Professor Gary Selnow and his nonprofit organization WiRED (World Internet Resources for Education and Development), which helps people in Kosovo connect with each other and the outside world via the Internet. Since 1997, Selnow has been setting up computer network centers in some of the most deserted and ravaged areas of the Balkans with restored donated hardware from the United States. By the end of this year, more than 55,000 peop le in the Balkans are expected to have Internet access at 34 computer centers formed by WiRED. "Bringing people together has always been the mission of the project," Selnow said.

As international politics play a role in rising U.S. gas prices, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has persuaded oil producers around the world to cut production and raise crude oil prices, the San Francisco Chronicle reported Aug. 16. Since Chavez took office in February 1999, average U.S. gas prices have risen from about $1 per gallon to $1.50 per gallon. However, experts such as Robert Pastorino of International Relations said American politicians have been slow to criticize Chavez because he has not interfered with American oil companies' operations in Venezuela. "The main U.S. interest is to get a continued, steady supply of oil," said Pastorino, who was National Security Council director for Latin America for former President George Bush. "All Venezuelan governments, including Chavez, have been good at keeping the spigot open. The price level is less important than that it continue to flow."

Return to October First Monday

Return to Newsmakers Archive

To send events: call EXT 1665 or send e-mail to pubnews@sfsu.edu