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October 29

Volume 49, No. 11
Love is stronger than hate Helping SFFD In Memorium: Wolf Stadler Eat out, support Gator athletes Enticing children to read
Join the celebration Luft clears the air on Arendt Honorary degrees: 2002 Writing research papers Faculty: one more week
A Bien speech on Kazantzakis Carnaval fund-raiser Second Goldman candidate Afghanistan in words A pedagogy of hope
The U.S. response Economic impact of disasters Should SF make a policy shift? Send in the clowns Muslim feminism: not a paradox
Degrees for Delancey An alumnus lost Post-Taliban Afghanistan More moms at home Three-fold crisis for California
Slogan signs Share your Thanksgiving Faculty: teach internationally Summer Semester still on radar A fit holiday season
Beyond the stacks Chernoff on the writing process The history of the gentleman's magazine Academic Senate Action A Shining STAR in Student Health Services


Love is stronger than hate

Dear Colleagues and Students:

Up to now, when I have talked about campus climate in the wake of September 11, my focus has been on how we can best support each other and how we can maintain the spirit of community we have showed so strongly from the very day of the tragedies. This message addresses a different, emerging concern: how we can cope with the alarm and tension aroused by the anthrax incidents across the country.

I know that many among us are terribly anxious. All of us, I suspect, are looking around us with new eyes, quicker to see a potential threat in a familiar setting. Public Safety has been asked in recent days to check on such things as "a pile of white powder" outside the library (a small quantity of sugar, with the packets nearby) and an envelope lacking a return address (a sales pitch for, ironically, a workshop on coping with terrorism). There is good news and more good news concerning these and other incidents. They have uniformly been innocent, and the emergency response from our Public Safety officers and their allied colleagues - the SF Fire Department, for one - has been outstanding: immediate, professional, and comprehensive. We have had the chance to see that if an emergency were to occur, we would be in excellent hands.

Still, I would hope that we can learn to ratchet our tension down a bit. We have put solid precautionary procedures in place on this campus for the handling of mail. I detailed some of them in a recent message - the X-rays of all mail passing through Mail Services and the guidelines for recognizing suspicious mail among them. Gloves and masks are offering Mail Services staff sensible protection and greater peace of mind. Through Human Resources, Public Safety, and Environmental Health and Safety, we have offered mail handling workshops for faculty, staff, and student workers. And the abundant factual information about the recent anthrax cases reminds us that for all the alarm and potential exposure, only seven people have actually contracted the illness, and excepting the first case, all are recovering.

I recognize that we can know all this and still feel afraid. But I hope it helps to know that we are working very hard to keep this campus safe, and so far, we have succeeded.

One more positive point in the campus picture: Unlike many other sites across the country, we have not been faced with the demoralizing and disturbing phenomenon of the hoax. Our false alarms all were the result of honest concern by people on campus. We need and value such concern. Better 100 needless calls than one situation in which someone says to her- or himself: "I'd feel silly if I called and it was nothing." Looking out for ourselves and each other is the best protection we have.

This campus is a pretty good place to be in these difficult times. We have a broad and dedicated team with expertise in many aspects of emergency response. We have a well-established sense of community. And we have a depth of spirit that I believe will continue to see us through. Heightened awareness is certainly called for; extreme anxiety is not.

Sincerely,

Robert A. Corrigan

President

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Helping SFFD

The San Francisco Fire Department is looking for volunteers to act as “victims” in a mock mass-casualty, terrorist attack scenario rehearsal.

Sessions will be conducted Nov. 16 to 21, Nov. 26 to 30, and Dec. 1 to 4 at 1216 Ralston Ave. in the Presidio. There will be two sessions a dayÑthe first from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and the other from 1 to 4:30 p.m. The fire department needs 20 volunteers per session.

To participate, please contact the Office of Student Programs and Leadership Development at ext. 8-2171 or ospld@sfsu.edu.

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In Memoriam: Wolf Stadler

Wolf Stadler, professor of engineering, died Oct. 19 as a result of severe injuries suffered in an automobile accident caused by a drunken truck driver last month.

“I know that the passing of Professor Stadler has hit the School of Engineering particularly hard, but I too want to express my sorrow for this sudden loss to the University,”President Robert A. Corrigan said. “While we will miss Wolf terribly, the impact of his demanding teaching, substantial research and tough but fair personality will live on in the students and faculty whose lives he touched.”

Stadler earned two masters degrees and a Ph.D. from Georgia Tech in engineering in the 1960s. He taught as a visiting professor at various colleges and was a research associate at UC Berkeley for five years before joining SFSU in 1978.

During his time at SFSU, Stadler developed the Robotics program and taught the main robotics course in the School of Engineering. While his senior-level course was a broad introduction to robotics, his personal interest in robotics was determining and controlling robots’ trajectories of motion. However, Stadler’s overarching academic interest over the last 15 years was in the area of “multicriteria optimization,” a methodology for designing systems that optimize several features simultaneously.

“Wolf served the University with utmost dedication for well over 20 years and had represented our School and College with distinction at various technical meetings, particularly in Europe,” said V.V. Krishnan, professor of engineering.

“His untimely death is a personal loss to me and my colleagues in the School of Engineering and, judging from the feedback we have had from a large number of our alumni and our students, it has been a great loss to all of them as well,” Krishnan said.

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This Week

Eat out, support Gator athletes

Chevy’s Mexican restaurant is helping raise money for SFSU athletics. Enjoy dinner today at the Chevy’s in the Stonestown Galleria and 15 percent of your bill will be donated to the Athletics Department. The fund-raiser runs from 5 to 9 p.m. and applies to dine-in customers only. Please look for the flier in your campus mailbox. You must present the flier when ordering. Other fund-raisers will be held during dinner hours on Thursday, Nov. 15, and Thursday, Dec. 13.

For details, call Ryan at 415-665-8705.

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Enticing children to read

Meredith Eliassen will present “Forgotten Treasures: Book Formats that Entice Children to Read” from 4 to 5 p.m. today in the deBellis Room of the J. Paul Leonard Library. Eliassen will showcase some of the holdings of the Marguerite Archer Collection of Historic Children’s Materials, which she curates.

The presentation is part of a colloquium series on the history of the book sponsored by the Department of English, the Graduate Literature Association and the Friends of the J. Paul Leonard Library. Refreshments will be served.

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Join the celebration

The campus community is invited to join a celebration honoring faculty who were granted tenure or received promotion during the 2001-2002 academic year. The event will be held from 4 to 6 p.m. Tuesday in the University Club. Refreshments will be served. President Corrigan and the Office of Academic Affairs are sponsoring the event.

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Luft clears the air on Arendt

The College of Humanities continues its colloquia series featuring its own outstanding teachers/scholars with Sandra Luft speaking on “Hannah Arendt on Human Action, Thoughtfulness, Evil.” Luft, professor of humanities, will speak from noon to 1:30 p.m. Tuesday in HUM 587.

For details, call ext. 8-1109.

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Honorary degrees: 2002

Recommendations for the award of honorary doctoral degrees by the Board of Trustees of the CSU are now being accepted by Robert Chope, professor of counseling and chair of the University’s Honorary Degree Committee. Members of the campus community are encouraged to submit nominations for the committee’s next meeting, which takes place Wednesday.

Honorary degrees are awarded to recognize excellence and extraordinary achievement in significant areas of human endeavor, within which are embodied the objectives and ideals of the California State University; to honor meritorious and outstanding service to the California State University, collectively, or to its campuses, individually; to the state of California, or to the United States; or humanity at large; to recognize men and women whose lives and significant achievements should serve as examples of the California State University’s aspirations for its diverse student body.

The committee asks that faculty and staff keep their nominations confidential. Please submit recommendations to the Academic Senate Office, ADM 551.

For details, contact Susan Cullers at ext. 8-1264.

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Writing research papers

Faculty and staff are asked to encourage students to attend this week’s academic skills workshop “Writing Research Papers” at noon Wednesday in BUS 202. Jeanne Wick, testing coordinator, will help students develop a repertoire of strategies to successfully research and write academic research papers.

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Faculty: one more week

The deadline to vote for the proposed change in the faculty constitution was inaccurately reported in last week’s CampusMemo. The deadline is 5 p.m. Friday. Additional ballots are available in the Academic Senate Office, ADM 551. Ballots should be returned by the deadline to the Senate Office.

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A Bien speech on Kazantzakis

Peter Bien, translator of the Kazantzakis novel “The Last Temptation of Christ,” will speak on “Tempted by Happiness: Kazantzakis’s Post-Christian Christ” at 7:30 p.m. Friday in HUM 133.

Bien, professor of English and the Frederick Sessions Beebe ‘35 Professor in the Art of Writing Emeritus at Dartmouth University, will focus on theological interpretation of the Christ figure in “The Last Temptation of Christ.” Admission is free.

For details, call Modern Greek Studies at ext. 8-1892.

Carnaval fund-raiser

The Consumer and Family Studies/ Dietetics and Hospitality Management departments will hold their annual fund-raiser “Carnaval 2001” from 6 to 10 p.m. Friday in the Vista Room, BH 401. All proceeds will go to student organizations within the two departments. The cost is $25 and includes food, drink, music, dancing and a silent auction.

For details and to order tickets, call ext. 5-3529 or ext. 5-3529.

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Next Week

Second Goldman candidates

Melanie Kaye-Krankowitz, the second candidate for the Goldman Chair in Jewish Studies and Social Responsibility, will be on campus Monday, Nov. 5, to present her scholarly work. Her presentation will take place from 1 to 3 p.m. in Room 1 of the University Club. Krankowitz is director of the Worker Education Center at Queens College of the City University of New York.

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Afghanistan in words

The Poetry Center will sponsor a reading and open discussion on Afghanistan at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Nov. 5, at the Unitarian Center, 1187 Franklin St. (at Geary). The event will feature authors who write poetry, fiction and non-fiction about Afghanistan and the Afghan peoples.

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A pedagogy of hope

The College of Humanities colloquium series continues with Karen Lovaas, assistant professor of speech and communication studies, presenting “The Pedagogy of Hope.” Lovaas will speak from noon to 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 7, in HUM 587.

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Newsmakers

The U.S. response

On Sept. 19, Marshall Windmiller, emeritus professor of international relations, appeared as a guest on KQED radio’s Forum. Windmiller discussed the U.S. response to the Sept. 11 attacks with host Michael Krasny, professor of English. Windmiller explained the difficulty of talking about how to respond to the terrorist threat. ÒThe nation is in shock and in grief and in anger. It’s very difficult to have a rational discussion about what our alternatives are, particularly since I think our alternatives, the most important ones, are political. They’re not military,” he said. ÒAnd we have to have an understanding of what kind of a world system we have to develop in order to deal with this international fabric of terrorism. And I don’t think the public is ready to listen to arguments on that.”

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Economic impact of disasters

The impact of the terrorist attacks on the economy was the subject of a story that appeared in the Sept. 26 San Francisco Chronicle. Betty Blecha, professor of economics, said, “When you have an event like Sept. 11, the fabric of history is torn ... the general conclusion of studies that have looked at disasters is that [consumer] confidence rebounds in a fairly short period of time, but there is a sea change of difference between an earthquake or hurricane and what happened Sept. 11.”

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Should SF make a policy shift?

Michael Potepan, chair of economics, contributed to Alan T. Saravic’s Oct. 14 San Francisco Chronicle column on Bay Area business. Potepan discussed the San Francisco business community’s plans to lobby the Board of Supervisors to change some of its “unfriendly” business policies. He thinks that it would be a mistake to “rush into any major policy shifts from city government.” “Absent dramatic developments on the war front, I would look for the economy to recover in 2002. I wouldn’t do anything to change the city’s policy on taxing and spending for what might be a short recession”, he said.

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Send in the clowns

"The Pickle Clowns: New American Circus Comedy," a new book edited and with interviews by theatre arts Professor Joel Schechter, received a favorable review in the Oct. 14 Book Review section of the San Francisco Chronicle.

The book documents the history of the Pickle Family Circus - a legendary one-ring circus based in San Francisco that inspired the new circus era of Cirque de Soleil and spawned a generation of talented clowns - through Schechter's interviews with many of the troupe's former clowns. The book was also listed as recommended by Book Review editors in the Oct. 21 issue of the Chronicle.

"By turns introspective, irreverent, technical and personable, the artists offer up one intriguing nugget after another," Theatre Critic Steven Winn wrote. "Schechter ... knows the importance of the oral tradition in the clowning arts and lets the Pickles tell their own story."

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Muslim feminism: not a paradox

The Oct. 15 issue of the San Francisco Chronicle featured an article on feminist movements among Muslim women in the Middle East. Feminism quietly thrives even in the strictest Islamic patriarchies, the article stated. Minoo Moallem, assistant professor and chair of Women Studies, said the recurrent image of women as cowed, oppressed and incapable of standing up for themselves is inaccurate. "What we don't talk about is women as active agents in their societies and cultures," she said. Moallem added that women own banks and run hospitals exclusively for women in countries like Saudi Arabia, where the sexes cannot mix.

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Degrees for Delancey

SFSU's new Urban Studies Program at Delancey Street was the focus of a centerpiece article in the Oct. 16 issue of the San Francisco Chronicle. The story, accompanied by photos, explained the unique partnership between SFSU and Delancey Street, a residential self-help program for ex-felons, substance abusers and the homeless. By June 2003, the 14 students will graduate with bachelor's degrees in urban studies. Raquel Pinderhughes, an urban studies professor and director of the Delancey Street program, explained that the students bring new insights to urban affairs issues. "We believe that these are voices that need to be heard in urban planning and policy debates," she said. "They have a particular and unique perspective." In addition to Pinderhughes, other instructors include civic and educational leaders such as alumnus State Senate President Pro Tem John Burton and former MUNI chief Emilio Cruz.

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An alumnus lost

On Oct. 16, The New York Times ran an obituary for Christian Regenhard who died in the World Trade Center attack. Regenhard was a rookie fireman with Ladder Company 131 in Brooklyn. According to the Times, after his discharge from the military, "Regenhard spent a year at San Francisco State University, studying art and trying writing. But he continued with the daring pursuits he had learned in the Marines: rock climbing, scuba diving, running marathons, traveling-and disappointing a parade of women." His mother said he was a "babe magnet."

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Post-Taliban Afghanistan

Sanjoy Banerjee, associate professor of international relations, was featured in a Q&A in the Oct. 17 edition of The Orange County Register. The Q&A focused on U.S. concerns over who might take over in Afghanistan after the Taliban are removed from power. When asked about the problem with moving too quickly, Banerjee said, "The State Department believes that if the Northern Alliance forces gain control over Kabul that it will cause a negative reaction from the Pashtuns, a large Afghan ethnic group who are not well-represented in the alliance. It will also cause a negative reaction from Pakistan, which sided with the Taliban against the Alliance in the early 1990s and which still has strong ties to many in the Taliban."

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More moms at home

The San Francisco Chronicle quoted Brenda Cochrane, director of the labor studies program, in an Oct. 18 story reporting that the rate of working mothers has dropped for the first time in 25 years with many of those mothers won decided not return to work after they give birth. The story was based on data collected by the U.S. Census. Cochrane said that older, married women were more likely to have the option to stay home. "Younger women aren't earning as much and probably don't have husbands who earn this much," she said, adding that last year's good economy and the rising cost of child care were also factors in the decline of the number of working mothers.

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Three-fold crisis for California

California's economic crisis has come because of the confluence of three separate events reported the San Francisco Examiner on Oct. 19. The bursting of the tech bubble combined with the energy crisis had already sent the state's economy reeling, but the Sept. 11 attacks has pushed the state into a recession. Daniel Vencill, professor of economics, said, "The uncertainty that prevails has made us hunker down in a sort of bin Laden recession." He added that the economic effects wouldn't have been as bad if California hadn't already had major problems: "In my opinion we could have bounced back from 9/11, like we have bounced back from natural disasters Ð Loma Prieta Ð in the past."

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Slogan signs

P.J. Corkery featured the theme slogan of SFSU's response to the Sept. 11 tragedies in his column in the Oct. 22 San Francisco Examiner. He wrote: "If you'd settle for something more topical, the SFSU bookstore is the place to get T-shirts reading 'Love is Stronger than Hate.' The slogan will soon adorn 60 lightpoles at SFSU as well. Prexy Robert Corrigan liked the injunction when he heard it uttered during the National Day of Remembrance by Jane Holmes Dixon, bishop of Washington."

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Announcements

Share your Thanksgiving

The Office of International Programs is seeking volunteers to host an international student or scholar for Thanksgiving dinner on Nov. 22. Hosts may be families or individuals from the campus community who would like to share this holiday with an SFSU international student or scholar from another country interested in learning more about U.S. culture and traditions.

If interested, contact Ko Aoshima at ext. 5-3512 or ko@sfsu.edu for an application form.

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Faculty: teach internationally

Applications are now available for tenured faculty to apply for positions as resident director for CSU International Programs in China, France, Italy, Israel, Japan, Mexico, Japan, Spain and Zimbabwe. The deadline is Dec. 1. Interviews will be conducted Feb. 21- 23, 2002. Applicants must be available for an interview on one of these dates to be considered.

For details and an application, contact Johnetta G. Richards, representative to the CSU Academic Council on International Programs, at ext. 8-7589 or tatenda@sfsu.edu.

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Summer Semester still on radar

The time and date of the next meeting of Ad Hoc Committee on Summer Semester Review and Assessment has not been set yet, but committee co-chairs Gail Whitaker and Sheldon Axler are accepting questions and issues for the meeting. Direct comments to axler@sfsu.edu or whitaker@sfsu.edu. Summer Semester meetings are open to all members of the campus community.

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A fit holiday season

HealthStart, the on-campus faculty/staff wellness program, is offering a mid-semester special. Participate in fitness classes until Jan. 18 for only $55! For details, visit HealthStart on the Web at: www.sfsu.edu/~hlthstrt.

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Beyond the stacks

Issue 2 of “@ The J. Paul Leonard Library” is now available on the Library’s Web site: www.library.sfsu.edu/new/thelibrary/issue2.html. This issue, “Moving Beyond the Walls: Your Library Collections,” provides information on the Library’s collection management projects, including storage of bound periodicals and off-campus shelving at Sonoma State.

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Coming Up

Chernoff on the writing process

The final fall event in the College of Humanities Colloquia will run from noon to 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 13, in HUM 587. Maxine Chernoff, chair of creative writing, will speak on “‘I Take My Waking Slow’: An Intimate Look at the Writing Process.” Chernoff’s book of poetry “World” (Salt Editions: Cambridge, England) will be published this fall. The history of the gentleman’s magazine Bill Christmas, professor of English, will offer a colloquium with slides on “The Gentleman’s Magazine” from 4 to 5 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 13, in HUM 203.

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Faculty: teach internationally

Applications are now available for tenured faculty to apply for positions as resident director for CSU International Programs in China, France, Italy, Israel, Japan, Mexico, Japan, Spain and Zimbabwe. The deadline is Dec. 1. Interviews will be conducted Feb. 21 -- 23, 2002. Applicants must be available on any of these dates for an interview in order to be considered.

For details and an application, contact Johnetta G. Richards, representative to the CSU Academic Council on International Programs, at ext. 8-7589 or tatenda@sfsu.edu.

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Academic Senate Action

Click here

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A Shining STAR in Student Health Services

SFSU’s STAR of the Month for October is Christine Cronin, a Registered Nurse with the Student Health Service.

Christine has worked with SHS since 1994. She displays a warm and nurturing demeanor with staff and students and has been a calming influence on the department. Co-worker Joe Lopopolo describes Christine as a “first-class professional person to work with” who is always willing to assist staff with her “consideration and kindness.” SHS employee Stella Blankenship describes Christine as a “fine, dedicated person” and a “true friend.”

Please join us in thanking Christine for her dedication and contribution to our campus.

As the STAR of the Month, Chris will enjoy free lunches on campus and a free parking pass or one month’s public transportation cost. She will also be eligible for the STAR of the Year Award.

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