SWARTHMORE COLLEGE NEWS

Bowling Alone Author Robert Putnam '63 on How Religion Divides and Unites Us (Click Here to View) Using his years at Swarthmore as the jumping-off point for a discussion of religious change in the United States over the last 50 years, Harvard University Professor of Public Policy Robert Putnam '63 recently spoke on campus about the findings outlined in his latest book, American Grace: How Religion Divides and Unites Us.

 

OTHER SWARTHMORE COLLEGE NEWS

Michael Hill Named New Director of Public Safety
"In addition to campus safety, Mike's passions are teaching and community service," says Vice President of Facilities Stu Hain. "His victim support work, workshops, and the creation of a student Committee on Public Safety have fostered strong, trusting relationships between officers and students."


Sociologist Lee Smithey Explores Conflict Transformation in N. Ireland in Award-Winning Book
In his new book Unionists, Loyalists, and Conflict Transformation in Northern Ireland, Associate Professor of Sociology Lee Smithey discusses how grassroots movements have transformed the conflicts in Northern Ireland.


Watch: Petra Floyd '12 Exhibits Interactive Installation Piece in Brooklyn Gallery
Petra Floyd '12 recently exhibited the installation piece 867 Sharon Ln. at the Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture. The multimedia and multidisciplinary exhibit intends to represent the diversity of artistic visions for a black queer future.


Summer Construction Projects Will Support Wellness Initiatives, Other Strategic Goals
From the top of the iconic Parrish domes and across campus, a number of projects will transform numerous areas of campus in both visible and more discrete ways.


It's 10 Minutes to Midnight: Political Scientist Dominic Tierney Creates Iran War Clock
The aim of the project is to estimate the chances of war while producing a more informed debate on this highly-charged subject.


Promotions Recognize Faculty Across the Disciplines
The College announces the promotions of seven faculty members.


Psychologist Barry Schwartz Wants to See More Friction in the Economy
Psychogist Barry Schwartz tackles the state of the economy in recent op-eds in the New York Times and the Chronicle for Higher Education.


Swarthmore Women's Swimming Takes Record-Breaking CC Championship Gold
Swarthmore swimmers won 10 separate events, beating the previous record of eight set in 1999. Every Swarthmore medal was won by an underclassman.


Lotte Bailyn '51, Frank Easterbrook '70, and Judy Richardson '66 to Receive Honorary Degrees at 140th Commencement
About 350 seniors are expected to graduate at the ceremony, which will be held at 10 a.m. in the Scott Outdoor Amphitheater on Sun., May 27.


Gil Kemp '72 Named New Board Chair
"I am deeply honored to be selected as Swarthmore's next Board chair," Kemp said. "I know firsthand the value and lasting impact a Swarthmore education can have. It's been extremely gratifying to support the College in the past, and I'm looking forward to deepening my involvement and further ensuring its success."


Spencer Jones '13 Chosen for Prestigious Museum Internship Program
Spencer Jones '13, a special major in sociology and anthropology and educational studies has been chosen to participate in the Lipper Internship Program at the Museum of Jewish Heritage—A Living Memorial to the Holocaust in Lower Manhattan.


Linguist K. David Harrison Unveils Talking Dictionaries for Vanishing Languages
"Endangered language communities are adopting digital technology to aid their survival and to make their voices heard around the world," Harrison says. "This is a positive effect of globalization."


Swarthmore Recognized as Leader in Undergraduate Science Research
Swarthmore College is among the top ten institutions nationally to receive research grants from the Research Corporation for Science Advancement.


Mathematician Aimee Johnson Awarded Grant to Help Middle School Math Teachers
"Our mission is to form a community where middle school math teachers can engage in creative and intensive mathematics," Johnson says.


Mark Hanis '05 and Andrew Sniderman '07 Push for Humanitarian Use of Drones
"If human rights organizations can spy on evil," they conclude, "they should."


Composer James Matheson '92 Honored with Charles Ives Award
The award is given to promising American composers who boast a strong and fresh musical point of view. American Academy members have praised Matheson's work as "vibrant" with "great imaginative potential."


Marshall Curry '92 Receives Second Academy Award Nomination
Marshall Curry ’92 received his second Academy Award nomination today for best Documentary (Feature) for the film If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front.


Innovative New Course Connects Students with Peers in Ghana
Re-Envisioning Diasporas, a new course in which students will explore the experiences and representations of communities living apart from their homelands, also presents the College's first opportunity for students to study with peers from Ashesi University in Ghana. The course is being co-taught and offered simultaneously on both the Swarthmore College and Ashesi University campuses.


Lars Jan '00 Presents Multimedia Performance at Sundance Film Festival
"This is the kind of art I believe in, and what I think our society needs more of from its artists," says director, designer, and media artist Lars Jan '00. 


Lars Jan '00 to Present Multimedia Performance at Sundance Film Festival
"This is the kind of art I believe in, and what I think our society needs more of from its artists," says director, designer, and media artist Lars Jan '00. 


NYT Columnist Nicholas Kristof Recalls Being "Startled" by Student Question During His Campus Visit
"I think I must have been a Swattie in a former life," said NYT columnist Nicholas Kristof to an overflow LPAC crowd during his talk on campus last fall.


Students Return from Break Energized by Externships
Over winter break, nearly 200 students participated in externships sponsored by more than 160 alumni, parents, and friends of the College.


Andrew Ruether '94 Key to Why Swarthmore Exemplifies Use of Supercomputing Resources
"Being able to help faculty and students improve their research is definitely one of the most rewarding parts of my job," says Andrew Ruether '94.


Assistant Men's Lacrosse Coach Eric Hoffman Joins Philadelphia Wings Roster
Hoffman, who also serves as the strength and conditioning coach for the College, believes his coaching experience will help him out on the field this year.


Kansas Native Benjamin Goossen '13 Publishes Article in Home State's History Journal
Goossen credits Professor of History Allison Dorsey for her guidance and advice. "She taught me not to fear contradictions and anomalies in the historical record," he says, "but instead to see them as the richest possibilities for analysis."  


Six New Lang Opportunity Scholars Will Create Projects Around the Globe
As the newest recipients of the Eugene M. Lang Opportunity Scholarship, six Swarthmore sophomores will be tackling social-action projects around the globe.


Karl Clauss Joins Swarthmore as Vice President for Development and Alumni Relations
Swarthmore College President Rebecca Chopp announced today that Karl Clauss will join the Swarthmore community as its new vice president for development and alumni relations in March 2012.


Prof. Miller Recognized by Dreyfus Foundation
Associate Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry Stephen Miller has been named a Henry Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar for the 2011–2012 academic year by the Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation. Miller is one of just six scholars who were named as recipients of the national award, which recognizes faculty at undergraduate institutions for leadership in research and education.


Pamela Prescod-Caesar Joins Swarthmore as Vice President for Human Resources
Swarthmore College President Rebecca Chopp announced today that Pamela Prescod-Caesar will join the Swarthmore community as its new vice president for human resources in February, 2012.


Karl Clauss Joins Swarthmore as Vice President for Development and Alumni Relation
Swarthmore College President Rebecca Chopp announced today that Karl Clauss will join the Swarthmore community as its new vice president for development and alumni relations in March 2012.


Student Group Explores the State of Quaker Values on Campus
Swarthmore's focus on community and social justice are just some of the values emphasized by the College community that have origins in the school's Quaker founding. A newly formed student group, Quakers on Campus, hopes to connect these values back to the College's Quaker founding and to make an awareness of Quakerism a greater part of the Swarthmore experience.


Watch: Art Students Reproduce Eakins Masterpiece
Video captures the first-year students in Logan Grider's Making Art seminar as they work to recreate Thomas Eakin's The Gross Clinic painting in three dimensions.


Political Scientist Ben Berger Examines Political Apathy, Effective Engagement in New Book
In Attention Defecit Democracy, Berger says handwringing about political apathy is as old as democracy itself.


In New Memoir, James Hormel '55 Reflects on Effort to Become First Openly Gay U.S. Ambassador
In 1997, President Clinton nominated Hormel to be the U.S. Ambassador to Luxembourg. A two-year confirmation process followed which, while ultimately successful, proved especially grueling as he and the Clinton administration confronted a barrage of prejudice and homophobia in the Senate.


From the Occupy Movement to 3D Printing and Ethics, Faculty Members Blog Their Views
A summary of what some of Swarthmore's faculty bloggers have been reflecting on in recent days.


Bowling Alone Author Robert Putnam '63 on How Religion Divides and Unites Us
Using his years at Swarthmore as the jumping-off point for a discussion of religious change in the United States over the last 50 years, Harvard University Professor of Public Policy Robert Putnam '63 recently spoke on campus about the findings outlined in his latest book, American Grace: How Religion Divides and Unites Us.


Sarah Chasins '12 Wins First Place at National Software Conference
Sarah Chasins '12 came to Swarthmore planning to major in English, but an Introduction to Computer Science class, taken just to fulfill a requirement, prompted her to reconsider.