Media Bytes

On Oct. 18, The Day opined in an editorial marking the occasion of President Lee Higdon's inauguration: "Connecticut College has steadily built its academic strength and its national reputation. Strong teaching and eager learning — two of the most vital components of a small, liberal arts college — resonate more strongly than ever at Connecticut College. Mr. Higdon will be able to tell that story."

Sarah Howe '10 was quoted in a story about student plans to raise money to volunteer over spring break in South Africa. "The more I learn about what's going on in the world, the more I want to help,"she said. The story appeared in the Oct. 18 (Springfield, Mass.) Republican.

An article in the Oct. 16 issue of The Day featured Alex Hybel, Susan Eckert Lynch '62 Professor of Government, and his new book. It included this quote: ". . . I'm angry at the American public more than anybody else, because we didn't look beyond the rhetoric. As the most powerful country in the world, we have a responsibility to weigh very carefully the effects of our decisions."

News of President Lee Higdon's inauguration was reported in The Day, the Norwich Bulletin and on Fox Channel 61, all on Oct. 15.

On Oct. 12, the New London Times published a Q&A with President Lee Higdon on topics ranging from the College's relationship with New London to the value of a liberal arts education to the corporatization of academia.

An article about the psychology behind gambling in the Oct. 11 issue of the Toronto Sun included comments by Stuart Vyse, professor of psychology, who said, "Superstitious beliefs promote gambling. The notion of luck makes people believe that if they keep gambling, their luck will turn and they will eventually win. But, as you know, with gambling, you never win." Vyse also was quoted in the Winnepeg Sun on ice hockey goalies' obsessions. Vyse attributed them to the fact that goalies face more pressure than other players.

An Oct. 6 article in The Chronicle of Higher Education on the end of a sabbatical includes a comment by Eugene Gallagher, Rosemary Park Professor of Religious Studies, who said, "There is something tremendously invigorating about the creative interchange with interested students over the course of a semester that can't really be duplicated in any other setting."

In an Oct. 5 article in the Norwich Bulletin on the importance of SAT scores, Tim Cheney, director of Admission, explained why the College made SATs optional. "We have a deeply personal, comprehensive approach to admissions,"he said.

Frank Graziano, John D. MacArthur Professor of Hispanic Studies, was featured in an Oct. 3 article in the Brownsville (Texas) Herald on people's devotion to folk saints. "As long as there's the need, there's the devotion,"he said.

Stuart Vyse, professor of psychology, published an op-ed article in the Oct. 1 issue of the Providence Journal on having taken up running again at 55. "I may have wasted my youth when I was young, but now that I am older, I hope to enjoy what remains. Exercise is hard work. . . But this summer I got a little younger by playing a little bit more."

The New Yorker published an article in its Sept. 25 issue on what college students take to school. It included a list provided by Kate Radlauer '10, which read, in part: ". . . a huge first-aid kit — I thought it'd be a good thing in case someone has an injury and they don't want to go to the infirmary."

Glenn Dreyer '83, Charles and Sarah P. Becker '27 Director of the Arboretum, was quoted in a Sept. 25 article in the Hartford Courant on peak fall foliage arriving later, saying that the arboretum had moved its foliage walk to Oct. 22, one week later than usual.

A Sept. 21 article in the Hartford Advocate about undocumented immigrants' lack of insurance included comments by Jacqueline Olvera, Lenore Tingle Howard '42 Associate Professor of Economics, who volunteers as a translator at a free clinic in New Haven. She spoke anecdotally about patients, including one who "sewed his own hand up" after cutting it on the job.

A story in the New London Times about a Sept. 11 gathering in Harkness Chapel included remarks by chaplain Randy Bond given at the memorial service. "This is not a political forum," he said. "This is a holy moment, a sacred moment." The story appeared Sept. 21.

A story about the College's tradition of giving graduates a white pine sapling at Commencement appeared in the May/June issue of American Spirit Magazine, published by the Daughters of the American Revolution.