Founders Day trivia question for March 11

A week-long trivia contest that tests knowledge of Elon’s history begins today with a chance for students, faculty and staff to win prizes.

*****

Monday:

In what year was Founders Day established?

In honor of Founders Day 2013, each day this week a new trivia question will be posted on E-Net before 10 a.m. All Elon students, faculty and staff are welcome to submit one answer to eheiser@elon.edu, and at the end of each day, all correct answers will be pooled and a winner chosen at random.

Today's prize: A $25 gift card for Smitty’s ice cream.

For help finding the answers to the trivia questions, visit a display in Belk Library on Founders Day 2013 honorees Reid & Grace Maynard. Answers may be submitted until 6 p.m.

A special College Coffee and tree planting is set for Tuesday, March 12, and a special chapel program will be held Thursday, March 14, to honor the Maynards.

Elon established Founders Day to honor significant figures from its history and to commemorate the lives of administrators, faculty and trustees who impacted the growth of the institution.

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by Eric Townsend, Staff Last Updated - 3/11/2013

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Phoenix women host WBI basketball tourney March 20

Elon's women's hoops team makes its second appearance in NCAA Div. I post-season play with a game against Eastern Kentucky.

Kelsey Evans drives to the basket in SoCon Tournament play against Davidson.

After an impressive 18-13 season that included program-best 14-6 record in the Southern Conference and an appearance in the conference tournament semifinals, the Elon women’s basketball team has accepted an invitation to play in the 2013 Women’s Basketball Invitational.

Fourth-seeded Elon will host fifth-seeded Eastern Kentucky in the first round of the WBI on Wednesday, March 20, at 7 p.m. in Alumni Gym. If the Phoenix advances, the quarterfinals will take place on March 23 or 24.

This marks Elon’s second appearance in the WBI after making its first Division I post-season appearance in the tournament in 2011. Elon was given a No. 3 seed and a first-round home matchup against sixth-seeded USC Upstate. The maroon and gold claimed a 103-72 win over the Spartans before falling to eventual WBI champion UAB in the quarterfinals.

The WBI is a 16-team, single elimination tournament that was created in 2010 to address additional post-season opportunities for women’s college teams who did not make the NCAA tournament field. The WBI tournament bracket is an East/West format with each side seeded 1-8. The semifinals, or third round, will be played March 27/28 with the 2013 WBI Championship game set for March 30 or 31.

Tickets for Wednesday’s game can be purchased through the Elon Ticket Office at elonphoenix.com or over the phone at 336-278-6750.

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by Dan Anderson, Staff Last Updated - 3/19/2013

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Founders Day trivia question for March 15

Today is the last day of week-long contest that tests knowledge of Elon’s history with a chance for students, faculty & staff to win prizes.

*****

Friday:

After graduating from college, Reid Maynard moved to Burlington to work for what company?

In honor of Founders Day 2013, each day this week a new trivia question will be posted on E-Net before 10 a.m. All Elon students, faculty and staff are welcome to submit one answer to eheiser@elon.edu, and at the end of each day, all correct answers will be pooled and a winner chosen at random.

Today's prize: A $25 gift card for Local Yogurt.

For help finding the answers to the trivia questions, visit a display in Belk Library on Founders Day 2013 honorees Reid & Grace Maynard. Answers may be submitted until 6 p.m.

A special College Coffee and tree planting was held Tuesday, March 12, and a special chapel program was held Thursday, March 14, to honor the Maynards.

About Founders Day:

On Sept. 14, 1939, Elon established Founders Day to honor significant figures from its then 50 years of existence. Today, the annual Founders Day celebrations continue to commemorate the lives of administrators, faculty and trustees who impacted the growth of the institution.

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by Eric Townsend, Staff Last Updated - 3/15/2013

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Brian Fagan, 'Water: Humanity’s Elixir' - March 19

One of the world's leading experts on climate change visits Elon for a free public event sponsored by the Liberal Arts Forum.

Brian Fagan

*****

Tuesday, March 19
Brian Fagan, “Water: Humanity’s Elixir”
Whitley Auditorium, 7:30 p.m.

Admission is free and no ticket is required.

Sponsored by the Liberal Arts Forum

Brian Fagan is a leading authority on the complex relationship between the environment, climate change and human society. He has 46 books under his belt, including eight college textbooks familiar to two generations of archaeology students. For audiences ranging from business executives to high school students, his works position today’s highly publicized climate crisis in a crucial historical context and describes how humans have adapted to environmental changes over the eons.

Elixir: Humans and the History of Water describes the complex, ever-changing relationship between human beings and water over the past 10,000 years. Visiting the brilliant water management of classical Greece, the innovative Roman aqueducts, the magnificent gardens of Islamic engineers, and the challenges of taming Chinese rivers, Elixir tells the story of a world that existed before the technology of the Industrial Revolution turned water into a seemingly limitless resource. From this largely vanished world, Fagan draws timeless lessons about the vital importance of water conservation for our society today.

His latest book, Beyond the Blue Horizon: How the Earliest Mariners Unlocked the Secrets of the Ocean, tackles the enduring mystery of the oceans, the planet’s most forbidding terrain, and vividly explains how our mastery of the oceans has changed history. Beyond the Blue Horizon delves into the very beginnings of humanity’s long and intimate relationship with the sea: from bamboo rafts in the Java Sea to the caravels of the Age of Discovery, he crafts a captivating narrative of humanity’s urge to seek out distant shores, of the daring men and women who did so, and of the mark they have left on civilization.

The Attacking Sea (forthcoming, 2013) will focus on rising global sea levels, showing how societies of the past adapted to rising waters and how the rising sea levels of today impact the lives of millions of city dwellers and farmers around the world.

Fagan is currently Emeritus Professor of Anthropology at the University of California at Santa Barbara, where he has taught since 1967. He was born and educated in England, and spent six years as Keeper of Prehistory at the Livingstone Museum in Central Africa before relocating to the US. In addition to his books, Fagan has contributed more than 100 papers to scientific journals and has served as an archaeological consultant to the National Geographic Society, Time/Life, Encyclopedia Britannica and Microsoft Encarta.

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by Eric Townsend, Staff Last Updated - 3/15/2013

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Fairfield University announces Ignatian Heritage Week with campus-wide events taking place March 17, 2013 - March 22, 2013

Fairfield University announces its second "Ignatian Heritage Week" taking place March 17, 2013, through March 22, 2013. Events take place throughout the Fairfield University campus. All events are free, with many open to the public. A highlight of the week's activities features the Annual Ignatian Lecture with Philip Endean, S.J., Professor of Theology at Oxford and the current holder of the Gasson Chair at Boston College presenting the lecture: "Jesuit Education: Some Awkward Questions." The lecture takes place at 8 p.m. Thursday, March 21, 2013, at Fairfield University's Dolan School of Business Dining Room and is open to the public. Ignatian Heritage Week is held in collaboration with Jesuit Mission Initiatives, Campus Ministry, the Center for Catholic Studies, and the Center for Faith and Public Life. Other events open to the public include:

Special Mass of the Feast of St. Ignatius
9 p.m., Sunday, March 17, 2013
Egan Chapel of St. Ignatius Loyola.

Rev. Paul Holland, S.J., will be the celebrant and homilist, and Lord's Chords will provide the music. This Ignatian celebration allows all to participate in the spiritual event that Ignatius's life revolved around: the Eucharistic liturgy. Refreshments will be served after Mass in the McGrath Room.

Interfaith Prayer Service
5:30 p.m., Monday, March 18, 2013
Egan Chapel of St. Ignatius Loyola

Fairfield University President Rev. Jeffrey von Arx, S.J. will co- preside with Fr. George Collins, S.J., Rabbi Suri Kriege, and Chaplain Safi Haider - the three individuals who provide spiritual guidance to our Catholic, Jewish, and Muslim students on campus. Dr. Carol Ann Maxwell and members of the Fairfield University Glee Club will provide the musical component. The purpose of this celebration will be to highlight Fairfield University's commitment to the tradition of interreligious dialogue within its Ignatian heritage, and to support and uphold the vibrant, emerging interreligious collaboration in which the community is fortunate enough to be engaged.

"Our Ignatian Spirit" Poster Project and Social
3 p.m.-5 p.m., Tuesday, March 19, 2013
Barone Campus Center Lower Level

This first-of-its-kind-event for the Fairfield community highlights the many ways Jesuit and Catholic charism is fostered on campus. Poster projects and presentations created by faculty, staff, departments, and student leaders will be on display in the BCC lower level for all to see the many ways Ignatian spirit is active on campus. Good company and conversation, snacks, and beverages will be available as Ignatian spirit is celebrated. The event is hosted by Dr. Joseph DeFeo, Associate Dean of Students and Director of Student Development.

Vocation Conversation and Dinner
5:15 p.m., Tuesday, March 19, 2013
The Jesuit Community Center (JCC)

All are invited to the JCC for Mass, a social, dinner, and reflection on discerning life choices. Tools which St. Ignatius suggests for making good decisions about the journey beyond Fairfield will be discussed. Special guest is Fr. Chuck Frederico, S.J., Director of Vocations for the three Jesuit provinces of the East Coast. The evening will also consider the vocation to marriage and to other expressions of leadership in the Christian community.

Service Showcase: "Quest for the Magis in Our Experiences Beyond Fairfield"
11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m., Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Barone Campus Center Lower Level

Participants will publicly explore how students, faculty, and staff live out the Ignatian Magis through community service, international and domestic service trips, and service learning. Participants will see and hear how members of the University community make Magis (the more), striving for excellence, an integral part of their personal and academic lives. The event is hosted by Dr. Robbin Crabtree, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.

Panel Discussion of Conversations on Jesuit Higher Education
4 p.m.-5:30 p.m., Wednesday, March 20, 2013
McGrath Room, Arrupe Campus Ministry Center

A wine and cheese panel discussion of "Eloquentia Perfecta" in the current issue of Conversations on Jesuit Higher Education. Three faculty members from Fairfield University will discuss the tradition of teaching "perfect eloquence" in Jesuit education and their particular "take" on it. Panel includes Cinthia Gannett, Associate Professor of English; Laura Nash, Associate Professor of Music; and David Schmidt, Associate Professor of Business Ethics. Convener is Mark Scalese, S.J., Associate Professor of Visual & Performing Arts.

"Deconversion" Lecture: When Catholics Change Their Minds about the Faith: Disaffiliation and 'Deconversion' in the Church Today
8 p.m., Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Dolan School of Business Dining Room

Dr. Tom Beaudoin and Dr. Patrick Hornbeck of Fordham University will explore the contours of what they call "deconversion," or the changes in heart and mind that many American Catholics are experiencing with regard to their relationship with Catholicism. They will discuss the history of deconversion research and address the implications of this work for the Catholic Church, Catholic theology, and society at large. Recent studies by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life have found that one third of U.S. adults under the age of 30 claim no religious affiliation and that nearly one quarter of adults raised Catholic no longer identify themselves as such. Disaffiliation is now a regular feature of the U.S. Catholic landscape. At the same time, many Catholics decide to stay on in the Church, living with substantial disagreements, "deconverting" in place.

Annual Ignatian Lecture: "Jesuit Education: Some Awkward Questions"
8 p.m., Thursday, March 21, 2013
Dolan School of Business Dining Room

Philip Endean, S.J., Professor of Theology at Oxford and the current holder of the Gasson Chair at Boston College, presents the Annual Ignatian Lecture.As Jesuit universities entered the mainstream of U.S. educational culture in the latter part of the twentieth century, they drew on a vision of Ignatian Spirituality as 'finding God in all things' and as fostering a rich Christian humanism. This lecture will raise a few questions about this way of thinking. Does such an account of Jesuit and Ignatian identity make historical sense? How do we relate the ideas of Jesuit education and good education? Can this way of thinking inspire a distinctive style of university life into the future? Visit www.philipendean.com.

Fairfield University is located at 1073 North Benson Road in Fairfield, Connecticut. Visit www.fairfield.edu/ignatianweek, for information on all Ignatian Heritage Week events.

Media Contact: Mike Horyczun, (203) 254-4000 ext. 2647, mhoryczun@fairfield.edu

Posted on March 05, 2013

Vol. 45, No. 210

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Fairfield University to march in New York City's St. Patrick's Day Parade

Fairfield University invites students, alumni, parents, faculty, staff and friends on Saturday, March 16, 2013, to march in the historic St. Patrick's Day Parade in New York City, New York. Fairfield University is a premium sponsor this year, and the Fairfield contingent will be televised marching up Fifth Avenue on New York's WNBC Channel 4 to over half a million households. Fairfield University President Jeffrey P. von Arx, S.J., will also be interviewed live on WNBC.

"The St. Patrick's Day Parade offers a wonderful opportunity for the Fairfield community to proudly share in an event that has become a part of the cultural fabric of New York City," said Maureen Errity Bujno '90, President of the Fairfield University Alumni Association. "We welcome all to join us on this festive occasion."

All those interested in marching must check in at Café Centro, located at 45th Street and Vanderbilt Avenue (near Grand Central Station), in Manhattan, prior to 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, March 16, where official Fairfield parade sashes will be distributed. Participants and their families - including children of all ages - are also invited to a pre-parade breakfast at Café Centro from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Please register to march and/or attend breakfast by visiting www.fairfield.edu/stpatsparadenyc.

To abide by parade security regulations, those not checked-in at Café Centro by 11:30 a.m. will not be permitted to march with the group. The Fairfield group will travel together to the step-off location and be lined up to march by 12 noon. For a full list of parade rules and regulations, visit http://www.fairfield.edu/alumni/ar_stpatsparade.html

The New York City St. Patrick's Day Parade is one of the city's greatest traditions, marching for the first time on March 17, 1762. Today it is considered the largest parade in the world. Throughout its history, the Parade has been held in honor of the Patron Saint of Ireland and the Archdiocese of New York. The Parade is reviewed each year from the steps of Saint Patrick's Cathedral by the current Archbishop of New York in the same manner as in the early days of the Parade at the Old St. Patrick's Cathedral in Lower Manhattan. To this day, the St. Patrick's Day Parade remains true to its roots as a traditional marchers' parade by not allowing floats, automobiles and other commercial aspects to participate. The Parade starts at 44th Street and is held every March 17th, except, as in 2013, when March 17th falls on a Sunday. It is then celebrated the day before, March 16th, because of religious observances. The parade marches up Fifth Avenue past St. Patrick's Cathedral at 50th Street, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the American Irish Historical Society at 83rd Street to 86th Street, where the parade finishes, approximately 4:30 p.m. - 5:00 pm.

Every year, the St. Patrick's Day Parade Committee hosts 150,000 - 250,000 marchers in front of approximately two million spectators lining Fifth Avenue. The Parade is also televised for four hours on New York's WNBC Channel 4.

Media Contact: Mike Horyczun, (203) 254-4000 ext. 2647, mhoryczun@fairfield.edu

Posted on March 08, 2013

Vol. 45, No. 212

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Drag Show March 21

The Gay Straight Alliance at Fitchburg State University will present the eighth annual drag show Thursday, March 21, at 7 p.m., an event designed to entertain and enlighten the community. Tickets are $5 for students with Fitchburg State ID and $10 for the public.

The Queens in Wonderland Drag Show will be held at the university’s Athletics and Recreation Center, 130 North St. Proceeds from the show will support two very worthwhile charities: Cocheco Arts & Technology Academy of New Hampshire and the 15 West Coffee House Kids of Leominster.

The show will feature dancing and cabaret-style performances by stage performers Rainbow Fright and Mizery to name a few, with Raquel Blake to be the hostess for the evening.  DJ Scotty P will spin the tunes for the show and there will be several drag bingo games, with Miss Dutchy Devine drawing the numbers.

“I am very proud of the young men and women of GSA for putting on such a fantastic show," said Shane Franzen, associate director of student development. "It takes many months and hours upon hours to put this show together. I never dreamed eight years ago that the students were creating such a lasting event. It’s one of the most anticipated programs the university has.”

Tickets may be purchased at the Hammond Campus Center Information Desk or online at www.MKTix.com/fscosd. Mail orders can be sent to Queens in Wonderland, Student Development at Fitchburg State University, 160 Pearl St., Fitchburg, MA 01420. Please make checks payable to Fitchburg State University.

For more information, contact Franzen at (978) 665-3164 or by email at sfranzen@fitchburgstate.edu.

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Women’s History Month in March

Fitchburg State University will observe Women’s History Month in March with a celebration of the special contributions that Italian and Italian-American women have made to American cultural life.

The program begins Monday, March 4, with “Cooking with Nonna” from 6 to 8:30 p.m. at the Falcon Hub in Hammond Hall. Come enjoy fabulous Italian cooking with some very special Italian nonne (grandmothers). We will be celebrating Women’s History by sharing some Italian cooking secrets and having many different dishes to try. Everyone who attends must bring a favorite homemade Italian dish! Prizes will be awarded for the best offerings. Buon appetito! Sponsored by a grant from the Gallucci-Cirio Foundation.

On Wednesday, March 6, and Thursday, March 7, the Communications Media Department’s theater program presents “Talking with …” by Jane Martin and directed by Kelly Morgan from 7 to 8:30 p.m. in Percival Auditorium. These extraordinary monologues include idiosyncratic characters that amuse, move and frighten, and always speaking from the depths of their souls. They include a baton twirler, a fundamentalist snake handler, an ex-rodeo rider and an actress willing to go to any length to get a job.

On Monday, March 18, from 3:30 to 5 p.m. there will be a panel discussion on “The Women of Italy” at Ellis White Lecture Hall in Hammond Hall. This interdisciplinary discussion about the diverse contributions of Italian women to modern culture will feature professors Rala Diakite , Joe Moser, Teresa Thomas, and Susan Williams.

On Wednesday, March 20, from 3:30 to p.m. there will be a Women’s History Month Tea at Presidents’ Hall in the Mazzaferro Center. Celebrate Women’s History Month with tea and dainties. Professor Susan Wadsworth will speak about “Italian Women Futurist Artists: Pioneering Modernism.” Known for bucking tradition, these women were often aviators of merit, and abstracted aerial landscapes were some of their favorite subjects.  Blending the flat planes of Cubism with color, movement, and sensuality, these artists may have foreseen some of the ideas that later led toward animation, as well as forms that reflected their own courageous pioneering of modernism.  Come hear stories of their exploits – in the air, in the bedroom, and on canvas. The tea is sponsored by WITS and the university’s Economics, History and Political Science Department.

The celebration concludes Tuesday, March 26, with a screening of the film “Letters to Juliet” at 7 p.m. in Ellis White Lecture Hall in Hammond Hall. This romantic movie is set in Verona, Italy, the place where Romeo and Juliet first met.  Sophie is part of a group that responds to letters written to Juliet for love advice. By helping one special correspondent find the love of her life, Sophie will find herself in a sequence of love events as well. The screening is sponsored by the Student Government Association and the Office of International Education.

The planning committee for Women’s History Month at Fitchburg State University includes students Jade Bryant, Dayna Larson, Kassandra Laskarides,  Lindsay McLaughlin, Chris Robinson, Jessica Roy and Nathan Timm, under the supervision of faculty adviser Dr. Susan Williams.

For more information, contact Williams at 978-665-3085 or by email at swilliams@fitchburgstate.edu.

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Graphic Design Lecture Series continues in March

"Brighton Ma 5.19.09" by Karl Baden

Fitchburg State University’s Communications Media Department will launch its second Graphic Design Lecture Series this spring with a photographer’s look at “The Self and the Street.”

Photographer Karl Baden will present “The Self and the Street” on Wednesday, March 6 at 3:30 p.m. in Ellis White Lecture Hall in Hammond Hall. He will discuss his self-portrait series, in which he photographed himself every day for 26 years to highlight time as change in the medium. His talk will also explore his collection of book covers and will be showing some of the smart and funny photographs he’s collected in a series called “Roadside Attractions.”

The series continues with a discussion by Jan Kubasiewicz, director of the Dynamic Media Institute at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design on Wednesday, March 27 at 3:30 p.m. in Ellis White Lecture Hall. Kubasiewicz will present “Dynamic Media; The Future of Communication Design.”

The series concludes in April with a presentation by Fritz Klaetke, design director of Visual Dialogue, titled “10 Rules (To Design and/or Live By).” That talk will be given Tuesday, April 30 at 3:30 p.m. in Ellis White Lecture Hall. Klaetke recently won a Grammy Award for best boxed or special limited edition package design for “Woody at 100,” a centennial celebration of the music of Woody Guthrie produced for the Smithsonian Institution.

The lecture series is coordinated by Professor Stephen Goldstein (Communications Media) with support from the university’s Ruth Butler Grant.

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Telecom expert Susan Crawford to speak March 21

Turnage Lecture to feature a leading thinker who raises questions about business and politics in the Internet age.

Strengthening Democracy: Challenges in a New Media Environment

Sponsored by: Turnage Family Faculty Innovation and Creativity Fund for the Study of Political Communication

March 21, 2013

Keynote speaker: Susan Crawford
7:30 p.m., Yeager Recital Hall

Afternoon panel
"Democracy in a New Media Environment: Issues to Watch"
3:30 p.m., Belk Pavilion, Room 208

Panelists:

- Janna Quitney Anderson, Elon University School of Communications
- David Levine, Elon University School of Law
- Daniel Kreiss, UNC School of Journalism
- Andrew Rens, Duke University
- Chair, Laura Roselle, Department of Political Science, Elon University

Many people have cited the challenges to building and sustaining democratic practices and processes in the United States today. Some have criticized the role of money in the political process – whether in elections or policy development. Others have criticized the lack of interest in political participation, especially among the young, and especially in a media environment in which choosing to ignore politics is relatively easy. Many recognize serious issues associated with transparency and openness. Finally, access to the technology needed to communicate in the US in the 21st century is another important issue. Our expert panel and keynote speaker will raise awareness about the state of political participation in a changing technological and informational environment.

Susan Crawford

 Susan Crawford is a leading telecommunications policy expert and professor of communications and Internet law at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law. She has held prominent government positions as Special Assistant to President Obama for science, technology and innovation (2009), and served as co-leader of the FCC transition team between the Bush and Obama administrations. Currently, she is a member of Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s Advisory Council on Technology and Innovation.

 Crawford’s new book, Captive Audience: The Telecom Industry and Monopoly Power in the New Gilded Age, examines how the U.S. government allowed a few large companies to dominate the telecommunications industry — diminishing America’s global competitive advantage as other countries surpass the U.S. in broadband speed and price. The current policies, Crawford warns, have created a deep “digital divide,” where stifled competition and high prices prevent one-third of Americans from having internet access, threatening the country’s democratic freedom of information and economic future.

Susan Crawford

Crawford writes regularly for Bloomberg.com and Wired magazine. She is a Fellow at the Roosevelt Institute where she spearheads the Institute’s work on making high-speed internet accessible and affordable for all. Prior to her position at Cardozo law school, Crawford was a professor at the University of Michigan Law School, and a visiting professor at Harvard’s Kennedy and Law Schools. Crawford received both her bachelor's degree and law degree from Yale University.

As an academic, Crawford teaches about open government policy, Internet law, and communications law. She was a member of the board of directors of ICANN from 2005-2008 and is the founder of OneWebDay, a global Earth Day for the Internet that takes place each Sept. 22.

She has been recognized as one of Fast Company’s Most Influential Women in Technology (2009); IP3 Awardee (2010); one of Prospect Magazine’s Top Ten Brains of the Digital Future (2011); and one of Newsweek's 100 Digital Disruptors (2012). She serves on the boards of Public Knowledge and TPRC and as a faculty co-director of the Berkman Center at Harvard.

contact: Laura Roselle, lroselle@elon.edu

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by Dan Anderson, Staff Last Updated - 2/25/2013

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Faculty recital with debut of 'A Live Oak Growing' - March 5

Omri Shimron & Tim Hill in the music department perform a program also featuring the N.C. premier of "A Live Oak Growing" by Clint Borzoni.

Associate Professor Omri Shimron (left) and Instructor Tim Hill

*****

Tuesday, March 5
Tim Hill '92, bass-baritone
Omri Shimron, piano
Whitley Auditorium, 7:30 p.m.

Tim Hill '91, an Elon alumnus now serving as a voice instructor in the university's Department of Music and himself an accomplished bass-baritone singer, will join Associate Professor Omri Shimron (on the piano) for a 7:30 p.m. recital on Tuesday, March 5, in Whitley Auditorium. The duo will perform music by Mozart, Ibert and Brahms.

The second half of the recital features the North Carolina premiere of a new song cycle by young, up-and-coming American composer Clint Borzoni. His piece, "A Live Oak Growing," uses texts by Walt Whitman (from Leaves of Grass).

In the fall of 2010, Hill created a Kickstarter campaign to fund the commission of four of the songs and the subsequent recording of the "A Live Oak Growing" CD.

The event is free and open to the public. No tickets are required.

More from Hill on the "A Live Oak Growing" website:

This project was conceived by me, after hearing a few of Clint’s song compositions. I was looking for American songs for a recital program. Most of the songs I found did not interest me in some way, others were either too high or too low, or too something else. I liked the way Clint’s songs had a large sweeping melody that allowed a classical singer’s voice to bloom and blossom throughout the phrase, much as one of the old masters. Yet, his music didn’t fall into the trap most young composers fall into…they weren’t copies of an old master’s style, they were Clint’s own unique voice and sounded new, fresh, and complex.

So, I approached Clint to write four songs. I ran a Kickstarter campaign to raise the funds, and one of the rewards for donating was a recording of the completed songs. Clint suggested four texts from Whitman’s Leaves of Grass. His idea for a set based on the theme of love and loss seemed interesting, so we moved ahead with the project.

During the composition phase, Clint was approached by baritone, Randal Turner to write three songs for a recital. Clint, once again, chose three poems from Leaves of Grass. Upon hearing them, I knew my project was going to expand to a full CD. I knew I had to sing these songs too–and why not record them?

About that time, I received the first draft of “I Saw in Louisiana” and Whitman’s themes of a live oak growing, alone and depending on one’s friends resonated with me. Thus the title of the CD came to me: A Live Oak Growing.

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by Eric Townsend, Staff Last Updated - 2/26/2013

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Distinguished Speaker Series continues March 13, 2013

The self-described “reading arsonist” Dr. Steven L. Layne will address educators on the topic of igniting a passion for reading when he takes the microphone at Fitchburg State University’s Distinguished Speaker Series on March 13, 2013.

The Distinguished Speaker Series is now in its seventh year, and hundreds of area educators attend each year for an inspiring and informative professional development opportunity. This year’s event will take place from 8:30 to 2 p.m., March 13, 2013 at the Holmes Dining Commons on the Fitchburg State campus.

With his trademark combination of humor and heart, Layne, pictured, tackles one of the most significant issues in reading instruction today:  how to engage reluctant readers. Teaching the skill of reading is viewed by many educators as a major objective; teaching the will of reading is too often an afterthought. Layne’s charismatic blend of anecdotes and practical suggestions for the classroom are sure to fan the flame of literacy into a raging inferno inspiring teachers as well as their students to keep the bedside lamp on just a little bit later into the night.

Educators will leave the workshop with

Increased knowledge of literacyPractical strategies to engage reluctant readersEfficient real-world suggestions to dramatically impact school culture

Layne serves as full-time professor of literacy education at Judson University in Elgin, Ill. His vast array of experience working at multiple grade levels in the public schools allows him a unique camaraderie with teachers and librarians and his award-winning books for children and young adults add another appealing element to his dynamic presentations. Layne is a frequent keynote speaker at large conferences and gatherings of educators and librarians throughout the world. In addition, Layne continues to do school appearances each year as a guest author and provides in-service for schools throughout the nation.

“Steven Layne is one of the most dynamic keynote speakers I have had the pleasure to listen to,” said Fitchburg State University Dean of Education Dr. Pamela Hill. “His warmth, humor, and love of teaching resonate. He made us laugh and made us cry—but most of all, he inspired us.”

The Distinguished Speaker Series is designed for superintendents, assistant superintendents, principals, curriculum directors, special education directors, teachers, graduate students, higher education faculty, and other interested school administrators and educators. Books by Layne will be available for purchase, and checks, credit cards and cash will be accepted.

The registration fee of $150 includes the workshop, luncheon and continuing education units. This program offers four PDPs for educators. Payment is by check, credit card or purchase order. Teams of three or more within the same school district pay $125 per person and must register by purchase order. Print the invoice or registration form online to complete and mail or fax in per instructions.

Registration has begun and is open until March 1, 2013. Registrations received by Jan. 31, 2013 will be entered into a raffle for free admission.

For more information or to register, visit www.fitchburgstate.edu/gce/speaker.

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