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January 26, 2005 |
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After more than three decades at the helm of the U’s fund-raising efforts, J. Michael Mattsson, vice president for development, will retire effective June 30, 2005. Mattsson has agreed to serve as President Mike Young’s special assistant for development-related matters following retirement. Mattsson’s deep ties to the U go back to the late 1950s when he was a political science student. In 1963, he began working on campus in a variety of capacities, from student activities advisor to associate director of development and alumni fund coordinator. “The longevity of Mike’s career and his commitment to one institution are remarkable in the world of fund raising,” says Toni Lehtinen, a long-time member of Mattsson’s development team. In 1985, he became the U’s first-ever vice president for development. At that time, fund-raising efforts on campus were averaging less than $10 million annually. Under Mattsson’s leadership, the U has raised a remarkable $1.7 billion. Donations in 2003 and 2004 alone totaled more than $260 million for scholarships, capital needs, faculty support, and other opportunities benefiting campus. Mattsson is most satisfied by the generosity of the private sector–the U’s alumni, National Advisory Council, and community friends. He also credits the support of the six U of U presidents with whom he worked throughout his career. “Their appreciation for the need to build and maintain relationships and their participation in our efforts enabled us to exceed all goals.” The U will conduct a national search for Mattsson’s successor and hopes to identify someone by late spring. For more information, visit www.utah.edu/unews/releases/05/jan/mattsson.html.
The 2005 Sterling M. McMurrin Lecture on Religion and Culture All scriptural expressions of monotheism carry a deep sense of ‘chosenness.’ This includes not only the traditional expressions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, but virtually all groups that have emerged out of the orthodox expressions of these traditions. Although the idea of ‘chosenness’ exists in all these, it doesn't look the same in all religions. This has an impact on the world we live in. Can we live with ‘our’ and ‘their’ being ‘chosen’ simultaneously? Reuven Firestone, professor of Medieval Judaism and Islam at Hebrew Union College in Los Angeles, will deliver the 2005 McMurrin Lecture, The Problem of ‘Chosenness’ in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, on Thursday, Feb. 3 at 7 p.m. in the Salt Lake City Public Library Auditorium located at 210 East 400 South. Firestone directs the Edgar F. Magnin School for Graduate Studies and is the founding director of the Institute for the Study of Jewish-Muslim Interrelations. He will discuss the idea of ‘chosenness’ and the problems it creates for believers in the religious traditions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. “The notion of ‘chosenness’ in a religious context suggests that God has chosen one religious community as expressing the true divine will,” says Firestone. “If that is the case, then other religious expressions would seem to be false. This is a very serious issue in historical conversation between religions,” he says. “We are often given a double message. On the one hand, we are told that we should love the stranger and reach out to him or her. On the other, we are told that the religious stranger is in error about the divine will. Some of us are taught that the errant religious ‘other’ is destined for damnation! This tension needs to be addressed if we are to learn to live together in a shrinking world,” he says. The McMurrin Lectures were established by the Obert C. and Grace A. Tanner Humanities Center and by friends of Sterling McMurrin. For more information on the lecture, call 581-7127. For more information on Sterling McMurrin, visit www.hum.utah.edu/humcntr/PDF/Sterlingbio.pdf.
On a sunny January morning, an enthusiastic group gathered in Research Park to hear Utah Museum of Natural History (UMNH) Executive Director Sarah George announce that Polshek Partnerships Architects has been selected to design the state’s new natural history museum which will be located at the University of Utah on a 17-acre site just south of Red Butte Garden. The local firm of Gillies Stransky Brems Smith (GSBS) will be the local partner and Ralph Applebaum Associates from New York City will design the exhibit space. Polshek Partnerships is nationally recognized for designs that reflect the mission of the organizations with which they work. Based in New York, they have worked on many nonprofit cultural projects including the renovation of Carnegie Hall, the New York Hall of Science, and the creation of the Rose Center for Earth and Space at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. They will design the new museum building and surrounding spaces. The local firm of GSBS is also nationally and locally recognized for its design excellence and strong ability to manage large projects. Designated as the architect of record, GSBS will work with Polshek Partnerships to organize and manage the project. GSBS is known for its work around the state including the Olympic Speed Skating Oval, the Conference Center for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the Big Water and Cannonville visitor’s centers for the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. Ralph Applebaum Associates, which will design the exhibit space, is well-known for its design of the exhibit halls in the American Museum of Natural History and the National Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C. They have worked closely with UMNH and community representatives to complete the conceptual exhibit plan and will now continue the work to design the exhibits for the new building. UMNH is the official repository for all artifacts found on federal and state lands. But due to lack of exhibit space in the current museum, 95 percent of its collection (more than 1.2 million objects) is stored in the basement. The new building will make it possible for more of these collections to be displayed and interpreted by museum scientists for the public. With a capital campaign goal of $65 million, more than $28 million has been raised, including more than $15 million in federal funds and nearly $13 million in private funds. Groundbreaking is set for summer 2006 with the building opening in late 2008. More details will follow in subsequent issues of FYI.
One hundred years after Albert Einstein’s major discoveries, physicists and the United Nations are observing 2005 as the World Year of Physics. The U will celebrate with lectures, exhibits, tours, a film festival, observatory star parties, and an Einstein look-alike contest. A special class on the life of Einstein will be offered fall semester. A series of lectures Feb. 2 and 3 will feature Mildred S. Dresselhaus, a professor of physics, electrical engineering, and computer science at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Her lecture for the general public will be held Wednesday, Feb. 2 at 7:30 p.m. in the Aline Wilmot Skaggs Building auditorium. The focus of Dresselhaus’ research is solid state physics, especially in carbon science. She is also a leader in promoting opportunities for women in science and engineering. The goal of 2005 World Year of Physics is to bring the excitement of physics to the public and inspire a new generation of scientists. With the theme, “Einstein in the 21st Century,” the celebration is timed to coincide with the centennial celebration of Albert Einstein’s “miraculous year” in which he published three of his most famous works: special relativity, the photoelectric effect, and the Brownian motion theory. For a complete listing of events, contact Heidi Frank at 581-5697 or heidi@physics.utah.edu or visit www.physics.utah.edu/~woolf/wyop.html.
Marriott
Library Renovation-Innovation Building Project What improvements
will students see? What other benefits
will come from the renovations? Why build an
automated storage and retrieval system? What will it
cost to renovate the library? TOTAL $71.2 million When will construction
start and end? Will the library
remain in full operation during construction? For more information, visit www.lib.utah.edu/advocate.
These new awards recognize and honor outstanding efforts by U of U faculty members, students, and their community partners to collaborate in service-learning projects that benefit the community. One service-learning class, one student, and one community partner will be selected to be honored from those nominated. The awards are open to all official service-learning classes (denoted by the “SL” designation in the course catalog) and the students, faculty, and community partners who were involved in projects during the 2004 calendar year. To view criteria for the awards or to make a nomination, visit http://bennion.servicelearningpro.com. Nominations are due Monday, Feb. 28. The award recipients will be selected by the Bennion Center’s Service-Learning Advisory Board and will be honored by President Young at a lunch on March 29 and by Utah Campus Compact at its statewide recognition event on April 5. For more information, contact Joani Shaver at 585-9100 or jshaver@sa.utah.edu, or stop by the Bennion Center in 101 Olpin Union.
NOTE: As part of the art museum’s monthly Fine Arts Lecture Series, France Davis, pastor of Calvary Baptist Church in Salt Lake City, will give a talk on Wednesday, Jan. 26 at 1 p.m. in the museum’s Dumke Auditorium. To celebrate the U of U’s Black Awareness Month in February, the Utah Museum of Fine Arts is hosting African American Masters: Highlights from the Smithsonian American Art Museum now through Monday, Feb. 28. The exhibit features 61 paintings, sculptures, and photographs from the Smithsonian’s collection that reveal both universal concerns and a special awareness of “being black” in the 20th century. The selected works reflect the influences of historic events, political issues, spirituality, music and folklore, and personal visions. In conjunction with the exhibit, Jazz Legends: Photographs by Herman Leonard, a collection of 20 black and white gelatin silver prints, are on display in the northeast corner of the museum’s second floor. Also, a series of jazz films will be screened in the museum’s Dumke Auditorium on Saturdays in February at 2 p.m. Films will include Thelonious Monk: Straight, No Chaser; Paris Blues; The Last of the Blue Devils; and A Great Day in Harlem. For a complete listing of programs, call Cody Dingus at 585-1306 or visit www.umfa.utah.edu.
One in five people will be 65 or older by 2030, so the U is gearing up for the inevitable graying of America through a resource program at its Center on Aging. Formerly known as the Gerontology Center, the new name better reflects the scope of its program, which includes conducting research on family care giving, intergenerational relationships, and spousal bereavement. Since 2001, the center has offered undergraduate and graduate certificate gerontology programs entirely online, making it the first entity at the U and one of the first in the country to do so. Last year, the free online elder care and referral information service at www.uuhsc.utah.edu/eldercare/ was established to provide information on elder-care concerns. Current research at the center focuses on widowhood, grief and bereavement, family care giving, health promotion and self care, intergenerational relationships, public policy, safety, and medication errors. Also, the Eccles Health Sciences Library has a collection that includes more than 200 new titles and several video series on elder care. For more information, visit www.nurs.utah.edu/centeronaging.
In an effort to provide support, the S.J. Quinney College of Law and the WRC are partnering to offer a program to address the legal issues of divorce and family law. Once a month, law students and supervisory attorneys meet at the law school to answer questions from students, staff, faculty, and community members who are either contemplating or currently involved in divorce proceedings. The next meeting will be held Thursday, Feb. 3 from 6-7:30 p.m. in the law school located at 332 South 1400 East. For more information, call 581-8030 or visit www.sa.utah.edu/women.
Because of expected demand for telephone number resources, NetCom has acquired a new prefix for the University of Utah. The U has been fortunate to have the common prefixes of 581, 585, or 587. However, all other prefixes that begin with 58 have been exhausted. The U’s new prefix
is 213. When calling on campus to one of the new prefix numbers,
you may omit dialing the 21 portion of the number and simply dial
the last five digits. Remember that when calling from off campus,
if the five digit extension you wish to reach starts with a 1, 5,
or 7, it is preceded by 58. If it starts with a 3, it is preceded
by 21. If you have questions, please call 581-4000 option 2 to speak to a NetCom service coordinator.
Do you like event planning? Do you have great organizational skills? If so, consider joining one of the 2005 Employee Appreciation Day planning committees. Select from any of the following subcommittees: food, development, publicity, talent show, activities, Hooked on Books, volunteers, and information. All faculty and staff are welcome to participate. For more information or to join a subcommittee, contact Mary Ann Call at 581-8365 or mary.ann.call@hsc.utah.edu. Employee Appreciation Day 2005 is Thursday, Sept. 29.
Electronic desktop wallpaper for your computer is now available from the Office of Marketing & Communications. You can download it from http://ucomm.utah.edu/wallpaper/screensaver.html.
Additional shelving and many more books have been added to the Marriott Library’s ongoing book sale located in the duplication area just inside the library’s east entrance. Need a paperback for that upcoming trip? Save some money and pick up a mystery title for fifty cents. Or there’s hard cover fiction, biography, math, engineering, or anthropology–the classics you’ve been waiting for plus a few rewarding frivolities. The books are restocked every week. For more information, contact Teddi Kachi at 581-7526 or tkachi@library.utah.edu.
• Carry a cell
phone.
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