May 5, 2005

Vol. 15, No. 41

The "8 1/2 x 11 News" is published each week by the University Advancement Division. News of campus interest should be sent to one of the following editors:   Ed Delaney, 412-268-1609 (ed47@andrew.cmu.edu)
  Bruce Gerson, 412-268-1613 (bg02@andrew.cmu.edu)
  Susan Cribbs, 412-268-7521 (cribbs@andrew.cmu.edu)

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Daniel Green, a producer, director and writer in the entertainment industry and president of the Carnegie Mellon Alumni Association Board, will be the keynote speaker at Carnegie Mellon's 108th commencement on Sunday, May 15. The main ceremony begins at 11 a.m. in the university's Gesling Stadium. Among Green's television production credits are "ER," "The Sopranos," "Party of Five," "Time of Your Life," "Fantasy Island" and "The West Wing." He earned his master's degree in directing at Carnegie Mellon in 1994.

—Joining Green on the commencement platform will be honorary degree recipients Mel Bochner, Robert Dickinson and Jessie Gruman, and student speaker Tim Lowe. Bochner, an internationally renowned conceptual artist whose work has been exhibited worldwide, earned his bachelor's degree in fine arts from Carnegie Mellon in 1962. In collaboration with landscape architect Michael Van Valkenburgh, Bochner designed the Kraus Campo on campus, an integrated work combining art and landscape design. Dickinson is one of the most celebrated and respected lighting designers in the entertainment industry. He has more than 1,000 on-screen credits and has won 13 Emmy awards. Gruman is president and founding executive director of the Center for the Advancement of Health, an independent, nonpartisan Washington-based policy institute that translates health research into effective policy and practice. Gruman will also deliver the keynote address at the doctor's hooding ceremony at 8 p.m., Saturday, May 14, in the University Center's Wiegand Gymnasium. Lowe, who will receive his bachelor's degree in architecture, is the student speaker for the Class of 2005. In his speech, he will encourage graduates to use their "instruments of knowledge" to positively impact the world.

— Among the diploma ceremony speakers will be David A. Tepper, president of Appaloosa Management and donor of the naming gift to the Tepper School. Tepper, who earned his MBA from Carnegie Mellon in 1982, will deliver the keynote speeches at the business school's graduate and undergraduate diploma ceremonies. William Drayton, chairman and chief executive officer of Ashoka: Innovators for the Public, will speak at the Heinz School diploma ceremony, and South Australia Premier Mike Rann will deliver the charge to the Heinz School graduates. Ralph Szygenda, group vice president and chief information officer of General Motors, will speak at the Heinz School's diploma ceremony for students graduating from its Master of Information Systems Management and Master of Science in Information Technology programs. Information: http://www.cmu.edu/commencement/

GRADUATION CEREMONY IN GREECE, MAY 7

Carnegie Mellon will award diplomas May 7 in Greece to its first international class of graduates enrolled in the Master of Science in Information Networking program offered by the Information Networking Institute in collaboration with Athens Information Technology. President Jared L. Cohon will preside over the event and offer remarks. Graduates include students from India, Bulgaria, Romania, Lebanon, Greece, the Ukraine and the United States. Carnegie Mellon Trustee John G. Rangos will be the keynote speaker. Further information: http://www.cmu.edu/PR/releases05/050429_greek.html

CONSTRUCTION OF "THE LIVING ROOF" BEGINS ON HAMERSCHLAG HALL

Faculty, staff and students together with the university's Environmental (Green) Practices Committee have started construction of a "living roof," or rooftop garden, on Hamerschlag Hall's south roof. The project will help with storm-water management, energy conservation, aesthetics and habitat improvement for the building's classrooms, labs and office space. "The project will serve as a model and test case for our region. It will also serve to advance the environmental awareness and education of our entire campus community," says David Dzombak, co-director of the Green Practices Committee and professor of civil and environmental engineering. Landscaping and construction started on April 25 and is scheduled to be completed by the end of May.

—Further information: http://www.cmu.edu/PR/releases05/050503_greenroof.html

NEWS BRIEFS

—The university will be joining in a citywide celebration during the Senior Olympic Games June 3 -18. Track and field events will be held on campus June 7 -16. Volunteers are needed! An informational meeting will be held on Tuesday, May 10, at noon in Doherty Hall A310. Staff who volunteer for any on-campus event during those 11 days will be eligible for up to a half day of release time from work as long as the time is scheduled with prior supervisory approval.

—Staff Council is currently accepting nominations for representatives to serve a two-year term. Take a moment to participate in the nominations—and don't forget you can nominate yourself! Nominations close May 6. Send nominations to sc-elections@andrew.cmu.edu.

PERSONAL MENTION

—Sandra Ragusa, director of Recruitment & Enrollment for the School of Music, has been selected to be the Orchestra Mentor for Music Educator's National Conference for the month of May. Mentors are selected by nomination from all over the country and serve to help music educators in their respected fields. Music educators may request advice about orchestra directing from Ragusa throughout the month of May.

—Entertainment Technology Center Co-Director Don Marinelli was a member of the Technology and the Arts panel at the recent New Jersey Governor's Conference on the Arts.

—Alex Hills, Distinguished Service Professor of EPP and ECE, has been appointed Professor Extraordinario at the Universidad Austral de Chile in Valdivia, Chile. This permanent part-time appointment will require that he spend a few weeks each year in Chile working to strengthen the university's Informatics Institute's academic program.

—Post-doctoral research associate Judith Hill has been named one of two 2005 Frederick A. Howes Scholars in Computational Science. The award was established to honor the late Frederick Anthony Howes who managed the Applied Mathematical Science Program in the U.S. Department of Energy during the 1990s. Further information: http://www.krellinst.org/vision/howes2005.html

—Sue Willard, assistant women's soccer coach at Bucknell University for the past two years and a former standout goalkeeper at William Smith College, has been named head women's soccer coach at Carnegie Mellon. Willard replaces Heather Kendra, who resigned in December after seven years at the helm. During her tenure at Bucknell, Willard helped lead the Bisons to a 14-14-4 record.

—A team of eight Carnegie Mellon students has won the prestigious JP Morgan Chase Community Development Competition in New York City with their project, "Centre Food: Bringing a Non-Profit Food Store to Pittsburgh's Hill District Neighborhood." Their victory means that The Hill House, a non-profit organization in the Hill District, will receive $25,000 in seed money to pursue the plan to bring the neighborhood a long-needed grocery store. The interdisciplinary team included students from the Tepper School, Heinz School, College of Engineering, School of Architecture and the College of Humanities and Social Sciences. Team members Rebecca Aarons-Sydnor, Lena Andrews, Nick Ennis, Renee Roy, Erica Shinohara, Stanley Sun, Ryan Will and Rob Wilson addressed the need for a grocery store in the Hill District, a predominantly African-American neighborhood that is underserved by existing food outlets. The project grew out of a collaboration between the Urban Laboratory in the School of Architecture, the Heinz School and the Tepper School. The Urban Laboratory has worked in the Hill since 1991.

CALENDAR HIGHLIGHTS

—Tuesday, May 10: The Physics Department will hold a memorial service for Raymond Sorensen, professor emeritus of physics and former department chair, who died March 13 in Sacramento, Calif. The memorial service will be held from 4 to 5 p.m. in the Connan Room, UC. A reception follows from 5 to 6 p.m. in the Connan Room.

—Saturday or Sunday, May 21 or 22: Heinz School information session for its Master of Public Management and the Master of Science in Information Technology programs. These part-time programs offer evening courses year round and one can begin the program in January, May and August. 10 a.m., Hamburg Hall, Room 1003. To RSVP, contact Amy George at 8-2164 or email ageorge@andrew.cmu.edu.

—Monday - Tuesday, May 23-24: Graduate Recruiting Seminar sponsored by CIT. Monday: 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.; Tuesday: 8 a.m. - 1 p.m., Rangos Hall, UC. The seminar is for all administrators and faculty involved with graduate recruiting and admissions. To register, send email to GAPSEMC-Seminar@andrew.cmu.edu and provide the following information: name, campus phone number, department and Oracle string for the $60 seminar fee which includes meals and program materials. Registration deadline: Monday, May 9.

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