2008 LEVIN LECTURE: ANGELA GLOVER BLACKWELL LAYS OUT EQUITY AGENDA TO END POVERTY
On Thursday, December 4, Angela Glover Blackwell, founder and chief executive officer of PolicyLink, will present Milano’s 2008 Nathan W. Levin Lecture on race and poverty.
Rather than continuing to tackle separately the underlying issues of race, class, and democracy, public policy expert Blackwell argues an Obama administration should construct a new “equity agenda” to address these issues comprehensively.
Blackwell calls for the breakdown of the outdated and artificial barriers that perpetuate poverty, in areas ranging from housing and education to health and democratic participation. Blackwell will highlight numerous examples of where this comprehensive approach has already proven successful, like the Harlem Children's Zone, a project to rebuild community by providing a 24/7 support network for neighborhood children.
Angela Glover Blackwell founded PolicyLink in 1999. A renowned community-building advocate, Blackwell served as senior vice president of the Rockefeller Foundation where she oversaw the Foundation's Domestic and Cultural divisions. Blackwell also developed Rockefeller's Building Democracy division, which focused on race and policy and created the Next Generation Leadership program. A lawyer by training, Blackwell gained national recognition as founder of the Oakland (CA) Urban Strategies Council, where she pioneered new approaches to neighborhood revitalization. She is the co-author of Searching for the Uncommon Common Ground: New Dimensions on Race in America and contributed to Ending Poverty in America: How to Restore the American Dream, an anthology edited by John Edwards.
Established in 1989 in honor of the late Nathan Levin, a trustee and acting president of The New School, the Levin Lecture explores the issues of race, poverty, and public policy. The event will be held in Tishman Auditorium, 66 West 12th Street, at 6:00 p.m. The event is free, but reservations are required.
LANG FACULTY RECEIVES AN ASCAPLUS AWARD
Stefania de Kenessey, faculty member at Eugene Lang College, has received an ASCAPLUS award from ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Performers) for the 2008-2009 distribution year in the Concert Music Division.
De Kenessey is a leading figure in neoclassical contemporary music and the founder of the Derriere Guard, an association of traditionalist artists, architects, poets, and musicians. Her music is performed regularly throughout the country as well as abroad, and her recent chamber music CD, Shades of Light, Shades of Dark (North/South Records), was described by Fanfare magazine as “fully worthy to share a program or disc with the masterpieces by Mozart or Brahms.”
ASCAP awards are based primarily on a panel review of the activity generated by writer applicants’ catalogs, with emphasis on recent performances. Each applicant is judged on his or her own merits and in relation to all others applying. De Kenessey also received an ASCAP award in fall 2006 and 2007.
NEWS FROM PARSONS THE NEW SCHOOL FOR DESIGN
PARSONS DESIGN WORKSHOP PRESENTS BRONXSCAPE
On Thursday, November 20, at 6:00 p.m., Parsons will host a reception celebrating bronXscape, an exhibition now on view in the Sheila C. Johnson Design Center that documents the latest project of the Design Workshop, Parsons’ graduate design-build program. Over the past year, graduate architecture and lighting design students designed and constructed a green roof in the South Bronx for the Neighborhood Coalition for Shelter (NCS), a nonprofit organization dedicated to fighting homelessness that provides low-income housing and educational programs for at-risk young adults.
The rooftop, which will be completed this spring, features shade and vegetable gardens as well as a covered pavilion for communal eating, food preparation, and recreation. It is designed to serve as a social space but also to provide residents the opportunity to participate actively in the growing cycle—from planting, to consuming, to composting.
The reception will feature a presentation by students in the workshop. This event will be held in the Arnold and Sheila Aronson Gallery, Sheila C. Johnson Design Center, 66 Fifth Avenue, and is free and open to the public. For more information, please visit the School of Constructed Environments.
PARSONS PRESENTS “FAST LIFE, SLOW FASHIONS”
On Wednesday, November 19, from 6:00-8:00 p.m., Parsons will present “Fast Life, Slow Fashions,” a panel discussion on sustainability and the slow fashion movement. Borrowing from the tenets of the slow food movement, slow fashion seeks to create clothing that is built to last and ethically manufactured, fighting the large amounts of consumer waste inherent in the fast fashion cycle.
Panelists include Hazel Clark, dean of Parsons’ School of Art and Design History and Theory and author of Slow + Fashion: An Oxymoron or a Promise for the Future?; Leslie Hoffman, executive director of Earth Pledge, an organization that partners with businesses, communities, and government agencies to accelerate the adoption of sustainable practices; Mary Ping, founder of Slow and Steady Wins the Race, a new clothing label that produces pieces made from simple, inexpensive materials; and Shona Quinn, sustainability leader for clothing label Eileen Fisher, Inc.
The “Fast Life, Slow Fashions” discussion will take place in the Theresa Lang Community and Student Center, 55 West 13th Street, Second Floor, and is free and open to the public. This panel is part of Parsons’ Rethinking Fashion series, which brings together fashion industry leaders to discuss issues of sustainability.
NEWS FROM THE NEW SCHOOL LIBRARIES
For the duration of the fall semester, Fogelman Library will continue to be located on the lower level of 65 5th Avenue. The library plans to be open for business in its new space before the start of spring semester classes. Look for announcements regarding the library's future move to 55 West 13th Street on my.newschool.edu, and in future issues of the Weekly Observer.
NEWS FROM MILANO THE NEW SCHOOL FOR MANAGEMENT AND URBAN POLICY
ON THE WATERFRONT:
FINDING THE BALANCE FOR DEVELOPMENT AND COMMUNITIES
On Tuesday, December 2, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., the Center for New York City Affairs and Milano will join to host the first of the Port Authority Speaker Series, a panel discussion about the future of New York’s waterfront. The event will feature remarks by Christopher Ward, executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.
The panel includes representatives from labor, community nonprofit organizations, and developers. These experts will address the need for long-term public policies that balance waterfront development with the changing priorities of the surrounding communities, and the short-term limitations on urban development and regional growth due to the financial crisis. The discussion will include issues such as limited space for new development, the commercial success of the import/export industry, the need to preserve and create jobs, and the seemingly competing priorities of providing open space and environmental protections to residents in the surrounding communities.
Christopher Ward, executive director, Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) will make opening remarks. The following panel discussion includes Carl Biers, education director, International Longshoremen’s Association Local 1588, Carter Craft, former director of Programs, Metropolitan Waterfront Alliance, Venetia Lannon, senior vice president, Maritime Division, NYC Economic Development Corporation, Susan Bass Levin, deputy executive director, PANYNJ, Joshua Muss, president, Muss Development Company, Elizabeth Yeampierre, executive director, United Puerto Rican Organization of Sunset Park, and Greg David, editorial director, Crain’s New York Business.
The event is supported by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, with additional support provided by the Sirus Fund and the Milano Foundation. It will be held in Wollman Hall at the Eugene Lang Building at 65 West 11th Street on the 5th floor. Admission is free, but seating is limited and reservations are required by calling 212.229.5418, or emailing centernyc@newschool.edu.
NEWS FROM EUGENE LANG COLLEGE THE NEW SCHOOL FOR LIBERAL ARTS
MICHAEL WALZER: THE FUTURE OF THE LEFT
On Tuesday, November 18, at 6:30 p.m., n+1 magazine editors Keith Gessen and Mark Greif speak with Michael Walzer, editor of Dissent magazine and professor of Political Theory at Princeton University, about the Iraq War, the rise of Putin's Russia, the theory of "just war," and the prospects of building a more robust political life for younger generations.
Michael Walzer is an American political philosopher and public intellectual. A professor emeritus at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey, he is co-editor of the political-intellectual quarterly Dissent. He has written books and essays on a wide range of topics, including just and unjust wars, nationalism, ethnicity, economic justice, social criticism, radicalism, tolerance, and political obligation. He is a contributing editor to the New Republic. Walzer has written 27 books and published over 300 articles, essays, and book reviews in Dissent, the New Republic, New York Review of Books, New Yorker, the New York Times, and many other journals.
The free event sponsored by the Eugene Lang College Dean's Office, n+1 magazine, and Dissent magazine, will be held in the Theresa Lang Student Center, 55 West 13th Street, second floor.
NEWS FROM MANNES COLLEGE THE NEW SCHOOL FOR MUSIC
MANNES FACULTY RELEASES NEW CD
Mannes faculty member Faye-Ellen Silverman has just released a new CD on Albany Records, titled Manhattan Stories.
“I have had a life-long love affair with the borough of my birth—Manhattan.” Silverman describes. “Here many of my friends live, and here the compositions on this CD originate. Each piece tells its own story.”
Silverman is a founding member of Music Under Construction and the International Women’s Brass Conference. She is the recipient of many awards and commissions and her music has been performed by the Baltimore Symphony and the Brooklyn Philharmonic, among many other orchestras and chamber ensembles.
NEWS FROM THE NEW SCHOOL FOR SOCIAL RESEARCH
“THE FINANCIAL CRISIS, THE U.S. ECONOMY, AND INTERNATIONAL SECURITY IN THE NEW ADMINISTRATION”
On Friday, November 14, The New School for Social Research’s Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis hosted a conference on the domestic and international consequences of the U.S.-led recession. The event was organized by Economists for Peace and Security, the Charles Leopold Mayer Foundation Initiative for Re-thinking the Economy, and the Levy Economics Institute.
The current crisis of subprime mortgages, mortgage-backed securities, credit derivatives, and failing investment banks is deeper and more severe than any since the New Deal. Conference participants discussed how the crisis originated in the United States—the center of the global system—and how cascading problems emerge when the world loses confidence in the system that supports the valuation of the global-reserve currency.
The conference brought together an exceptional international group of close observers of the
financial system, including James K. Galbraith, Joseph Stigltiz, Warren Mosler, Allen Sinai, Jeff Madrick, Teresa Ghilarducci, and many others to consider the larger implications for U.S economic policy and for the international financial and monetary system (IFMS).
Panel discussions took an explicit account of the deep political nature of the IFMS and its effect on international security relations and peace in the world. Four specific themes were prominent: the nature of the current crisis; economic policy challenges facing the United States; the design of a new domestic financial architecture; and the blueprint of a new international financial architecture, if and as it becomes needed.
NEWS FROM THE NEW SCHOOL FOR DRAMA
DRAMA FACULTY MEMBER RECEIVES CARL DJERASSI DISTINGUISHED FELLOWSHIP IN PLAYWRITING
Drama playwriting faculty member Michael Weller received the 2009 Carl Djerassi Distinguished Fellowship in Playwriting at the Wisconsin Institute for Creative Writing at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
The fellowship was established by scientist and author Carl Djerassi to encourage playwrights whose work is not only performed, but also has intrinsic literary value. To realize Dr. Djerassi's vision, UW Madison’s Creative Writing Program and Department of Theatre and Drama have joined forces to invite playwrights to work and teach in a community where plays are read and discussed as works on the page as well as works on the stage. Weller will be a playwright in residence at UW Madison during the spring semester and will receive a $45,000 stipend.
During the residency, Weller will teach seminar courses in playwriting, as well as have the opportunity to write and develop his own work as a member of the writing and theater communities provided by the institute, the Creative Writing Program, and the Department of Theatre and Drama at UW Madison.
NEWS FROM THE NEW SCHOOL FOR GENERAL STUDIES
BORIS GROYS DELIVERS JOHN MCDONALD MOORE MEMORIAL LECTURE
Professor Boris Groys will deliver the fourth John McDonald Moore Memorial Lecture on Monday, November 17, at 6:30 p.m. He will discuss how art is one of the most democratic forms of expression.
Dr. Groys, professor of aesthetics, art history, and media theory at the Center for Art and Media Technology (ZKM) in Karlsruhe, Germany, and global professor at New York University. He is a philosopher, essayist, art critic, curator, media theorist, and an internationally acclaimed expert on late-Soviet postmodern art and literature as well as on the Russian avant-garde. Groys' writing engages the wildly disparate traditions of French poststructuralism and modern Russian philosophy.
The lecture series is named after one of the university’s most influential art history teachers. Past lectures have been given by Michael Brenson, Linda Nochlin, and Stephanie Barron. John McDonald Moore taught art history and criticism at The New School from 1968 until his death in 1999. Moore brought to his students the vision of an artist who is also a scholar, and his classes were famously popular. Students, family, and friends established this lecture series to honor John McDonald Moore’s contribution to the university’s intellectual life.
This event is presented as part of the Vera List Center’s 2008-2009 program cycle on “Branding Democracy” and is held in conjunction with the exhibition Ours: Branding in the Age of Democracy, on view in the Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Galleries from October 16, 2008-January 30, 2009
This free lecture will be held in Wollman Hall, 65 West 11th Street, Lang Building, 5th floor.
BACHELOR'S PROGRAM STUDENT PRODUCES PLAYS TO BENEFIT NORTH SHORE ANIMAL LEAGUE
Keith Higgons, at student in The New School Bachelor's Program, will be producing Balancing Acts, a series one-act plays showing at the Crowne Theater at the Producer’s Club in Manhattan, from November 19 to 22.
Mr. Higgons came to The New School as a working professional at the age of 38 to finish his degree and focus on writing and media. He will graduate this January with a bachelor’s degree in liberal arts. In 2006, he founded Los Tres Gatos with E.M. Burkhard. Together, they produced and co-wrote the Sam French semi-finalist play Three's A Crowd. Balancing Acts is their first full production.
Show times are 8:00 p.m., Wednesday through Saturday. All proceeds benefit the North Shore Animal League, the largest no-kill animal center in the country. For ticket information, visit www.balancingacts-theplays.com.
THE NEW SCHOOL HOSTS DISTINGUISHED PANEL OF HUMANITARIAN AID AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT PROFESSIONALS
“You get up, work for 14 hours, eat, sleep, and do it again.”
“I wish someone had told me how hard it would be on my personal life.”
“It’s not a job; it’s a way of life. It’s what you do.”
These were some of the comments made by panelists working as professionals in the fields of humanitarian aid and sustainable development. Over 120 people attended the panel on November 7 on Careers in International Fieldwork to hear first-hand accounts of life in the field, the satisfactions, and the dues to be paid for the privilege of doing such difficult yet satisfying work. Panelists included professionals from Mercy Corps, Public Health Solutions, and International Rescue Committee.
There was general agreement among the panelists that it is a good idea to get fieldwork experience before applying to graduate school, or at least early in your career.
“It’s a good idea to do it while you’re young,” said Mark Johnson, associate professor of the Graduate Program in International Affairs. One uncomfortable reality is that getting fieldwork experience may require taking unpaid internships. “You have to pay your dues,” said one panelist. “I have three or four unpaid internships under my belt,” said another. Other recommendations included developing language skills and other skills that might be useful in the field, where often everyone wears many hats. “Directing a refugee camp is like running a small city,” said panelist Susan Romanski of Mercy Corps.
This panel was sponsored by The New School Graduate Program in International Affairs and The New School Office of Career Development.
UNIVERSITY ANNOUNCEMENTS
2009 SUMMER INTERNSHIP IN ALASKA
The Tishman Environment and Design Center is now accepting applications for the 2009 Tishman Environmental Merit Scholars program, an exciting summer internship in Alaska. Two New School undergraduates (sophomores and juniors only) will be selected to spend the summer working with a grassroots environmental organization in Alaska.
In past years, students have worked for the Alaska Conservation Foundation (ACF), the National
Wildlife Federation, and the Alaska Conservation Alliance on a wide range of issues. Selected students receive a 12-week, summer-paid internship in Anchorage, summer tuition scholarship for four credits of independent study, and roundtrip airfare.
For more information about the program, and to download an application form, go to environmental studies website. Applications are due December 12, 2008.
STUDENTS INVITED TO COMPETE IN PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT CONTEST
The Responsibility Campaign invites you to create a 30-second public service announcement (PSA) on the negative consequences of underage drinking. The PSA’s content should address binge drinking and deter underage drinkers from purchasing and/or consuming alcoholic beverages. The winning PSA will creatively and artistically capture this message.
First prize is $1,000; second prize is $500; and third prize is $250.
Prizes will be awarded to the top three submissions and announced at a special reception for the finalists hosted by the Responsibility Campaign.
For contest details, rules, and applications visit the NYU website. The deadline for submissions is Monday, December 1.
The Responsibility Campaign was created to form an alliance among New York City’s elected officials, Community Boards Two and Three, New York University, The New School, Cooper Union, student groups, and local bar owners to develop a framework for responsibility and safety for university students and others involved in NYC nightlife.
Through these partnerships, the Responsibility Campaign has established working relationships with students and bar/club operators to proactively work towards the prevention of underage and binge drinking.
CATCH THE “VAN GOGH AND THE COLORS OF THE NIGHT" EXHIBIT AT
THE MUSEUM OF MODERN ART FOR FREE
Did you know that you could get into this exciting museum for free? In order to receive your free admission, go to the lobby information desk and show them your valid New School ID. Students, faculty, and staff receive one free admission for themselves. Faculty and staff may also obtain an additional two tickets for their guests. Enjoy!
TIME OUT NEW YORK DISCOUNT OFFER
Start your year off being in the know about things free or fancy. Time Out New York is offering all students, faculty, and staff at The New School a full year's subscription for just $20! That's 51 issues for the entire year and only 39c an issue. Steal this deal for yourself or a gift to another.
THE BEST DEAL FOR AFFORDABLE THEATER, Dance, and concert TICKETS:
THEATRE DEVELOPMENT FUND
An exciting spring theater, music and dance season is under way: Why pay $100 or more, when you can pay $20-$36 for Broadway shows and Off-Broadway shows, dance performances and concerts? An inexpensive way to enjoy the best of New York culture is to join Theatre Development Fund (TDF).
To be eligible, you must be a full-time student or teacher, senior citizen (62+), civil servant, union member, staff member of a not-for-profit organization, performing arts professional, or member of the clergy or armed forces. Annual membership fee is $27.50, and you can join online.
A small sampling of performances recently available to TDF Members for $20-36 per ticket include: 13-A New Musical, The 39 Steps, Absinthe at the Spiegeltent, Altar Boyz, American Ballet Theatre, August: Osage County, Avenue Q, Ballet NY, Beast, Big Apple Circus, Boeing Boeing, The Fantasticks, Flamingo Court, Forbidden Broadway Goes to Rehab, Fueerzabruta, Gypsy, Hairspray, Irena's Vow, Legally Blonde, Monty Python's Spamalot, The Marvelous Wonderettes, New York City Ballet, New York Philharmonic, Paul Taylor Dance Company, The Phantom of the Opera, Speed the Plow, Spring Awakening, The Seagull, To Be Or Not To Be and Xanadu.
So don't miss this great opportunity to see great theater at great prices.
The New York Times is offering a 60 percent discount ($.40/per day Monday-Saturday, $2.00 on Sunday) for home or office subscriptions to all faculty, staff, and students.
Here's how it works. Unlike traditional subscriptions, the education rate can be set up by semester or in a combination that best reflects your schedules for both delivery and billing. New School faculty, staff, and students can have a subscription Monday-Friday, Sunday only, weekends only, or any combination.
To take advantage of the special discount to the Times or to change a current subscription, students, faculty (full-time and part-time), and staff should contact the customer service center at 888.NYT.COLL, to order a single subscription or a classroom subscription of up to eight copies for required reading in the classroom.
To order a classroom subscription of eight or more copies for required reading in the classroom, contact the education program's customer service center at 800.631.1222.
WOULDN'T YOU LIKE TO SAVE TIME AND MONEY ON ENTERTAINMENT?
As a member of The New School, you have access to exclusive entertainment benefits through Plum Benefits! From theater and dance to sports and comedy, you can use this benefit to save time and money when ordering tickets for great seats to the hottest events in town! Log on 24/7 to enjoy:
Exclusive offers for premiere entertainment
Discounts of up to 50% off
Access to hard-to-get seats
Cost-free service
No ticket-ordering obligations
Easy ticket ordering
Helpful Customer Service at www.plumbenefits.com, 212.660.1888, or contact@plumbenefits.com
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Log in now at www.plumbenefits.com to view this month's entertainment offers.
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Simply visit www.plumbenefits.com, click the "Sign-Up Now" button and follow the on-site instructions to create your profile and password. Registration is free and takes just a few moments-all you need is your groupwise email address.
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