All News

Director of Adventure Programs Andrew Jillings published the article "Mental Safety Skills" in July/August 2004 issue of American Whitewater magazine.

Associate Professor of Biology William Pfitsch and Leonard C. Ferguson Professor Ernest Williams of Biology have received a grant from The Nature Conservancy.  Pfitsch and Williams will continue work in their project "Rome Sand Plains lupine and frosted elfin management."

Assistant Professor of Physics Gordon Jones was awarded a grant from the National Science Foundation for a collaborative research project with professors from Tulane University, DePauw University and Indiana University. The grant will fund the development of an apparatus to measure the electron-anitneutrino correlation in free neutron beta decay.  According to the project summary, "this work will employ graduate and undergraduate students and postdocs who will learn techniques specific to neutron science as well as broader methodologies such as vacuum technology, instument design, particle detectors, data acquistion electronics and data analysis.  Neutron science is a growing field with broad impact on many areas of science and technology."

Plumbing, electrical and painting are difficult trades to enter without proper experience and training. To help make it possible for other members of physical plant to work their way up the ladder, the college reinstated its apprenticeship program last year.  The program provides training in various maintenance vocations and the opportunity to become a member of the College’s skilled trades crew.

Jonathan Rick '05, an editorial intern at Time magazine in New York City, continues to contribute to the Notebook section. Rick received credit in Time’s Milestones section (August 9, 2004). Credit in this section can include any number of assignments, including fact checking, writing the Performance of the Week, or compiling Milestones, Verbatim or Numbers.

Philip Klinkner, James S. Sherman Associate Professor of Government, was quoted in the Dallas Morning News article "History suggests 9-11 panel won't bring big changes."  Klinkner commented on the Warren commission report and said it was the "least successful" commission because its report fed even more conspiracy theories about Kennedy's assassination.

Hamilton College's Arthur Levitt Public Affairs Center has received an AmeriCorps VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) grant to hire two Hamilton graduates who will engage in two community outreach programs in Utica for the next year. Both VISTA workers will assist with projects focused on increasing the number of Hamilton students working in the community through service-learning courses, federal work-study programs and as volunteers.

Russell Blackwood, the John Stuart Kennedy Professor of Philosophy Emeritus and a long-time trustee of the American Institute of Pakistan Studies, has been appointed by the institute to conduct a national undergraduate essay contest in Pakistan Studies. Contest winners will receive a financial prize and publication of abstracts of their papers in Pakistan Studies News.  Several current Hamilton students as well as Kamila Shamsie '94, visiting assistant professor of English, graduated from Karachi Grammar School.

Cheng Li, the William R. Kenan Professor of Government, discussed the uneven regional economic development in China during a Voice of America interview. 

Christie Bell Vilsack K '72, who spoke at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, was interviewed by Kathleen McGrory '05 for an article in the Utica Observer-Dispatch. Vilsack said although initially she wasn't sure if she was up for the challenge, her Kirkland education readied her for her role at the convention. "I was a member of the charter class of Kirkland College," she said. "I knew that if I could stand up and help shape a college, then I could certainly address the delegates." In her speech Vilsack criticized President Bush for "pulling the funding" on the No Child Left Behind program. A former teacher, Vilsack is now an advocate for literacy and education.