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The Daniel Burke Library is pleased to announce the availability of its digital resources website. The resources currently available are Civil War materials, largely related to the 117th N.Y.S. Volunteer Infantry Regiment, one of four from Oneida County.

Associate Professor of Religious Studies Steve Humphries-Brooks was interviewed for a Newport News (Va.) Daily Press article about the merchandising of Jesus. The article notes: The huge success of Mel Gibson's superhero Jesus in The Passion of the Christ, "are all signs of the lingering appeal of a distinctly American Jesus." Humphries-Brooks, who teaches "The Celluloid Savior," about depictions of Jesus in films, was quoted as saying: "Jesus as an icon is part of America...He's not simply part of the church."

Roger W. Straus, who attended Hamilton before graduating from the University of Missouri in 1939, and co-founded one of the great publishing houses of the 20th century, Farrar, Straus & Giroux, died on May 25. According to an article in Newsday, Straus was known for emphasizing literary quality over commercial success. During Straus’ lifetime, Straus, Farrar & Giroux published many nobel laureates, including T.S. Eliot and Nadine Gordimer. He was awarded a Doctor of Humane Letters honorary degree from Hamilton in 2003. Straus died of pneumonia Tuesday, May 25, at Lenox Hill Hospital in Manhattan.

Walter Beinecke, a trustee on College Hill since 1960, died Sunday, May 23, on Nantucket. In 1962 he became chair of the Hamilton Trustee Committee on Planning that was instrumental in the creation of Kirkland College.

A Pittsburgh Post-Gazette article profiling Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack '72 reports: "For months, the Iowa governor has been among the most frequently mentioned names on the short list of candidates to be Sen. John Kerry's running mate on the Democratic ticket."

Alan Cafruny, Henry Platt Bristol Professor of International Affairs, was interviewed recently by David Lightman of the Hartford Courant for an article on Bush's Iraq policy. According to the article, Bush has begun to seek "crucial international and domestic support for his Iraq rebuilding effort." "The hard bargaining will be over things like oil and Iraqi debt," said Cafruny.

At Hamilton College's 192nd Commencement on Sunday, May 23, the valedictorian was James Baker of Weedsport, N.Y. He gave reflections on his years at Hamilton, as he put it, "Dean Paris-style."

At Hamilton's 192nd Commencement on Sunday, May 23 the Salutatorian and James Soper Merrill Prize winner was Mary Beatrice Dias. She told her classmates, "I encourage you to envision a world where social justice prevails."

Delaware Congressman Mike Castle, a 1961 graduate of Hamilton College, delivered the College's commencement address on Sunday, May 23. Hamilton's commencement ceremony took place in the Margaret Bundy Scott Field House.

Delaware Congressman and Hamilton College alumnus Mike Castle '61 told Hamilton graduates that their "education prepared them for a career but it also prepares you for life," in his address at Hamilton's 192nd Commencement on Sunday, May 23.  "You are the best positioned of your generation to be the masters of your destiny – to control your future and the future of this nation. Limits exist only in your mind," he said.Bachelor of arts degrees were awarded to 457 Hamilton graduates at the ceremony, held in the Margaret Bundy Scott Field House.