Picker Mounts Exhibition of Modern Chinese Woodcuts Donated by Former Colgate Professor nhendrickson@c… Fri, 10/11/2024 - 13:04 Outside of China, there are only four significant collections of Chinese woodcut prints from the wartime period between 1937 and 1948. They are located in Australia, Paris, London — and Colgate’s own Picker Art Gallery. Colgate’s entire collection, donated by geography professor emeritus and Peace and Conflict Studies Program founder Theodore Herman (1954–1981), is now on display for the first time.  The exhibit opened on Sept. 19, and it displays more than 200 woodcut pieces that depict the historical conflicts and social movements leading to the founding of the People’s Republic of China. “There’s a lot of good historical context, and there’s a lot to learn about that particular moment in Chinese history,” said Nicholas West, curator of the gallery and co-director of University Museums.  Woodcut printing was invented in China and served as an accessible artistic medium, “It’s usually been thought of as a medium for the masses,” West said. “The revival of woodcuts as a medium in Chinese art was specifically responding to that traditional division between ‘high art’ and ‘low art.’” Herman lived in China with his wife, Evelyn Mary Chen Shiying Herman, from 1936 to 1948. During that time, Herman befriended many woodcut artists, and they gave him pieces to show in the United States after he left China due to the difficult political climate.  “[There was] a lot of anti-communist sentiment then, and it was actually quite dangerous to be associated with China or any of the communist powers,” West said. “So eventually he ended up working here as a geography professor at Colgate. When he was trying to figure out what to do with these prints, he decided to donate them to Picker.” Leslie Ann Eliet, curator of the exhibit, was working as a director’s secretary and registrar for the Picker Gallery in 1980 when she received the prints and began working on inventorying the collection. As a printmaker herself, Eliet was familiar with the medium and conducted her own research on the collection — she even traveled to China to interview a few of the surviving artists. Years later, Eliet presented the idea of an exhibition.  “I knew that this had never been seen in its entirety in the United States, and I had done a lot of research and kept up with some of the artists,” Eliet said. “I had been working on this for a long time and met with Nick to present him with this idea. And, finally, it came to fruition.” Outside of the historical aspect of the collection, there’s a lot to be learned from the medium itself. “These images are really accessible,” West said. “You’re going to come into the exhibition and understand what’s going on with these images. They are expressive, they are emotive, and they are really quite narrative.”Arts Picker Art Gallery News and Updates Faculty & Staff picker art gallery museums and galleries Opening the exhibition War, Revolution, and the Heart of China on Sept. 19. (Photo by Andrew Daddio)

Rev. Corey MacPherson, Recently Enlisted Army Reserve Chaplain nhendrickson@c… Wed, 10/09/2024 - 16:08 University Chaplain and Protestant Campus Minister Corey MacPherson completed three months of arduous training at Fort Jackson in the humidity of South Carolina last summer to become a U.S. Army Reserve chaplain. MacPherson has been assigned to the 403rd Civil Affairs Battalion in Syracuse, N.Y., where he provides spiritual support and counseling services to soldiers and their families. Additionally, MacPherson participates in monthly battle assemblies to continue training in preparation for the unlikely case that the unit should be deployed. MacPherson initially felt drawn to serve when he heard of the suicide rate in the Army: there have been more than 30,000 suicides among active military personnel and veterans since 2001 — versus approximately 7,000 combat deaths — according to a study by Brown University. “There’s just tremendous need,” MacPherson said. “I thought, ‘If I can help, I’m willing to help.’”  The main duty of military chaplains is to offer emotional and spiritual support to soldiers and their families, or in the words of the corps, “to nurture the living, care for the wounded, and honor the fallen.” Chaplains are also the only confidential resource in the Army, allowing soldiers to share without worry of damage to their careers. MacPherson felt his experience at Colgate aided him in his training and in helping newer chaplains. Chaplains serve a variety of religions, and it can be hard for some to separate from their own spiritual traditions. “I felt like I had something to contribute in helping pastors understand that there’s a difference between a pastor and chaplain, which I think some really struggle with,” MacPherson said.  Training to become a chaplain also involves intense physical preparation, something MacPherson was surprised to learn. Chaplains are required to complete full army training so that they can be prepared in the case that their unit is deployed. “Chaplains are embedded with their units wherever they go,” MacPherson said. “So I fully agree and understand the need for physical readiness because the last thing I’d want to do is to slow a unit down.” The intensity of training resulted in a spiritual challenge for MacPherson. “It must have been four or five weeks in, and I was truly miserable, praying to God saying, ‘I don’t know why I’m doing this — I just wanted to help. I shouldn’t have to go through all this just to help, right?’” MacPherson said. But his perspective changed when he was with a few hundred young recruits one morning and reflected on the weight of their sacrifices. “It occurred to me while I was sitting there that those kids are there so my kids don’t have to be — because those kids are there, Colgate students don’t have to be,” MacPherson said. “So, in that moment, something in me shifted, and I felt like I had a responsibility to finish my training and to do all that I can to care for and support soldiers, veterans, and their families.”Campus Life News and Updates Faculty & Staff University Chaplain and Protestant Campus Minister Corey MacPherson

Hafez Al Mirazi Speaks on the Role of Arab Americans in the 2024 Election omiller1@colgate.edu Wed, 10/09/2024 - 08:34 As November and the 2024 U.S. presidential election draw closer, Colgate University’s Program in Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies hosted television journalist Hafez Al Mirazi to discuss the Arab-American voter climate. The event was co-sponsored by Asian studies, film and media studies, and Core Communities. A longtime critic of censorship in journalism, Al Mirazi has more than 40 years of broadcast experience, serving as the BBC Arabic radio correspondent from Washington, D.C., between 1998 and 2000 and the Al Jazeera D.C. bureau chief for the 2000 U.S. election. He taught television journalism at the American University of Cairo and is currently a weekly columnist at the Egyptian news website AlManassa. A U.S. citizen who was born in Egypt, Al Mirazi is familiar with the difficult decision Arab Americans will face in the poll booths this November. According to Al Mirazi, the political concerns of Arab people have shifted from oil to the conflict between Israel and Palestine, Palestinian autonomy, and Israeli expansionism. Al Mirazi says that Donald Trump failed in his attempts to cater to a Jewish-American audience, and he has upset many Arab American voters in the process. Al Mirazi estimates that Arab-American support for Trump will be cut in half compared to the last election cycle after Trump said “I want the job finished” in support of Israel’s attack on Palestine. Similarly, President Joe Biden faced criticism from Arab Americans, who established an “Abandon Biden” campaign as a result of his approach to the Israel-Palestine conflict. Since Vice President Kamala Harris replaced Biden as the Democratic nominee, Arab-Americans have shown some level of forgiveness toward the party, according to Al Mirazi.  Above all else, Al Mirazi argues, Arab-Americans wanted a “commitment from Democrats to a ceasefire now and to stop delivering bombs and weapons to Israel, which they didn’t get.” Many Arab Americans, Al Mirazi says, are drawn to Green Party candidate Jill Stein, who listed the conflict in Gaza as a paramount issue. Her support of Palestine has earned the respect and support of Arab-American voters, though not enough to outweigh support for Harris. The Arab-American voter population is concentrated most densely in swing states like Michigan, Minnesota, and Pennsylvania and therefore has the potential to influence the election’s outcome. The most difficult job, according to Al Mirazi, will be getting Arab-Americans to the polling booths; the demographic had a 54% voter turnout in the 2020 election, compared to the 66% national average. Meanwhile, in Arab countries, many people follow the U.S. presidential election closely. “People deprived of a peaceful transfer of power through elections are keen on watching it,” Al Mirazi says. The narrative spun by state-controlled media in many Arab countries poses the close nature of U.S. presidential elections as a promise of impending doom. “Unfortunately, Arab media look at what is going on in Washington and the elections in the U.S. and say, ‘Look, society is divided: they have a problem. They’re about to have a civil war,’” Al Mirazi says. For his part, Al Miraz believes the actual implications of such a tight race are much more optimistic. “You are sure that four or five years from now, even if you have whatever problem with the guy that the election brought in, you can get rid of that person through the ballots, not the bullets.”Academics Campus Life News and Updates Faculty & Staff MIST Debate and Discourse

Colgate’s 13th President, Neil R. Grabois, dies at 88 rdowning@colgate.edu Tue, 10/08/2024 - 08:35 Neil R. Grabois, Colgate University’s 13th president and professor of mathematics emeritus, who led the institution to new levels of stature and initiated Hamilton’s Partnership for Community Development, died peacefully in his sleep Oct. 6. As president from 1988 to 1999, Grabois led Colgate — with trademark infectious enthusiasm — through a period of growth and increased recognition among the country’s leading independent liberal arts colleges. Early in his tenure, Grabois and the Board of Trustees’ Special Committee on Residential Life led a review of student life that resulted in improved housing on campus, increased extracurricular opportunities for students, and a newly defined relationship with fraternities and sororities. Grabois guided the University through Campaign Colgate, whose $158 million in gifts over five-and-a-half years added to the endowment; provided campus upgrades and new buildings including Curtis, Drake, and Persson halls; underwrote scholarships, teaching resources, student research, and off-campus study; financed academic initiatives; and more.  In 1998, Grabois invited representatives from the village, town, and University to explore ways to address the declining conditions of buildings in Hamilton. He offered seed funding for what became the Partnership for Community Development, which works to enhance sustainable economic opportunity and community vitality in the village and town of Hamilton and the surrounding area. “Neil Grabois applied his deep intellect and personable statesmanship to bring Colgate to a new level of prominence among America’s liberal arts institutions,” said President Brian W. Casey. “The Colgate community mourns his passing and owes him a debt of gratitude.”  While presiding over Colgate, Grabois also taught mathematics classes when his schedule permitted. Members of his administrative staff in James B. Colgate Hall grew accustomed to seeing Grabois and his students in his office or foyer deeply engaged in discussions of math problems. Grabois held ‘drop-in hours’ at his office and at the O’Connor Campus Center for students to share their ideas or concerns during free periods between classes, and he was often seen in the warmer months riding his motorcycle to campus.  His own education included a bachelor’s from Swarthmore College in 1957, and he earned his master’s and PhD in mathematics from the University of Pennsylvania. His extensive teaching career led him to the University of Pennsylvania, Lafayette College, MIT, and Williams College, where he also served in various administrative positions, including provost, immediately prior to joining Colgate.  Grabois was frequently called upon by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools to serve on the external review committees that examine colleges and universities for accreditation. While still at Williams, he served as chairman of the Middle States Committee that visited Colgate during its accreditation review in the late 1980s. He also completed a term as chairman of the Commission of Independent Colleges and Universities (CICU) of New York State during his tenure at Colgate.  Upon Grabois’ retirement in 1999, Colgate awarded him an honorary doctor of humane letters degree. In addition, current and former trustees at the time created a $4 million fund — dubbed ‘The eNRGy Club’ to incorporate his initials and recognize his infectious enthusiasm. The fund allowed for the creation of the Neil R. Grabois Endowed Chair in the Department of Mathematics and underwrote construction of the quadrangle between Case Library, Persson Hall, and James C. Colgate Hall in concert with the building of Little Hall. After stepping down from the Colgate presidency, Grabois went on to become vice president and director for strategic planning and program coordination for the Carnegie Corporation of NY. He later became the dean of the Milano School for International Affairs, Management, and Urban Policy at the New School in New York City and served on several boards, including Swarthmore College, The Jewish Foundation for the Education of Women, and the Michael Wolk Heart Foundation. Grabois is survived by his wife, Miriam, and sons Adam and Dan.Alumni News and Updates Faculty & Staff Department of Mathematics Neil R. Grabois, Colgate University’s 13th president and professor of mathematics emeritus

Maureen Dowd and Carl Hulse: Road to the White House Series  khonore@colgate.edu Mon, 10/07/2024 - 13:52 The third installment of Colgate’s Road to the White House series, moderated by President Brian Casey, featured New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd and the chief Washington correspondent for the New York Times, Carl Hulse. The Sept. 24 event provided insight into the ongoing election campaign process and a glimpse into the internal workings of the candidates’ parties — as well as the state of American democracy. While Dowd and Hulse said they recognized the importance of President Biden’s stepping out of the race for president, they worried that Vice President Harris’s lack of firm positioning on policy and transparency with journalists could be detrimental to her campaign. With regard to the election overall, Hulse declared it to be one of “Joy vs. Hate,” and Dowd labeled it “Unserious Man vs. the Untested Woman.” Taking neutral stances on both parties, the two journalists acknowledged the lack of policy present within this election on both sides of the political spectrum, explaining that both parties are campaigning on different goals: Trump to maintain his own popularity by adopting popular policies and Harris to simply defeat Trump. Dowd and Hulse spoke briefly about the Trump presidency’s effect on journalism, specifically at the New York Times. Dowd said the Times now uses the term “liar” when referring to certain statements, and it has increased its emphasis on fact checking claims made by candidates. Hulse emphasized how much things have changed — gone are the days of letting candidates define truth. “You wouldn’t do that, you would leave it to the players themselves to engage in that argument,” Hulse said. In a final reflection on the state of the election, which is fewer than 40 days away, Hulse said it is a close race, and neither he nor Dowd took a firm stance on who is going to come out on top. “There’s just a lot up in the air right now,” Hulse said. Dowd shared his sentiment. “I just think there’s too many crazy, volatile things involved,” she said. Dowd and Hulse agreed that, no matter the result of the election, there would be some “really big consequences,” for American democracy. Hulse concluded with a subtle warning to Americans that, “There’s no guarantee to democracy, and I think people need to realize that — you have to keep at it.” The Colgate Road to the Whitehouse election series is sponsored by the Office of the President and the Lampert Institute for Civic and Global Affairs. Additional election-related events will continue throughout the semester. Visit colgate.edu/calendar to learn about all future upcoming events on campus.Centers and Institutes Campus Life News and Updates Faculty & Staff Debate and Discourse New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd and the chief Washington correspondent for the New York Times, Carl Hulse (Photo by Ryan John Lee)

Percival Everett Gives First Public Reading of James During Colgate’s Living Writers Series omiller1@colgate.edu Thu, 10/03/2024 - 08:08 Percival Everett proved to be a highlight of the 2024 Living Writers series when he gave the first-ever public reading of his new novel, James, in Love Auditorium on Thursday, Sept. 21 — an unofficial opening to Colgate University’s Homecoming weekend.  Everett is a distinguished professor at the University of Southern California and a prolific writer with a background in biochemistry, mathematical logic, jazz music, painting — and cowboying. Longlisted for the National Book Award and shortlisted for the Booker Award, James is a reimagining of Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, told from the perspective of Huck’s sidekick, the escaped slave Jim. The novel is necessarily violent at times and comedic at others. The narrative shifts attention toward the empowerment and disempowerment of enslaved people and dismantles the stereotypes of the source material.  In writing the character of James, Everett said he “wasn’t giving him agency. I was giving him an avenue to express his agency.” James is so clever that he not only teaches himself and all of the children to read and write but also to code-switch. The enslaved people of James are bilingual; they speak both intelligently and performatively, mastering stupidity for their white audience. In his dreams, James has constructive conversations with Voltaire on slavery and progress. With Huck, James’ speech is frequently monosyllabic and always phony. James is a novel about passing, survival, and true intellectual freedom. Everett recently finished writing the script for the film adaptation of James. Universal Pictures, Stephen Spielberg, and Taika Waititi are all involved with the project. Previously, Everett’s novel Erasure was adapted into the Oscar-winning film American Fiction.  Besides Erasure and James, Everett has written more than 30 books.  “I think I know something when I start a book, and by the time I finish, I realize I didn’t know anything. That’s the experience I love,” Everett says. “After 30 books, I know less than most people.” Everett also engaged with students in the Living Writers program during a Q&A session. He shared intimate insights regarding the importance of reading and writing, which are especially relevant in the context of James. “Reading really is subversive because no one can see what is going into you,” Everett says. “They can look over your shoulder and see all the words you see, but they will never know what they mean to you.” And he includes himself in that equation. “The work is on its own,” Everett says. “What I think it means doesn’t matter. I can put the material in front of you but you are making the meaning.” Visit colgate.edu/livingwriters to find out more about this year’s authors and to see a full schedule of upcoming events.Academics Arts and Humanities News and Updates Faculty & Staff Department of English and Creative Writing Photo by Michael Avedon