Economic Literacy, Hawaiian Style

Alumni GAzette And the Economic Literacy, Nominees Are... Ten Eastman alumni have a shot at Hawaiian Style a Grammy Award this year. The 52nd annual Grammy Awards will be held in Kristine Krause Castagnaro ’92, executive director Los Angeles on January 31. Nominees, an- nounced in December, include: of the Hawaii Council on Economic Education, wants • Soprano Renée Fleming ’83E (MM), to see every student in Hawaii graduate with the tools Best Classical Vocal Performance, for her album of arias, Verismo (Decca), and Best to make good financial decisions. Classical Crossover Album, for her role By Karen mcCally ’02 (PhD) example, opportunity cost, which is “the on Yo-Yo Ma & Friends: Songs of Joy and most valuable alternative you give up when Peace (Sony Classical). It seems simple enough: Teens who are you make a decision,” she says. “With kids, getting credit card solicitations should you can talk about that in terms of select- know the meaning of compound interest. ing a candy bar.” For teens, who are better But many don’t, says Kristine Krause equipped to understand the future conse- Castagnaro ’92, executive director of the quences of decision making, the discussion financial literacy nonprofit organization, might be about whether to hang out with the Hawaii Council on Economic Educa- friends or do your homework, she adds. tion. And neither, sometimes, do the adults Castagnaro says the organization would around them. like to see every high school student in Ha- “Often people are not prepared to make waii graduate with a course in econom- financial decisions,” says Castagnaro, who ics. Yet reaching everyone is a challenge. majored in economics at Rochester. The American economy has developed in ways Castagnaro stresses that make borrowing and investing both NomiNee: Kneebody’s Twelve Songs by more necessary and more complex than in Charles ives. that economic concepts the past. Yet very few schools teach eco- can be taught at any • Also for Best Classical Crossover nomic literacy. Album, saxophonist Ben Wendel ’99E, Confusion extends to many areas of per- age. For teens . the trumpeter Shane Endsley ’97E, bassist sonal finance, including gauging how much discussion might be Kaveh Rastegar ’01E, and keyboardist home you can afford, knowing how to take Adam Benjamin, members of the quintet advantage of employer or government ben- about whether to hang Kneebody, for Twelve Songs by Charles efits, or realizing why the earlier you save, out with friends or do Ives (Winter & Winter). the better (again, think compound interest). • Tenor Anthony Dean Griffey ’01E As director of the council for the past sev- your homework. (MM), Best Classical Album, for his perfor- en years, Castagnaro says the nonprofit has mance on Mahler: Symphony No. 8; Adagio grown from “a little bitty struggling organi- Hawaii, like most states, does not require From Symphony No. 10 (SFS Media). zation to a thriving place.” She and her staff students to take economics or personal fi- • Mezzo-soprano Faith Sherman ’03E, of two, with the support of an active board nance. “Teachers have an uphill battle,” Best Opera Recording, for her perfor- of directors and a growing list of private and says Castagnaro. mance on Volpone, by composer John public partners, have created workshops Over the past few years, the council has Musto (Wolf Trap Recordings). for K-12 teachers, statewide contests for branched out to form alliances with banks • Kristian Bezuidenhout ’01E, ’04E students, and a Na Wai Puapua i (“Care for and insurance companies that have an inter- (MM), Best Small Ensemble Performance, the Future”) K-12 curriculum that links fi- est in reaching adults at various life stages for his performance on the harpsichord nancial literacy to native Hawaiian culture. who are in the midst of making major fi- and organ on Vivaldi: Concertos (Deutsche Leisha Bento, a high school social studies nancial decisions. This past summer, the Grammophon). teacher, met Castagnaro through a college council organized a statewide 2009 Person- • Percussionist and composer John instructor. Bento had already incorporat- al Finance Expo, in which over 80 exhibi- Hollenbeck ’90E, ’91E (MM), Best ed economic concepts into her classes on tors offered free seminars such as “Reverse Large Jazz Ensemble Album, for Eternal world history. But with knowledge gained Mortgage Basics” and “Money & Mom: Han- Interlude (Sunnyside). from a council workshop, she created an en- dling Your Parents’ Finances as they Age.” • Bill Cunliffe ’81E (MM), Best Instru- tire course in economics. “It really helped Castagnaro and her husband, Russell, mental Arrangement, for “West Side Story me with the pedagogy part—with how to a computer consultant, met in Atlanta Medley,” on Resonance Big Band Plays Trib- teach economic concepts,” Bento says. and were seeking a new adventure. After ute to Oscar Peterson (Resonance Records). Castagnaro stresses that economic con- a plan to live and work in New Zealand fell cepts can be taught at any age. Take, for through, they decided to settle in Honolulu, 34 RHT oC eS eR ReVieW January–February 2010 5_RochRev_Jan10_Gazette.indd 34 12/21/09 11:09 AM Alumni GAzette In the News Jimmie Reyna ’75 HonoRed by mexican GoveRnment Jimmie Reyna ’75, a partner in the inter- national law section of the Washington, D.C., office of Williams Mullen, has received a 2009 Ohtli award from the government of Mexico, the highest honor awarded to non-Mexicans. The Ohtli awards—ohtli means “pathway” in nahuatl, the language of the aztecs— recognizes people who have helped to advance the Mexican and Latino commu- nities abroad. reyna is a past president of the Hispanic national Bar association. doRian denbuRG ’76 elected PResident of national association dorian denburg ’76, general attorney at aT&T, was elected president of the national association of Women Lawyers at its annual meeting in July. an expert in law related to public and private rights-of- way, Denburg is the past vice president of the organization, founded over a century ago to advocate for women’s legal equal- ity and women in the legal profession. Ric HaRd meltzeR ’69 aPPointed Policy diRectoR foR House sPeakeR u.S. House Speaker nancy Pelosi of California has appointed Richard meltzer ’69 as her policy director. Meltzer was most recently a principal at Washington Council Ernst and Young, and had served as a transition coordinator for Pelosi in 2006, when she assumed the speakership after the election of a Democratic major- ity to the House. atHletics administRatoR Jackie blackett ’81 Receives national awaRd Jackie blackett ’81, an associate athletics director at Columbia university, where the couple now lives with their two “Kristine is a self-starter, remarkably cre- was one of eight women named young daughters. Castagnaro had been ative and an out-of-the-box thinker,” says administrator of the Year by the national working on special events for the March McClain, now the president emeritus of association of Collegiate Women athletics of Dimes when she met David McClain, the University of Hawaii system. “She is administrators this fall. now in her 19th the dean of the business school at the Uni- able to bring people together from a wide year at Columbia, Blackett was honored versity of Hawaii, and the chairman of the variety of professions and from all ages, for her work as campus liaison for stu- council’s board of trustees. and to catalyze their energies in support of dent-athletes. at rochester, Blackett was a common goal.” a three-time MVP on the women’s track u BANK ON IT: As director of a Honolulu- For now, that goal is to continue expand- and field team, and after graduation, she based nonprofit, Castagnaro helps kids ing the Council’s services, its reach, and, coached the women’s track and field and as well as adults learn to make good Castagnaro adds, planning for another, cross country teams. financial decisions. even larger expo in 2011.r Eug EnE TannEr/aP IMagES January–February 2010 ROCHESTER REVIEW 35 5_RochRev_Jan10_Gazette.indd 35 12/21/09 11:38 AM.

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