Nationality Rooms Newsletter

Nationality Rooms and Intercultural Exchange Programs at the University of Pittsburgh

http://www.nationalityrooms.pitt.edu/news-events Volume 93 Spring 2013

THE SWISS ROOM

Dedicated April 22, 2012

THE SWISS ROOM

The Swiss Room depicts a common room of the late Medieval style, circa 1500, and is modeled after a room at the Fraumu nster Abbey on display at Zurich’s Landesmuseum.

The 26 “stabellen” style chairs bear the coats of arms of the Swiss Confederation’s cantons. The four trestle tables and the display cases represent the language and cultural regions of Switzerland (German, French, Italian, and Romansch). The furniture and bay area benches are white oak while the rest of the room is of pine. The leaded windows highlight the first three cantons that formed the Swiss Confederation in 1291, making Switzerland the world’s oldest continuous democracy. The doorstraps, hinges and latch hardware were inspired by medieval examples.

The beamed ceilings feature nature and agricultural motifs. The rosettes that house the warm lighting, the beam ends and much of the decorative frieze in the crown molding display nature themes.

The kachelofen (tile oven) has uniquely Swiss figures, animals, and colors. This is a recreation of a 1640s design created by HH Graaf displayed at Schloss Wu lflingen, Winterthur, Switzerland.

The theme of the room is education for all children regardless of status or means, embodied in the writings of Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) of Geneva Kachelofen (tile oven) and Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi (1746-1827) of Zu rich. Their portraits on the rear wall display the sketch style of Hans Holbein the Younger of Basel (1497-1543). On the window wall, the antique tinted map of Switzerland, known by its ancient name of Helvetia, completes this tribute to academ- ic excellence. Notables

Jean-Jacques Rousseau Johann Pestalozzi (1746-1827). A (1712-1778). A Gene- romantic who believed in the essen- van writer, composer, tial goodness of man, developed a and philosopher, he was unified system of education in the father of French Ro- French and German schools for stu- manticism. His thoughts dents from all socio-economic back- on the equality of man grounds. Einstein, who attended influenced both the Jaco- school in Aarau, said “it made me bins in France and clearly realize how much superior Thomas Jefferson in the an education based on free action fledgling United States. and personal responsibility is to one relying on outward authority.” Here are few of the Swiss cantons’ coats of arms:

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EDITOR: E. Maxine Bruhns

ASSISTANT EDITOR: Maryann H. Sivak

REPORTERS: Michael Walter, Cristina Lagnese Anita Gallagher

Nationality Rooms and Intercultural Exchange Programs 1209 Cathedral of Learning We are pleased to announce that our NEWSLETTER is now University of Pittsburgh available on line at the following address: Pittsburgh, PA 15260 http://www.nationalityrooms.pitt.edu/news-events Phone: 412.624.6150 FAX: 412.624.4214

MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR E. Maxine Bruhns, Director

We breathe a collective sigh of relief when we have completed the months required to announce; hold training sessions for; read 185 (more or less) applications; select finalists; make 127 phone calls to line up panelists; spend four days a week the entire month of February in the Braun Room administering selection panels; several days in March meeting with each scholarship win- ner and grantee; and, finally, in April, an all-day Saturday briefing and Bon Voyage event where the awardees meet last year’s win- ners and the donors of their awards.

It is always a rewarding series of tasks when we realize the im- portant studies and research our awardees will carry out and what excellent representatives they will be of the Nationality Rooms and Intercultural Exchange Programs and the University of Pittsburgh. E. Maxine Bruhns Special thanks to Cristina Lagnese, Susan Langer and Maryann Sivak for their many days of ef- fort to make this happen.

Eternal gratitude to our Room Committees, affiliated organizations, individuals and families who enabled us to fund 37 awards this year totaling $128,500. The grand total since 1948 is 1,160 scholarships which total $2,447,872.

3 SWISS BON MOTS In this issue we are featuring the Swiss Nationality MESSAGE FROM THE COUNCIL Room. We asked Swiss Room Committee members Jennie-Lynn Knox, Chair to list the ten characteristics which would absolutely identify one as being Swiss. The committee was Greetings to all! more than willing to oblige us and responded. They found, however, that a mere ten items was inade- Another busy year came to quate to the task. They generously supplied a few a close with the highly suc- more. We thought you would be interested in read- cessful Open House held ing what makes the Swiss so special. on December 2, 2012. A wonderful day of celebra- You know you are Swiss if: tion! And now we begin a new year with prepara-  You think Nestle chocolate tastes better than Jennie Lynn Knox tions for yet another new Hershey’s. classroom, the Korean Heritage Room, as well as the  Until you were 18, you thought the only two di- awarding of scholarships for summer study abroad rections were uphill and downhill. and the Cabaret Ball.

 You complain if your bus/train/tram is more Without the continued dedication and support from than five minutes late. Make that one minute. our Nationality Rooms Program Director, Maxine

 You’ve ever been confused with a Swede. Bruhns and her enthusiastic and committed staff, we, as members of our respective committees,  You have learned three to four languages and would not have the successes that we continue to think this is completely normal. produce. We cannot do it without them. So I urge all committee chairmen and members to participate  You can pronounce “Chuchicha schtli” and you know what it means. enthusiastically and give your support to their com- mitment for this exceptional program. Not only do  You know what “Ro sti” are. we now have 29 classrooms, but this year we award- ed 37 scholarships to students for study abroad this  You get amused when you see Swiss German summer. How exciting! people being subtitled on German television.

 You firmly believe it is more important to do We also look forward to the Cabaret Ball on April 21, things accurately than to do them quickly. 2013 when seven rooms will celebrate anniver- saries.  You grew up believing all cows must wear bells. Since the completion of the newest classrooms , the  You think it is normal that your guests help with Nationality Committees have continued to bring into dishwashing and cleaning at the end of the party. the University an infusion of the cultural values of  You think spontaneity is OK, as long as it’s the countries they represent. As one visitor was planned. quoted: “This is a unique opportunity to travel the World in one day.”  You approve of school on Saturday mornings.

 You take a foreign language course, in German. It is an honor and a privilege to serve the community in this capacity, and continue to pledge my enthusi-  You decline an invitation because you have to astic support on behalf of all the committees. clean your apartment.

 You laugh when you see the “mountains” at western Pennsylvania ski resorts.

 You think that all trains are spotless and always run on time.

 You find it completely normal to consume 25.6 pounds of chocolate per year. 4 AFRICAN HERITAGE ROOM rence Glasco, Pitt history professor and chair of the Lora Ann Bray, Treasurer AHC design committee. The AHCC is overwhelmed by Dr. Proctor’s generosity to the classroom! This The primary purpose of the African Heritage Class- gift and other items will appear on a rotating basis room Committee (AHCC) is to raise scholarship in the Room’s display cases. The permanent display money to enhance the world-view of Pitt students items are the Malawi carved wooden plaque, which by sending them to study abroad in Africa. We are has been in the classroom since its dedication in pleased to announce this year’s undergraduate 1989, and the beautifully beaded Yoruba tunic, a scholarship recipient is Ms. Melissa Delia who will more recent gift. travel to Madagascar to learn about the intersection between traditional and modern medical practices Lastly, members of the AHCC hosted an African among urban and rural residents. Melissa is an An- Wares booth at the Nationality Rooms Open House thropology/French major, minoring in Chemistry. event on December 2, 2012. We sold traditional Af- She plans to become a physician working with un- rican clothes and jewelry with the proceeds benefit- derserved populations in the U.S. and abroad. ting our scholarship fund. Committee participation also included member attendance at other National- The Beulah Glasco Memorial Award, funded ity Room dedications, a Kenyan tea sponsored by mainly by Professor Laurence Glasco, went to gradu- UCIS African Studies, and Pitt’s annual Black History ate student Ms. Kendra Brumfield who is eagerly Month Program at the Heinz History Center. We awaiting her country assignment from the African remain an active committee always welcoming the Bureau USAID Program. Kendra is a graduate stu- support of new members! dent in GSPIA where she is pursuing a Masters of  Public Administration degree with a minor in Public and Non-Profit Management and a certificate in Afri- FRENCH ROOM COMMITTEE can Studies. Kendra’s career goal is to facilitate sus- Alanna Muir tainable development throughout Africa through effective public management. The AHCC wishes Save the date for a SUMMER SOIREE to benefit the French Nationality Room Committee’s Study Abroad Program and the Aliance Française de Pittsburgh. Guests will enjoy a French picnic style strolling din- ner, entertainment by Steven Vance and his cafe trio, and a silent auction.

Date: Tuesday, July 9, 2013 Time: 6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. Place: Mansions on Fifth

For details, or to be added to the invitation list, please contact Alanna Muir at [email protected].

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Dr. Proctor’s artifacts GREEK ROOM COMMITTEE Pennie Hareras, Chair both scholars safe summer travels! We plan to host a reception with them in the fall. The Greek Nationality Room held its elections in No- During Black History Month in February, the class- vember, 2012. Elected as officers for the room received a monumental gift of eight important 2013/2014 term were:

African artifacts from Dr. Ralph Proctor, a Pitt alum- Pennie Hareras - Chair nus (A&S ’65, ‘79G), professor, and chief diversity Dean Kraniou - Vice-Chair officer at the Community College of Allegheny Coun- James Statheas - Treasurer ty. Dr. Proctor will bestow one artifact a year to the Elaine Papanikolaou - Secretary classroom with this year’s gift of a Benin bronze casting of a queen mother given in honor of Dr. Lau- 5 The Greek Room will celebrate Greek Independence Day with an event to be held on Sunday, March 31 at St. Nich- olas Greek Orthodox Cathedral, Oakland. Included in the ISRAEL HERITAGE ROOM Susie Rosenberg, Chair program will be performances by local area Greek school students, two Greek dance troupes and the Armonia Cho- Israel Heritage Room’s 25th Year Anniversary rus. All proceeds will benefit the Greek Nationality The Israel Heritage Room committee will celebrate the Room. Room’s anniversary on Sunday, April 21st at the Frick

 Fine Arts and Cloister (Oakland) from 3 to 5 p.m. There HUNGARIAN ROOM COMMITTEE will be a short DVD presentation about the classroom and a chorus planned for the event. Appetizers and light re- Kati Csoman and Judit Borsay freshment will be served. For more information, please

contact Suzie Rosenberg at [email protected] or The Hungarian Room Committee members will plan for call her at 412-298-6698. an August, 2013 lunch-time lecture in the Hungarian Room with lite luncheon following on the 12th floor of  the Cathedral of Learning. We are hoping that Andrew JAPANESE NATIONALITY ROOM Behrend, REES graduate student who received the Hun- Kumiko Lancet, Chair garian Room Scholarship in 2010 will speak about his experience in Hungary and continuing research. This will The 2012 Open House performance opened with the especially be nice in August as Andrew will have just re- powerful Japanese Taiko Drums. The JNR had an unusu- turned from another trip to Hungary. ally large number of donations, so we raised quite a bit

more funding than in previous years. Kati Csoman, Chair, reports, “I will be sending a message The JNR gave a scholarship for Summer Study Abroad to Magdolna (Gyorgyin) Zima nyi, the niece of Denes this year because Mrs. Kawashima of Kochi, Japan, donat- Gyo rgyi, architect and designer of the Hungarian nation- ed 2/3 of the scholarship amount. We have named the ality Room in Pittsburgh, who wrote me a lovely letter on scholarship the "Mrs. Kawashima Scholarship." Our pan- email. She would like to send me a copy of her paper el chose a very suitable graduate student who will re- about the Hungarian Room in Hungarian which appears search a 17th -century lady, the wife of the second Sho- in Magyar Szemle, and a reprint of the English version of gun. Mrs. Kawashima will come from Japan in order to the paper, which appeared in the yearbook of the Muse- personally present the award. um of Applied Arts in Budapest, Arts Decorativa 2012.

How exciting to have received this letter from someone Kochi, Japan has another bond with Pittsburgh. Before so important to our room!” WWII, a U.S. priest sent many blue-eyed toy dolls to Japan

as good will ambassadors from American children. In The committee will be sending out membership cam- response to this kind gesture, Japan sent Japanese dolls to paign letters shortly. the U.S. These dolls are not toys but art. The doll from

Kochi prefecture arrived at The Carnegie Museum in The International Children’s Festival, sponsored by the 1929. International Children’s Theater of Pittsburgh, will take place in May and the local Hungarian dance group, led by The doll, called “Miss. Kochi”, was stored in The Carnegie Judit Borsay, a Hungarian Room Committee member, will Museum and in March, 1993, she experienced satogaeri be performing on Saturday, May 18 at Schenley Plaza, (which means “going back home”) and had a big welcome near the Hillman Library and the Cathedral of Learning. in Kochi. When she returned to Pittsburgh that May, Ms. Kawashima visited Pittsburgh for the first time. Ms. Izu- INDIAN NATIONALITY ROOM mi, another doll maker from Kochi, willed one of her dolls Saroj Bahl, Chair for U.S. - Japanese friendship, and the JNR accepted this offer. “Miss Izumi” is kept in an environmentally- The Indian Nationality Room Committee will host the controlled box. The JNR committee will have a gathering India Day Festival on Sunday, August 18, 2013, at 11:30 with Ms. Kawashima's group on April 6 in the JNR, where a.m. Besides the parade outside the Cathedral of Learn- Miss Izumi will be displayed. ing, there will be flag hoisting and a cultural program in Sakura (cherry blossom) Day will also be held on April 6 the Commons Room. The admission is free. in North Park. The JNR will host a welcome party for Mrs. Last year’s India Day Festival was a huge success, cele- Kawashima on April 5th at a Japanese restaurant, and a brating the 150th birthday of Swami Vivekananda, a JNR member will bring her group to Washington, DC for great philosopher. An exhibition about his teachings was the Cherry blossom festival. These Cherry trees were do- on display. nated to the U.S. by the Japanese government 100 years  ago and will be in full bloom. The Pittsburgh Sakura Pro- ject has already planted 240 trees and they hope that

6 received additional items from Cristina Lagnese to North Park will eventually become a beautiful Cher- aid in preparing the article which will be published ry blossom site just like the one on the Potomac. this Spring in the Society’s newsletter. Murdoch has been a Fellow of the Society since 2002 and is the SCANDINAVIAN SOCIETY National Chairman for Tartan Day. Murdoch has OF WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA just completed a two-year term as President of The Caledonian Foundation, USA. Eva Robinson, President  On March 17, Eric Andrae presented a program at the Cathedral of Learning about Swedish diplomat SWISS NATIONALITY ROOM Raoul Wallenberg. Sent to Budapest after the Ger- Heinz Kunz and Fred Carlson man occupation in 1944, Wallenberg issued phony passports and sheltered Jews in houses officially With its recent completion, the Swiss Room has tak- designated as Swedish territory. These measures en its place within the 29 Nationality Rooms of the saved an estimated 100,000 people from Nazi death NRIEP. We are pleased to report our construction camps. When the Red Army overran the city, he was account ended with all bills paid and a balance left abducted, imprisoned, and finally “disappeared.” to build on. But after all, we are Swiss. Wallenberg has been made an honorary citizen of the U.S., Canada, Hungary and Israel, which has Among our new duties will be fundraising for a named him as one of the Righteous among the Na- Swiss Room Scholarship Fund to support University tions. of Pittsburgh student summer studies in Switzer- land. It is expected that the winners will share their On Sunday, April 14, (3:00 p.m.) also at the Cathe- stories with the Swiss-American Society of Pitts- dral, Lene Gemaelke will give a presentation on burgh. making raw wool into yarn, and then into cloth. The Nationality Rooms Program will host the 44th We have planned several events for the next few International Cabaret Ball on April 21. This will cele- months: brate, among other milestones, the 75th anniversary  On April 7 we will hold our Spring Swiss Dinner of our Swedish Room. The event will be held at the at the Teutonia Mannerchor Hall on the North William Pitt Union, and we encourage our members side. to wear ethnic attire. th  The Swiss Room will participate in the 56 In-  ternational Folk Festival on April 19 and 20 at Soldiers and Sailors Memorial in Oakland. SCOTTISH NATIONALITY ROOMS  We will celebrate Swiss Independence Day with Robert Murdoch, Chair a picnic at Richland Barn on August 3. Chairman Robert Murdoch was invited by the Socie- ty for Antiquaries of Scotland to write an article We look forward to working with the other Nation- about the Scottish Room for the Society’s newsletter. ality Room Committees in support of this unique program. The Society was established in 1780 with the aim to promote the cultural heritage of Scotland. It is the  oldest antiquarian society in Scotland and the se- cond-oldest in Britain. It studies the material cul- WELSH ROOM COMMITTEE ture and history of Scotland. In addition to numer- Dale Richards and Jack Owen , Co-Chairs ous lectures and events annually, the Society has three main publishing branches which issue, among GWANWYN HAPUS (HAPPY SPRING) others, peer-reviewed monographs and a yearly journal Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Some of the events that we have scheduled or re- cently finished include: Scotland. Our Annual St. David’s Day Daffodil Luncheon at the The Society has approximately 2,800 members, 435 Nevillwood Club. March 1st is St. David’s Day. of whom do not live in the British Isles. Murdoch We just held our Welsh Pub Crawl on the South Side used a number of materials from his own file and and will have another in September.

7 We marched in the St. Patrick’s Day Parade. YUGOSLAV NATIONALITY ROOM We will join other Pittsburgh ethnic groups at the Ken Kornick, Chair Pittsburgh Folk Fest at the Soldier’s and Sailor’s Hall. (April 19-20) The life and scientific achievements of Nikola Tesla were the subject of a presentation, “Nikola Tesla: A On April 21st, we will welcome Claire Jones, former Man Out of Time,” held before an overflow crowd in harpist to the Prince of Wales for a concert to be the Yugoslav Room on November 1, 2012. held at Calvary Methodist Church, North Side. Sponsored and organized by the Serb National Fed- In July, we will join the St, Andrew’s Society at a eration, the presentation featured two Tesla ex- joint picnic in Monroeville. perts, Dr. Georges Montillet and Dr. Thomas Law-

On the Labor Day weekend, the Welsh community son. They shared many fascinating insights into will hold their annual NAFOW, (National Festival of Tesla’s groundbreaking work in electricity and re- Wales) in Toronto. Ian Samways, our society Presi- lated fields. Also examined was his status as a quasi dent, has been elected to the Board of Trustees of -mystical figure in the scientific community. One the National organization. interesting fact from the presentation: Dr. Montillet cited a world-wide poll of professional engineers Other activities that the Society is involved in in- who chose Tesla as the most influential engineer in clude: history, outpacing Leonardo DaVinci, Archimedes, George Westinghouse and, yes, Thomas Edison.  A Welsh language class held at the Friend’s Meeting House in Shadyside. The presentation was so well attended that the se-  Wales-Pennsylvania Project (Digitizing the ar- cond half was moved to the more spacious English chives of the Welsh in Pennsylvania) Room so that everyone could be seated. The Yugo- slav Room Committee expresses its sincere grati-  Welsh Library Resources Fund in co-operation tude to the Serb National Federation for its initiative with the Carnegie Library. The purpose is to en- and outstanding work in making this presentation hance its collection of books and other re- possible. sources on Welsh history.

 

THE NATIONALITY ROOMS PROGRAM ACTIVITIES Maryann Sivak November  We finished editing the Nationality Rooms Book, Sixth Edition. It has been printed and will soon be available for purchase at the Gift Shop in the University of Pittsburgh’s Cathedral of Learning. The Swiss, Turkish and future Korean Rooms are included.

 Maxine Bruhns was interviewed by Mark Nootbaar on NPR 90.5 WESA, regarding the history of our program and our annual Open House.

 The AARP featured the Nationality Rooms as a holiday destination in their magazine. This article is available only on line by clicking: http://www.aarp.org/travel/destinations/info-11-2012/christmas- vacation-trip-ideas-html#slide3.

December

 Women’s Association of the University of Pittsburgh is merging with the Women’s International Club. Founded 100 years ago, the Women’s Association celebrated their final anniversary with a retirement tea on December 12, 2012 at the PAA

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 Students from the Pittsburgh Technical Institute filmed a half hour show about the Nationality Rooms. With the cooperation and assistance of our Director, Maxine Bruhns and University Archi- tect, Park Rankin. They produced a magazine style TV program for their Eleven Week Show. This was designed to be hosted in-line as well as be aired on a local Pittsburgh public access sta- tion. The interview was filmed in the Syria- Lebanon Room.

Maxine Bruhns and Joel Smith, student at the Pittsburgh Technical Institute

 Open House this year was a big success. More than 3,000 people at- tended. Taiko drummers began the entertainment and the crowds kept on coming. All the Rooms were full of guests. Committees made on average $800-$1,000 profit.

In November 2012, the cat you see here published an autobiography (“ghosted” by Melissa Haas) about its adventures as Dracula’s cat. Catula made an appearance at the Open House and was a great hit with the unsuspecting children. Catula’s “adventures” are supposedly fiction, but we know that the Vampire’s greatest strength is that we do not believe in him. Just to be safe, we have renamed our puppy VanHelsing. Catula  Maxine Bruhns took the Grable Foundation Trustees on a “Secrets of the Cathedral Tour.” This was part of their annual board meeting. The Board has always focused on the Rooms as a regional treasure and wanted to show them to its new members. The tour was a huge success. The entire tour was planning to return en-masse for the sole purpose of buying gifts at the Nationality Rooms Gift Center.

January

 The Nationality Rooms Program received a $4,000 grant from the Roy A. Hunt Foundation to fund the Rachel McMasters Miller Hunt Award for a Summer Study Abroad Scholarship.

February

 The Nationality Rooms were featured in the Group Tour Magazine , Northeastern Edition. It is availa- ble on line only at: http://www.grouptourmagazine.com/issue/2602-Northeastern-Group-Trou- Magazine-Spring-2013.html.

9 March

Korean Ambassador Se-joo Son, Consul General, accompanied by Korean Consul Yeonjean Yoon and Senior Researcher from the consulate Hoon Joo viewed the future Korean Room with Max- ine Bruhns, David Kim, and Dr. Sang Park. Quo Vadis guide, Deanna Puglia greeted the Ambas- sador in Korean and led them to the Armenian, Japanese, and Austrian Rooms. Deanna was the winner of the Jack Wilson Memorial Award to study in Seoul this summer. Dr. Park showed Ambassador Son the design plans for the Room.

Front row lt. to rt.: Dr. Sang Park, Ambassador Se-joo Son, Consul General, and David Kim Back row lt. to rt.: Consul Yeon-Jean Yoon, E. Maxine Bruhns

Maxine Bruhns attended the Fraternal Socie- ties of Greater Pittsburgh (FSGP) banquet honoring Cynthia Maleski, former President of the Women’s International Club. She was introduced to Slovak Ambassador Peter Kmec, who said that he would like to see the Nationality Rooms he had heard so much about.

Maxine Bruhns and the Slovak Ambassador Peter Kmec

Mrs. Gianna Angelopoulos Daskalaki, the Greek Ambassador-at-large visited the University of Pittsburgh on March 28. Maxine Bruhns presented the Ambassador with the original booklet The Greek Classroom printed a year after the Greek Room was dedicated in 1941 . She also received The Nationality Rooms book, sixth edition. Afterward Mrs. Daskalaki was the guest of honor at a dinner held at the PAA in Oak- land. This was organized and sponsored by the American Hellenistic Foundation of Western PA.

10 MOST ASKED QUESTIONS Susan Langer Associate Director

How to pay a vendor:

1. Invoice with Chairman’s authorization (via note or email) must be forwarded to NRP for payment.

2. Once payment is processed it will take 10-15 days to receive.

If a reimbursement is required, the following must be submitted: Susan Langer A. W – 9 form B. Copy of check or invoice with “Paid” marked on it C. Payee’s Social Security Number or business tax ID D. Address to send check to E. Chairman’s authorization for payment to be processed F. It will take 10-15 days to receive the check

When your Committee requires an account update (agency or endowments), please contact me at least a week in ad- vance. I will be happy to forward the information. University Accounting is typically one month behind.

During the summer months I will contact those Committees that have endowment accounts to give them an anticipat- ed balance for fiscal year 2014 and advise if some monies should be transferred to the endowment principal.

As always, if you have any questions, please contact me at [email protected] or call 412-624.6150.

 INFORMATION CENTER Michael Walter Nationality Rooms Tour Coordinator Quo Vadis Advisor

Statistics: December 2012 January 2013 February 2013 Adults 2503  Adults 734  Adults 226 Youth 1974  Youth 170  Youth 284 Total 4474 Total 904 Total 510 ------Michael Walter About half of December’s tours were school groups (38 of 68 tour groups). Aliquippa High, Oakbridge Academy of Art, Linton Middle, Bishop Canevin Catholic, and Emmaus High were among the schools that came to tour the Rooms.

Youth organizations were well-represented in the tour total for December and January. The Rainbow Girls, Boy Scouts Pack 1385 and Girl Scouts Troop 11160 from Ambridge were just a few of the groups that toured.

On February 7th, the Ambassador of Liechtenstein, Claudia Fritsche, visited the University to speak at UCIS. Before giving her address, and seeing the Provost and the Chancellor, she took a Nationality Rooms Tour. She was impressed with the rooms from an architectural standpoint, remarking on the beauty of the Swiss Room. She was most interest- ed in the community involvement in the Rooms’ genesis.

In other news, part-time volunteers Pat Fitzsimmons and Melissa DeCecco completed an enumeration and recoding of the National Dress and Textile collection that the department has in local storage. The outfits that the guides wear at

11 at Open House or at Dedication Ceremonies are only a small part of the total holdings. Where previously these items had been coded and boxed, now the list has been updated with condition and/or cleaning notations and stored as a multi-tabbed Excel document on our shared drive.

It has been a busy season. Cataloguing and displaying objects is an ongoing process, but it is a pleasure to see the beaded African tunic on display in the African Heritage Room. Donated in 2011, it has been placed on a newly-made stand for Open House. It will remain there as other exciting artifacts join it. The story of Mr. Proctor’s recent dona- tions appeared in the University Times Feb. 21st issue. It was also seen on television.

Director Bruhns has supervised the completion of the Sixth edition of the Nationality Rooms Book. Slightly more than 300 of the Fifth edition remain to be sold before the new edition, showing photographs of the Turkish and Swiss Rooms, and a model / rendering of the Korean Heritage Room, will be made available to the general public.

Staff News: After several months of searching and interviewing, the department is proud to announce that Rebecca Prater has joined us, as the Sunday / Monday Information Center Coordinator. Rebecca graduated from Slippery Rock Universi- ty with a BS in Public Administration. She tutors people in ESL classes, and has had students from Myanmar, Turkey, Peru, Nepal and China. She practices yoga, swims and enjoys art and travel.

Carol Herko very capably filled in, taking extra days until we hired Rebecca. Carol will now take over the room’s in- spection and duties on Fridays and participate in annual maintenance inspections.

We are very proud to report that two of our Quo Vadis guides and a guide in training have won Na- tionality Room Scholarships. Megan Dunlop (Pharmacy) won her scholarship to travel to Vienna and Munich; Deanna Puglia (Biology) won her scholarship to study intensive Korean in South Ko- rea, and trainee Katherine Thompson (pre-Med) won her scholarship to travel to Costa Rica. All three women will bring esteem to the University and to this department for their scholarly pur- suits. Miss Dunlop is now assisting in 1209 doing some clerical work for the department.

Maintenance: Some damages that occurred to rooms in the past quarter include: Deanna Puglia

 Two Swiss Room chairs have broken and as of this report, one was repaired.

 The Japanese Room chalkboard screen has had one of its sliding doors refabricated / restored.

 The Austrian Room’s glass table top has cracked twice in the same spot. The top was replaced once and the re- placement piece quickly became cracked again.

 The inner door handle to the Irish Room has been repaired.

 Amid concerns over the streaky, iced appearance to the German Room’s floor finish, the Custodial Supervisor, William Mitchell, reported that “at one point we were using a soft felt tab atop the plastic sliders. What we found was that due to mopping of the floors the felt would petrify and become hard as a rock and therefore also scratch the flooring. I’ll speak with the carpenter to see if he has any other options available short of using the felt.”

 Regarding the metal light covers in the Irish Room, which have been reported numerous times to have been swiveled down (not latched shut), Mr. Mitchell reports that the Pitt staff is “looking into it”. Regarding increased lumens, “ As for the lighting output issue” in the Irish room we are researching options that are available.

12 GIFT SHOP Anita Gallagher

Last term boasted two of our most popular holidays, Day of the Dead and Christmas. Both are historically strong for sales and proved it again this season.

I am always searching for new items of historical and cultural significance to add to our mer- chandise. Some of these:

German Angels – A German visitor to our shop brought these to my attention two years ago. Anita Gallagher He told the story of these handmade symphony angels that are passed from generation to generation, eventually resulting in a full symphony orchestra of angels. I found a source for these at the New York International Gift Show and for the last two years a small inventory has been on display. This year we had some internal attention from Pitt staff members. Tom Allen from UCIS bought one for his daughter who plays the violin. Also, Al Novak, Vice Chancellor of Institutional Advancement, and his wife, Sally Anne visited one day. She had Al give me pictures of her mother’s German Angel Village. This is the story she shared,

“My mom collected them in the winter of 1948 in Berlin, Germany. A couple of them broke in their various moves over the years, so now there are six. The band leader was replaced as were three of the houses, but one of the remaining houses is original, as are the trees and, remarkably, the music stand still has readable notes on the sheet music. Mom added the infant Jesus and the animals the following Christmas to create a crêche of sorts, since they did not own a formal crêche. After the Christmas of 1949 she purchased a full crêche set in Berlin.”

Another regular visitor, Rosemary Shirk, an OSHER student, bought almost our entire inventory of Befana Witches from Italy. She and her husband gave them as gifts. Her husband, Joseph, actually designed a tag for them which he shared with me. It became our new informational tag!

Carol Herko, one of our newer Gift Center Associates made quite the impression on a customer from out of state. He was an aficionado of Pixies. We have (had!) an assortment of pixies from Denmark. Not only did he buy all of them but he then sent Carol a letter on the history of Pixies, including pictures of himself dressed as one!

These are the types of customers that make our days!

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COMMITTEE CORNER M. Cristina Lagnese Committee and Event Administrator

Open House 2012 It was a treat to see familiar faces as well as with new faces at the Open House on Sunday, December 2nd. The place was packed and as proof, many of the Committees sold out of their delectable food. Who can resist the kielbasa, the pierogies, the Russian tea cakes, canape s, the chlebicky and bobalky, beans and rice, samosas and so much more? Not to mention all Cristina Lagnese the beautiful artifacts native to the countries represented in the Nationality Rooms. Not to be outdone are the Open House performers. They were truly beautiful to watch. This year fea- tured Pittsburgh Taiko drummers, the Shovlin Academy of Irish Dance, the Folklore Ensemble Hrvatski Tanac, the Bal- cony Thai Dancers, the Lajkoniki Polish Dancers, the Schweizer Maennerchor “Helvetia” singers, the Gujarat Folk Dancers, the Grecian Odyssey Dancers, the OCA and Tzu Chi Academy dancers. Please click on the link below and en- joy the experience of the Nationality Rooms Holiday Open House-http://www.flickr.com/photos/90754371@N06/

Archives The Nationality Rooms Programs has teamed up with the Masters of Library and Information Science Partners Pro- gram for the processing of committee archives. This partnership gives Pitt students experience in their field of archiv- al work and in turn, our program selects a worthy candidate to process and preserve archival documents that have been deposited in our care. Once completed, the documents are forwarded to the University Library and Archives.

13 So far the following collections have been processed and forwarded to the Library: the Women’s International Club, the Ukrainian Room, the Indian Room, the Ruth Crawford Mitchell collection and the Welsh Room. The Hungarian and Austrian Rooms collections are now on the Library Archives’ website. http://digital.library.pitt.edu/cgi-bin/f/findaid/findaid-idx? type=simple;c=ascead;view=reslist;subview=standard;didno=US-PPiU-ua4011 http://digital.library.pitt.edu/cgi-bin/f/findaid/findaid-idx? type=simple;c=ascead;view=reslist;subview=standard;didno=US-PPiU-ua4021

2013 Scholarships Nationality Rooms Summer Study Abroad Scholarships A major Nationality Rooms Program’s mission is the intercultural exchange program. Every year, we read all the applications and choose the finalists. The scholarship selection panels takes place throughout February. This year we awarded 37 scholarships and grants, totaling $128,500. Please join us for this year’s Awards Presentation on Saturday, April 6th in room 332 C of L at 1 p.m.

Ruth Crawford Mitchell Czech/Slovak Fellowship This annual fellowship enables a Czech or Slovak professional to conduct research at the University of Pitts- burgh during the 2013 fall term (late August to mid-December 2013). The amount of the award is $7,000. The submission deadline is March 30, 2013.

Events 2013 International Cabaret Ball If you haven’t heard by now, the Cabaret Ball is on for Sunday, April 21st at the William Pitt Union from 4 to 10 p.m. We are celebrating the anniversaries of the Armenian Room (25 years), the German Room (75 years), the Irish Room (55 years), the Israel Heritage Room (25 years), the Russian Room (75 years), the Scottish Room (75 years) and the Swedish Room (75 years). The social hour at 4 pm, will be followed by dinner, cabaret program and dancing. The invitation flyer is attached to the newsletter.

By-Laws The Nationality Rooms’ staff have been revising and updating the by-laws with the University’s Legal Counsel. The new bylaws will be simpler and offer consistency among the committees.

We are also interested in putting in place a certification process which will be signed by officers after each elec- tion. This will allow for vibrant and active committees.

As we plan to adopt a uniform set of bylaws, we wish to have some input from the Council. We have the follow- ing questions:  As it stands now, most committees have different classes of membership. We suggest that we have “individual,” “family” and “student.” Membership fees should also be uniform among all committees.

 What should the appropriate dues be for each type of membership? We suggest $20 for individual, $30 for family and $10 for students.

 How many committees are separate 501c3 organizations? Please let us know if your committee falls within this category.

 We are in discussion with Legal Counsel regarding tax deductible membership dues versus donations. We are also considering an online committee membership enrollment process which might make becoming a member much easier.

Please speak to your committees regarding these questions. All responses to be considered must be in our of- fice by Tuesday, April 30, 2013.

14 SCHOLARSHIP CORNER Cristina Lagnese

The Nationality Rooms Summer Study Abroad Scholarship Program awarded 37 scholarships totaling $128,500. The 2013 award winners are:

Graduate Awards

Austrian Room Committee Scholarship - Kelsey Cowles. Kelsey will assess skeletal evidence of trauma in a sample of Early Bronze Age individuals from various cemetery sites in Lower Austria housed at the National History Museum, Vienna, Austria.

Dorothy Bradley Brown Physical Therapy Award - Kelly Ricker. Kelly will participate in a Physical Therapy Clinical Rotation in an in-patient setting in Dublin, Ireland.

Chinese Room Committee Scholarship - Daiji Kano. Daiji will research the role of miRNA-101 in inhibiting cartilage regeneration in Beijing, China.

Ruth Crawford Mitchell Award - Julianne Norman. Julianne is planning to evaluate the impact of Real Start’s year- long program on students from underprivileged backgrounds and to develop a research model that can be used to evaluate the human development needs of townships where Real Start works in South Africa.

Beulah Glasco Memorial Scholarship - Kendra Brumfield. Kendra will intern in an African nation through USAID placement , Africa.

George F. and Mary Ann McGunagle Memorial Award - Elise DeSantis. Elise will work with Bright Kids Uganda and expand the organization’s revenue plan through the sale of eggs and meat by purchasing chickens, building new hous- ing for livestock and promoting organic and sustainable agricultural practices in Entebbe, Uganda.

Stanley Prostrednik Grant - Eric Etchill. Eric will examine how to deliver effective surgical services to those living in developing countries in Chokwe, Mozambique.

Ivan Santa-Cruz Award - Evgeny Postnikov. Evgeny will research the input of various state and non-state actors in Chile involved in the negotiation and implementation processes of the EU-Chile and U.S.-Chile foreign trade agree- ments in Santiago, Chile.

Scandinavian Society of Western Pennsylvania - Catharine Fairbairn. Catharine will employ advanced statistical models to conduct a micro-analysis of the impact of alcohol on emotional variation and interpersonal coordination within the context of social interactions in Oslo, Norway.

Dr. and Mrs. Ryonosuke Shiono Award - Lori Ann Phillips. Lori Ann will collect and analyze dengue fever data, to do capacity building of staff, modeling techniques of dengue transmission, digitize, collect and organize data in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

Undergraduate Awards

African Heritage Room Award - Melissa Delia. Melissa will study the multicultural society and learn how traditional and modern medicine interact in Antananariva, Madagascar.

Austrian Room Committee Scholarship - Megan Dunlop. Megan will study the German language and culture in Salz- burg, Austria.

Fred C. Bruhns Memorial Award - Rebecca Campbell. Rebecca will learn about Middle Eastern culture, while im- proving fluency in Arabic in Amman, Jordan.

German Room Committee Scholarship - Lauren Gilligan. Lauren will complete an accounting internship and study the German language in Berlin, Germany.

David L. Lawrence Award - Breanna Durham. Breanna will participate in a program at Yonsei University and study the Korean language, culture, and media in Seoul, South Korea.

15 David L. Lawrence Grant - Grace Kelly. Grace will attend the University of Pittsburgh’s Center for Latin American Studies program and research the role of art in Argentine society in Rosario, Argentina.

David L. Lawrence Grant - Kristina Miller. Kristina will study linguistics and culture in Ukraine, specifically how cultural factors motivate code-switching in music and in everyday life in Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine.

Helen Pool Rush Award - Aric Berning. Aric will participate in the Summer Language Institute, with the goal of improving his Russian language fluency by studying at Moscow State University in Moscow, Russia.

Helen Pool Rush Grant - Robert Beecher. Robert will attend the University of Pittsburgh’s Center for Latin Ameri- can Studies program in Argentina. To gain a greater understanding of the sustainability success of Rosario’s innova- tive urban agriculture program in Rosario, Argentina.

Helen Pool Rush Grant - Lindsey Shrefler. Lindsey will attend the University of Pittsburgh’s Center for Latin Amer- ican Studies program in Argentina. She will experience the daily culture, improve her Spanish fluency and study the relationships between the three major religions and medicine in Rosario, Argentina.

Irish Room/ Mary Campbell Cross Scholarship - David Downey. David will study Irish history, language and cul- ture by participating in the Pitt in Dublin program in Dublin, Ireland.

Jack Wilson Award - Deanna Puglia. Deanna will explore Korean language and culture while taking classes at Ko- rea University in Seoul, South Korea.

John H. Tsui Memorial Award - Laura Fischer. Laura will participate in the Pitt in China program. She will experi- ence and gain insight into this culture and will compare the differences between the healthcare systems in Beijing, China.

John H. Tsui Memorial Grant - Nathan Ong. Nathan will observe the use of technology, particularly within educa- tional environments, in order to focus on how everyday technology usage influences general interest in STEM fields in Beijing, China.

Polish Room Committee/ Kosciuszko Foundation Award - Anna Herold. Anna will study the Polish language and culture in Krakow, Poland.

Rachel McMasters Miller Hunt Award - Jacqueline Dufalla. Jacqueline will study Russian language and culture while completing an internship in St. Petersburg, Russia.

Russian Room Committee Grant - Joseph Krafcynzski. Joe will gain a deeper understanding of Russian history and will practice the Russian language through courses at the Summer Language Institute in Moscow, Russia

Savina S. Skewis Award - Katherine Thompson. Katherine will study the Spanish language and culture at the Uni- versidad Latina in addition to volunteering at a medical clinic and a children's hospital in San José, Costa Rica.

Savina S. Skewis Grant - Amanda Fisher. Amanda will study to improve her Spanish-speaking skills and to learn about Spanish culture in Alcalá de Henares, Spain.

Women’s International Club Award - Lisa Nagy. Lisa will conduct trauma research and implement a quality im- provement protocol in a university hospital in Cuenca, Ecuador.

Women’s International Club Grant - Emily Koellner. Emily will attend the Pitt in Brazil program to learn Portu- guese and study the Brazilian culture in Florianopolis. Brazil.

Women’s International Club Grant - Samantha Shipeck. Samantha will complete an intensive language program at Moscow State University, which will be supplemented by educational trips to provide a more complete immersion in Russian language and culture in Moscow, Russia.

16 WELCOME STUDENT STAFF Maryann Sivak

Hope Perri is a sophomore in the College of Business Administration. She is ma- joring in Marketing with a minor in Italian and a certificate in International Busi- ness. She has been a work-study student with the Nationality Rooms Programs since fall 2011. Hope is involved in making the presentation materials for the Na- tionality Rooms Summer Study Abroad Scholarships. She works with everyone in the office on a day-to-day basis helping with filing, copying, collating, and more. Although she will be studying abroad in Rome, Italy from January to May 2013, she plans to continue working with us upon her arrival back into the United States.

Hope Perri

David Downey is a junior in the School of Arts & Sciences. He is majoring in philosophy, minoring in English Literature, and completing an Irish Studies Certificate through UCIS. He began working with the Nationality Rooms pro- gram in fall of 2012. He plans to enter into education or international affairs after graduation. This summer he will be studying in Dublin, Ireland, thanks to winning the Irish Room Committee Scholarship. He will continue to work with us after returning. At the office, he has helped copy and file, as well as organize files, including the NRP interviews, films, and photos that date back to the building of the Cathedral of Learning.

David Downey

Megan Dunlop is a sophomore from Boulder, Colorado studying Pharmacy and German. She started working in the office in February, 2013 , mostly working with accounting but also helping to organize the Nationality Rooms Scholarship process. Megan is the winner of this year’s Austrian Nationality Room scholar- ship and is looking forward to a summer of intensive German language study is Salzburg, Austria. Megan very much enjoys working at the office, as well as being a Nationality Rooms Quo Vadis guide.

Megan Dunlop

Danielle Siegel is a junior in the School of Arts and Sciences. She is majoring in History and Political Science, and minoring in Legal Studies and Religious Stud- ies. She began working with the Nationality Rooms program in December 2011 as a Quo Vadis guide and started working in the Nationality Rooms Program’s office in January 2013. She plans to go to law school after graduation. At the of- fice, she has helped file, copy, organize documents and pictures about the Na- tionality Rooms.

Danielle Siegel

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PAST AWARD WINNERS UPDATE

Lok-Chun (Kelson) Law, the 2011 recipient of the Chinese Room Committee Scholarship is a graduate student in the Joint Program in Classics, Philosophy, and Ancient Science (CPAS) at Pitt in fall 2010. He received his B.A. in Philosophy and Greek studies (minor) from UC Berkeley in 2008 and completed the Post-baccalaureate Program in Classics at UCLA in 2010. His major interests lie in ancient Greek philoso- phy, Confucianism, Kant, ethics, moral psychology, and action.

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In Memoriam

We morn the loss of three great individuals who gave so much to the success of our Nationality Rooms:

 Prof. Joseph Eaton, who fled Nazi Germany as a boy only to return as a U.S. soldier. He become a well-rounded academic working into his 90s, writing about everything from the Hutterite community and prison reform to Middle Eastern affairs and Pennsylvania’s high fees for title insurance. He was active in the Israel Heritage Room.

 Prof. Ryonosuke Shiono pursued extensive research in crystallography at the University of Pitts- burgh. In 1969 he was awarded tenure and gained the rank of Associate Professor, helping to develop the pre– and post– doctoral teaching and research programs in his specialty. He was a board member of The Japan-American Society of Pennsylvania and original Chair of the Japanese Room Committee. In 2009 he and his wife endowed the Dr. Ryonosuke and Teruko Shiono Summer Abroad Scholarship for student study in Asia.

 Teruko (Utagawa) Shiono was born in Tokyo, reared and educated in Kyoto, and arrived here when her husband, Ryonosuke Shiono, was appointed to the University as a teacher/researcher in crystal- lography. She was an expert in origami (paper cuts) and ikebana (flower arranging). Teruko was an active member of the University Women’s Association and was instrumental in the creation of the Jap- anese Nationality Room. She is survived by three daughters

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18 CALENDAR OF EVENTS 2013

March 31, 2013 Greek Independence Day celebration at St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Cathedral

April 2, 2013 African Heritage Room Committee meeting April 6, 2013 Scholarship Awards Presentation, 1:00 p.m. Room 332, CofL April 7, 2013 Spring Swiss Dinner at Teutonia April 12, 2013 Dream of Autumn play by Jon Fosse (Norwegian) at the Quantum Theater April 14, 2013 SSWP meeting in CL 1228 and presentation on making raw wool into yarn April 19– 20, 2013 56th International Folk Festival, Soldiers and Sailors Memorial April 21, 2013 25th year celebration of the Israel Heritage Room, Frick Fine Arts, 3:00-5:00 p.m. April 21, 2013 Concert by Welsh harpist, Claire Jones, Calvary Methodist Church, North Side April 21, 2013 Cabaret Ball

May 4, 2013 SASP Fall Board meeting May 7, 2013 African Heritage Room Committee meeting May 18, 2013 International Children’s Festival, Schenley Plaza May 19, 2013 Irish Room Committee Poetry Reading May 19, 2013 17th May, Norwegian Constitution Day Celebration, Aspinwall Firemen’s Park

June 9, 2013 St. Andrew’s Society picnic, Monroeville Community Park June 16, 2013 SSWP midsummer and general meeting, Aspinwall Firemen’s Park

July 9, 2013 French Room Committee’s SUMMER SOIREE at the Mansions on Fifth

August Lunch-time lecture at the Hungarian Nationality Room August 3, 2013 Swiss Independence Day Picnic, Richland Barn August 18, 2013 Indian Festival, Commons Room, CofL

September 15, 2013 SSWP Crayfish party, Aspinwall Firemen’s Park September 21, 2013 The Ligonier Highland Games, Ligonier, PA

October 10, 2013 Council meeting and Scholarship Debriefing, 1201 CofL, 6:00 p.m. and 1228 CofL, 7:00 p.m. October 20, 2013 30th Anniversary Celebration/Nordic Night, Pittsburgh Field Club October 26, 2013 Czechoslovak Room Committee meeting

November 9, 2013 Decorating Day November 28, 2013 Thanksgiving Day

December 8, 2013 Holiday Open House, Commons Room, 12:00-4:00 p.m. December 7, 2013 Swiss Annual Christmas luncheon December 8, 2013 Scandinavian Christmas Party, Blackridge Civic Association

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