Fall 2007 Goodbye, Ms. Chips 10 The Boys of Summer Remembered 14 Special Scholar for Brooklyn 26 From Brooklyn College students… to successful citizens of the world A journey made possible by your support of the Annual Fund. Your gift to the Brooklyn College Annual Fund For more information please contact finances academic scholarships for deserving Stephanie Ehrlich, associate director, students, faculty research grants, improved Annual Fund for the Brooklyn College campus facilities, advanced classroom Foundation, at (718) 951-5074 or technologies, and support for the library and [email protected]. academic departments. By giving to the Annual Fund today, you are helping to transform Brooklyn College students into the next generation of successful Brooklyn College alumni FOUNDATION in the world. Contentstable of Vol. XXI • No. 2 • Fall 2007 14 Day of Infamy Redux 16 Stand and Deliver 26 Brooklyn on Her Mind It is now fifty years since the BC’s School of Education has a Gretchen Maneval, the recently Dodgers abandoned Brooklyn, lot to teach the rest of America appointed director of the but borough historian Ron about training the next Center for the Study of Schweiger, ’70, still bleeds generation of teachers. Brooklyn, sees a major new role Dodger blue. for the center, and the College, in Brooklyn’s continued revival. DEPARTMENTS Editor in Chief Art Director Brooklyn College Magazine John P.Hamill Joe Loguirato is published by the Office of Communications 2 From Our Readers Senior Designer Managing Editor Brooklyn College Lisa Panazzolo 4 College News Tom Quinn 2900 Bedford Avenue Production Assistant Brooklyn, New York 11210-2889. 28 Alumni News and Sightings Editors Mammen P.Thomas Copyright © 2008 Brooklyn College. Stephen Garone 36 Class Notes E-mail: [email protected] Elaine Weisenberg Staff Photographers Web site: www.brooklyn.cuny.edu 41 In Memoriam Claudia Mandlik Contributing Writers John Ricasoli 42 Recent Books Jamilah Evelyn 44 A Road Less Traveled Joe Fodor Lisa Lincoln Cover art: Lisa Panazzolo Richard Sheridan Class Notes Editor Stefanie Low Readersfrom our EDITOR’S NOTE Right On, Dr. Gideonse the academic and financial strength of Brooklyn College. His contributions are To the Editor: truly the legacy on which I have built an As a left-of-center Democrat (from a Quick, who are among the hardest academic and professional career. pro-New Deal home), I probably did not working, most undervalued workers in Howard Laitin, ’52 meet a single Republican until I graduated America? Hint: They’re the primary from Brooklyn College. However, while I To the Editor: transmitters of America’s democratic was a student here, I became friendly I applauded what Dr. Gideonse was doing with a large number of leftist professors values; their success will determine the to keep the campus under control. I’m and also had numerous experiences with country’s future place in the world; sure he was as embarrassed as I was at President Harry Gideonse. the communist reputation that was being they are charged with nurturing the Two are worth sharing.They should dumped on Brooklyn College because of minds and spirits of our most precious help set the record on Dr. Gideonse left-wing weirdos. straight for those who want to celebrate national asset, our children. That’s I did have one run-in with the the legacy of Vanguard. right—America’s teachers. administration after I returned from my First, I took the one course that was military sojourn in February 1946. I Today, one-third of all teachers personally taught by Dr. Gideonse. On wanted to re-enter college as a former leave the profession in their first three nearly every issue, we clashed to the student who had been off to war. No, the point that my close friends feared I would years. By five years, half of them have administration insisted. I was to sign up be expelled from the class and would left—troubling statistics, and ones for the G.I. Bill so that Brooklyn College suffer disastrous consequences to my could collect G.I. dollars. I eventually gave that threaten the nation’s future career. Approximately a third of the way in, but it always bothered me. well-being. into the semester, Dr. Gideonse asked if I David Herbach, ’46 Experts in the field of teacher would stay a few minutes after class to chat with him. He told me that he found training point to several factors Same Ol’ Melting Pot, our interaction very stimulating to the driving young, talented teachers out of class and that I was earning a high A Different Ingredients the profession. Chief among them is a grade. He also told me that as long as I To the Editor: disconnect between public schools and backed up my arguments with Regarding the article on Coney Island documented facts and logic, I would schools of higher education charged Avenue [“Their Avenue of Dreams,” continue to score well. At the end of the Brooklyn College Magazine, Spring 2007], a with the job of preparing teachers. semester he thanked me for my efforts, letter that I sent to The Nation, published No school of education in the which he again emphasized were very on December 4, 2006, summarized the country is making a more concerted useful to him and the class. state of affairs 60 years ago when I grew Second, some years later, while I was effort to bridge that gap than up between Newkirk and Foster avenues serving in the U.S. Army, I testified in and went to Public School 217 Brooklyn College’s. support of several professors who were (graduating class of January 1945) on the You can read about the depth and being terminated from Brooklyn College. corner of Coney Island and Newkirk breadth of that effort in this issue. I received several notes in appreciation avenues:“[It] was home to first- for my testimony and thanking me for my It’s another example of how the generation Americans; [they were] Irish, 7 “courage.” Among those thanking me for 0 Italian, German, Polish and East European 0 2 College is playing a critical role in my appearance was Dr. Gideonse. L Jewish. English was the lingua franca L A F finding solutions to some of the most I recall my friends on Vanguard who among the parental generation, many of E N I were very smug in using college funds whom spoke Gaelic, Italian, German, Z persistent problems that Brooklyn, and A G A and resources to promote their political Polish and Yiddish.The butchers, M America, face. E agendas. .. My memories of Vanguard G delicatessen owners, tailors, bakers, E L L and of my friends from the left give me a O barbers, and other storekeepers spoke C N greater appreciation for Dr. Gideonse and Y the same languages. By happenstance, one L K O I believe that he should be evaluated on O of my daughters lives in the same R B the basis of his contributions to assuring neighborhood now. It is Haitian,Yemenite, 2 Pakistani, Afghan,Turkish, Korean, Japanese, A Heated Response Russian, Israeli, etc. English is the lingua To the Editor: franca, and the parental generation and A statement by Professor Robert storekeepers speak their native tongues. Bell regarding geothermal energy (“An My grandson graduated some years ago Interview with Professor Robert Bell,” from the same public school I did in Brooklyn College Magazine, Spring 1945.The ‘bilingual’ coordinator told me 2007) gives a misleading impression. that she coordinated twenty-seven His statement that “the hot rocks have primary languages there! The to be close to the surface, and there neighborhood is completely different— has to be water closely available” is no and entirely the same! Three cheers for longer the case. the Tower of Babel. Geothermal energy comes in David C. Garron, ’52; M.A., ’55 various forms and serves multiple purposes. To the Editor: First, hot water from shallow In his interesting article,“Their aquifers is used directly as a heat Avenue of Dreams,” writer Richard M. source for structures of all sorts.This is atmosphere or the shallow ground- Sheridan erroneously states that Coney done worldwide, and such facilities in water system. Put another way, the net Island Avenue ends at Neptune Avenue. the United States effectively offset the consumption of the geothermal fluid Actually, it continues south beyond use of 2,000 MW of electricity. In this has been reduced by more than 75 Neptune for about three avenue blocks, type of use, Professor Bell is partly percent from earlier days. where it finally comes to an end at the correct.There does need to be Therefore, the geothermal boardwalk.The beach at that point is thermal water at a moderate depth industry is not a consumer of potable Brighton Beach, not Coney Island. Coney (usually not greater than about 1,000 water. Indeed, its net fluid consumption begins a mile or so west down the meters). is far lower than for coal, oil, and boardwalk from where Coney Island Secondly, steam or hot water is nuclear power generation, or for the Avenue terminates. Unfortunately, the used to generate electricity via turbine- production of ethanol fuel, or oil from avenue’s name causes people unfamiliar generators.Worldwide, the total is tar sands, shale, or coal. with the area to conclude that this about 9,000 MW, of which some 2,000 Geothermal fields currently under thoroughfare leads directly to the beaches MW are in the United States—a development in the U.S. will add and amusement parks of Coney Island. twenty-fold increase since 1973, the between 100 MW and 300 MW of Claudia Bienenfeld, ’03 year I founded GeothermEx, Inc.