Students Lobby for Obama Library

Wednesday, June 18, 2014 Next print issue July 16! Read UIC News online uicnews.uic.edu VOLUME 33 / NUMBER 33 www.uicnews.uic.edu facebook.com/uicnews twitter.com/uicnews NEWS UIC youtube.com/uicmedia For the community of the University of Illinois at Chicago Photo: Michael Bonfigli UIC students Michael Belmonte, Kris Fuentes Cortes, Jauwan Hall and Danielle Leibowitz meet with Yul Edwards, chief of staff to Rep. Danny Davis, on their whirlwind trip to Washington, D.C., Monday to make their case for UIC as the site of the future Obama Presidential Library. “People were impressed with what we put together and they loved the student perspective,” Belmonte said. More on page 3. Students lobby for Obama library INSIDE: Profile / Quotable 2 | Campus News 4 | Calendar 8 | Police 10 | People 11 | Sports 12 José Riojas seeks the place where Peregrine falcon family thrives, UIC grad Mike Delfini takes Shedd Softball’s Erica Hampton prepares audience and music connect dives at University Hall Aquarium to new heights to go nuclear in the Navy Profile, page 2 News, page 5 News, page 6 Sports, page 12 2 UIC NEWS I www.uicnews.uic.edu I JUNE 18, 2014 profile Send profile ideas to Gary Wisby, [email protected] José Riojas creates connections through conducting By Gary Wisby “This is one of the most exciting things I do every year,” he said. José Riojas, UIC’s new director of bands, “Playing music for that many saxo- does more than conduct his musicians — he phones is rare, and a privilege to do. also writes music for them. Working with that level of artistry for And his latest composition is getting that amount of time — you don’t usu- national attention. ally get to do that.” “Veracruz!”, an “incredibly stylized piece” for saxophone A big plus for the retreat is its set- quartet, “is a collection of Mexican folk songs played like ting. Mexican musicians would’ve played it, translated for saxo- “It’s completely secluded from phone,” Riojas said. normal society,” said Riojas, who first The piece, published in January, was performed by finalists attended the retreat in 2004 as a stu- in the 2014 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition at dent. “It’s stress-free, no interruptions; the University of Notre Dame, one of the nation’s best-known you get to just concentrate.” competitions. Riojas grew up in Eagle Pass, As another indication of its powerful appeal, “Veracruz!” Texas, a small border town two- will be recorded by the New Century Saxophone Quartet for and-a-half hours southwest of San its next CD. Antonio. “It’s the most widely performed piece I’ve written,” said He earned a bachelor’s degree in Riojas, an arranger, transcriber and composer who has re- music education from the University ceived commissions from four continents. of Texas at San Antonio. At the Uni- An assistant professor of music who joined the university versity of Tennessee he got a master’s last August, he conducts the UIC Wind Ensemble and over- in wind conducting, with a secondary sees the UIC University Band and UIC Pep Band. He works concentration in saxophone perfor- closely with Nicholas Carlson, assistant director of bands. mance, then completed a doctorate One change Riojas initiated is the establishment of a sec- in wind conducting, with a minor in ond concert band. music theory, from the University “The problem with the [existing] band was that it sort of of Georgia. alienated the student who wants to come and play for fun,” he Before coming to UIC, Riojas said. taught four years in the North East Members of the new band meet every Monday night. Like Independent School District in San the more established group, it has 60 members. Antonio, Texas. Each year his bands “They are either not music majors or minors, or they may were awarded top scores and one took play a secondary instrument — someone who usually plays a second place in the Texas Honor Band saxophone, plays a bass clarinet,” Riojas said. Competition. A summer program, set for the last week in July, is the Riojas and his wife, Priscilla, an UIC Symphonic Band Camp for high school students. At the executive in a restaurant business, end of the week they’ll present a concert of the music they’ve live in Naperville with their daughter, Photo: Joshua Clark been learning, along with the UIC Summer Wind Ensemble, Nadia, 6. “Even as a pre-teen and teenager, I recall being in constant thought at how I could find ways of directed by Carlson. Music has been the driving force making music,” says José Riojas, director of bands and assistant professor of music. Riojas is looking forward to the last week of this month, in his life since he started playing the when he conducts saxophone ensembles at Wildacres, a saxophone at age 12. musician all engage together in a connection through this retreat hidden away in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North “Even as a pre-teen and teenager, I recall being in constant music. Carolina. thought at how I could find ways of making music,” Riojas “A place where an emotional response is triggered and music The largest ensemble will have 35 players. A second group, said. has at that point taken you to a place that isn’t accessible on its with 13 players, “performs the most difficult music and in- “I believe we continue to strive to make music because we own. A place you love and are in constant excitement to find volves the strongest players and faculty,” he said. A third en- look for the special moments in which the music arrives again.” semble has 8 to 12 players. somewhere — a place where the audience, conductor and [email protected] quotable “This isn’t just about school services, psychologists “It will cool faster, but it will also warm up faster. “The premise of the program was, I think, much and mental health. It’s about the need for a health- So that’s the bottom line. There are other advantages more psychological. The psychology was, people based system for preventing these and similar acts.” to glass, which is once you get it cool, it will stay cool fear change and when you put into place this longer.” institutional mechanism, you create a way of Gary Slutkin, professor of epidemiology and executive responding to that fear.” director of Cure Violence, on the growing incidence of Ursula Peres-Salas, assistant professor of physics, on school violence, June 11 CBSNews the thermodynamics of switching craft beer from bottles Philip Ashton, associate professor of urban planning to cans, June 10 NPR and policy, on a seldom-used and little-known home- owners tax meant to curb “white flight” in three Chicago areas, June 11 WBEZ-FM JUNE 18, 2014 I UIC NEWS I www.uicnews.uic.edu 3 UIC submits bid for Obama Presidential Library By Sherri McGinnis González Committee spokesman. “This response really isn’t about an ideal UIC submitted its bid Monday to the site, city or side of town, but the ideals set Barack Obama Foundation to become the forth by the 44th president of the United future home of the Obama Presidential States of America.” Library and Museum. Teya Boyd, an eighth-grader at LEARN UIC’s proposal includes three sites. Charter School adjacent to the site, spoke at Two locations, Harrison Field at Harrison Monday’s news conference. and Halsted streets and an area in the Illinois “It would be a great honor and asset to the Medical District at Taylor Street and Ashland North Lawndale community to be the recipi- Avenue, had previously been announced. ents of a great historical establishment,” she A third site in North Lawndale was an- said. nounced at a news conference Monday. Knowing that the president is an avid UIC partnered with the North Lawndale sports fan, Betts used sport lingo to deliver his Presidential Library Committee to propose message: “Mr. President and First Lady, North the 23-acre site between West 5th Avenue to Lawndale has their game face on and has the north, South Kildare Avenue to the east, come ready to play.” West Roosevelt Road to the south, and South The Obama Presidential Library and Kostner Avenue to the west. The land is just Museum will be part of the presidential south of the Eisenhower Expressway and the library system, which includes 13 libraries CTA Blue Line. in the National Archives and Records Photos: Roberta Dupuis-Devlin “The UIC-North Lawndale partnership Administration. UIC Chancellor Paula Allen-Meares gives a copy of UIC’s proposal to Sen. Patricia Van Pelt. brings together a major public research Funded by the Obama Foundation, university and a community organized for the newest library will preserve and make around the world. and Chicago developer Dan McCaffery. change to further advance the ideals and available to the public the papers, records and The foundation said it had received 13 Columbia University in New York City and legacy of President Barack Obama,” said other historical materials that document the applications to host the library by Monday’s the University of Hawaii stated their intent to Chancellor Paula Allen-Meares. lives of President Obama, his family, associates deadline for initial proposals. Local groups submit proposals. UIC and the North Lawndale community and administration. who had previously announced plans to The UIC proposal is available online at share similar values and vision, said Marcus The library will be a resource for submit proposals included the University http://presidential-library.uic.edu Betts, North Lawndale Presidential Library researchers, students and other visitors from of Chicago, Chicago State University [email protected] Students travel to D.C.

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