10 C olumbia U niversity RECORD June 10, 2003 Pulitzer Prize Winner Anna Quindlen Elected to Chair Barnard’s Board of Trustees Shapiro. building Barnard's legacy, never repay Barnard for the gifts 1992, and a selection of those BY SUZANNE TRIMEL Throughout a career that has whether as a trustee, as a mentor it gave me," said Quindlen. "I columns was published as a col- made her one of the most widely to individual students or as a fre- firmly believe that my career as a lection, Thinking Out Loud. She Anna Quindlen, the Pulitzer admired writers in the country, quent speaker on our campus, writer has been made possible is also the author of a collection Prize-winning journalist and Quindlen has played an active because of the intellectual of her "Life in the 30's" columns acclaimed novelist, has been role as a Barnard alumna for the grounding, the skills and the for The Times, Living Out Loud; elected chair of the trustees of past 20 years. First elected as an self-confidence I acquired at the a book for the Library of Con- Barnard College, her alma alumna trustee in 1983, she nation's preeminent college for temporary Thought, How Read- mater. assumed a regular seat on the women. It was a place that did- ing Changed My Life; and two Quindlen, a 1974 Barnard board in 1989 and was reelected n't suggest a young woman find children's books, The Tree That graduate and a trustee of the in 2001. She is chair of the her voice—it demanded it! Serv- Came to Stay and Happily Ever College since 1983, will suc- trustees committee that oversees ing on the board for many years After. She resides with her hus- ceed Gayle Robinson, chair the Barnard affiliation with has been my way of saying band and children in New York since 1998 and now finishing Columbia University, and serves 'thank you' to a place that City. her second five-year term as a on the trustees committee on stu- changed my life, as well as those The Anna Quindlen Writing trustee. dent life. She will take office as of thousands of my fellow Fellowship at Barnard supports "Barnard has achieved chair after the June 18 trustees Barnard alumnae. To be elected one student each year in the Col- tremendous momentum over the meeting. chair of that board is an enor- lege Writing Fellows Program, last five years, and we are grate- "Anyone who has read her mous honor. I'll continue to try which offers exceptional students ful for the assured leadership columns in our most influential to be as good to the place as it the opportunity to become peer shown by Gayle Robinson as newspapers and magazines, her has been to me." tutors in writing. Writing fellows chair of the trustees. As we go published essays and her Quindlen currently writes take a seminar and practicum in forward to realize the goals of acclaimed novels is aware of Anna Quindlen "The Last Word" column in the teaching of writing and then our new master plan and other Anna's prodigious talent," said Newsweek, and is the author of go on to work with fellow stu- academic and campus priorities Shapiro. "She is admired around sharing her honest and percep- four best-selling novels, Object dents at all levels and in all disci- we will be fortunate to have the world and her accomplish- tive views. We are grateful for Lessons, One True Thing, Black plines. Writing fellows receive a Anna Quindlen's wise and per- ments are well known. But her devotion to Barnard and look and Blue, and Blessings, pub- stipend and enrich student life and ceptive voice guiding our dis- through her own extraordinary forward to her leadership of the lished last fall. Her New York the College curriculum by creat- cussion and decisions," said success, she has continued to trustees." Times column "Public and Pri- ing a mutually supportive and Barnard President Judith contribute her vision and spirit to "I have often said that I can vate" won a Pulitzer Prize in growing community of writers. Conference Attracts Experts to Explore Past and Future of U.S.-France Disagreement (Continued from Page 1) negotiations in the U.N. Security and legitimate reasons for action in against the United States; it had tremendous problems that the new Council last winter. He believed Iraq, Caldwell discussed what he ambitions for the world order century will face.” Americans. France’s “stiffening” position at the called “good faith on both sides, as itself,” he added. At the end of the discussion, “There was an astonishing U.N. came only after diplomats seen by the symmetry of accusa- Calleo, who believes the French there seemed to be a consensus of degree of anger, visceral anger that from the U.S. told their French tions that went in both directions.” “are remarkably capable of looking opinion on one point. Even if, as lapped over beyond the political counterparts that war in Iraq was He suggested Europe’s division on after their own national interests,” some at the conference suggested, class into the general public, inevitable. Hoffmann strongly crit- the Iraq issue was the underlining focused his remarks on shifting this is one of the most serious among people who hardly ever icized the U.S. government’s treat- cause of friction itself, with the new geopolitical realities. After the diplomatic rifts in our 250-year think about Europe or France,” ment of France pre and post action major independent powers in the break-up of the Soviet Union, he relationship, there is still much said Paxton, who questioned why in the Gulf. European Union—France and surmised, there were no longer two more that unites the U.S. and the U.S. public and policymakers “Allies, especially as old as Britain—going in opposite direc- superpowers vying for influence. France than divides them. focused so strongly on France’s France are not kids to be punished tions. There was nothing to “restrain [the The French Consultate’s Consul opposition to the war in exclusion when they disobey the master,” “Only France and Britain retain United States] except our own General, Richard Duque, noted of like-minded nations. “Why so said Hoffmann, who also discussed enough of an idea of nationhood to temerity.” Yet in our own “unipolar that the U.S. and France do cur- much more emotion when we have the questions of rebuilding Iraq as act in a forceful American-style fantasy,” Calleo added, the United rently collaborate closely on criti- a division with France, than when well as managing weapons of mass way,” said Caldwell. “The Euro- States “is more dependent than cal international issues—including we have quarrels with the Rus- destruction in other volatile areas of pean project has quite consciously ever on our European allies.” the fight against terrorism—and sians, Germans, Chinese or Turks,” the world. “Even the U.S. can not thrown out the baby of the nation “America’s role is not to set have stood side-by-side in other he asked. handle all of world affairs by with the bathwater of nationalism.” itself against the rise of everybody areas of the world, from the Balka- Hoffmann, who holds dual citi- itself,” he said. “It will take According to Caldwell, France else,” said Calleo, “but to use our ns to Afghanistan. zenship in France and the U.S., alliances and international institu- was playing a global leadership predominance to coax others into a "I am confident that the path to said “an enormous amount of tions.” role. “[The Chirac government] genuine concert of reasonable cooperation will be taken," said secrecy” surrounded the American Believing the U.S. had strong was not simply taking a position powers, to manage together the Duque. School of Continuing Education’s Vezen Wu Helps Develop New Public Health Software (Continued from Page 1) tions from physicians.” perhaps one of the largest such Westinghouse award, and the fessor of anesthesiology at the Wu’s exposure to computers collections in the world, Wu antibiotic is now in drug devel- College of Physicians and Sur- that the CTA Program teaches,” began at just three years of age. cultivated the plants in special opment at a pharmaceutical geons, who originally posed the said Wu. “MedfoLink will That year, his father, a civil climate-controlled greenhouses company. problem the software is aiming enable the computerized pro- engineer and software develop- in the family backyard. In the future, Wu would like to address. Also on the team are cessing of standard medical lan- ment pioneer for the energy “Although I knew of the to start his own biotechnology Alvin Wald, professor of engi- guage from patient records, industry, bought his son a com- Venus Fly Trap, I was fascinat- firm for the development and neering, and two engineering from which we can gather real- puter. With this early IBM PC, ed to learn about other carnivo- commercialization of novel students Armen Kherlopian and time statistics on patient popu- Wu’s father taught him the foun- rous plants from Southeast Asia drug therapies. Joseph Gerrein. lations. These real-time statis- dations of the computer lan- that eat mammals as part of “There are so many discover- The team’s work on Med- tics in turn will enable the mon- guage BASIC. The youngster their daily diet,” said Wu. ies that can save lives but never foLink is slated for future publi- itoring of global health just like continued developing his com- “These have traps larger than reach the public because of cation in the Institute of Electri- we monitor the global stock puting skills by taking classes footballs that consume birds business hurdles that are diffi- cal and Electronics Engineers’ markets. The faster we can and reading books. and rats as regular feed. When I cult for researchers to over- (IEEE) Proceedings. Notably, detect an outbreak, the faster we During this time, Wu’s moth- learned that native tribes used come,” he said. “I would like to the team’s business plan won can assemble the resources to er nurtured in him an interest in extracts of these tropical pitcher combine my skills in technolo- the top prize at the 2003 Colum- prevent that outbreak from biology and medicine, which plants to treat infections, I gy, medicine and business to bia University Business Plan spreading.” would later lead to his becoming decided to research their drug make these lifesaving discover- Challenge. They have also filed One of the goals is to speed a Top 10 Winner in the Westing- potential.” ies accessible to everyone.” a provisional patent application up the slow process of digitizing house Science Talent Search In seventh grade, Wu discov- In the coming months, the and are working to develop a patient medical charts. The soft- (now called the Intel Science ered a new anti-bacterial agent team will fine tune the Med- commercial vision with the help ware would allow medical pro- Talent Search). in one of his carnivorous plants. foLink software. Wu himself of Rene Baston of Columbia’s fessionals to input patient infor- When the Jacksonville, Flori- He spent the next few years iso- will also help build corporate Science and Technology Ven- mation in any form, even orally, da native was five, his mother lating the compound and prov- partnerships for the CTA pro- tures, Columbia’s technology without requiring a rigidly stan- introduced him to a PBS NOVA ing that it was indeed unique. In gram. He has already estab- transfer office. dardized entry format. documentary about insect-eat- the end, he had not only identi- lished a partnership with Embar- The CTA program offers stu- “We are developing Med- ing plants, including the so- fied a new antibiotic, he had cadero Technologies, which pro- dents the opportunity to acquire foLink to solve the real problem, called “pitcher plant.” Wu discovered a substance that is vides CTA students with free current, applicable knowledge which is computers’ inability to became enchanted by them. He highly effective in combating a licenses for Embarcadero’s and skills in one of several areas understand human speech,” said soon amassed an extensive, special, drug-resistant strain of database tools software. of specialization through an Wu. “MedfoLink will thus be diverse collection of rare Staphylococcus aureus, the In addition to Wu, the inter- intensive, focused curriculum. able to accept any kind of input, species by trading with other leading cause of hospital- disciplinary team developing For more information about which can range from patient enthusiasts around the world. acquired infections. At age 18, the MedfoLink software the CTA program, visit records on paper to oral dicta- With some 3,000 plants in all, the discovery earned him the includes Mitchell Berman, pro- www.ce.columbia.edu/cta.