WHEATON QUARTERLY Vol
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UARTERLY Q SPRING 2011 Also inside: Professor Gail Sahar goes to the Middle East Wheaton students serve in secret Between the Lines 2 Convergence 3 Around the Dimple 4 Home grown 4 Exhibiting an interest in art and medicine 5 Wheaton a cappella:The melody lingers on 6 A minute with Onyedikachi Udeoji ‘12 7 Young at art 8 Professor collaborating on NASA research 9 Studio art faculty show 10 Field Report 14 NASCAR producer enjoys life in the fast lane 14 Replay 15 Snapshots 16 Snow; Alice Hoffman; Beth Ann Milardo Caspersen ’96; Rockapella with President Crutcher 16 Wheaton in the news 16 A fish tale 18 Adventure is always on the menu for Professor of Biology Betsey Dyer, who writes about her unusual summer dining experiences at the Oxford Symposium on Food and Cookery in England. By Betsey Dyer Gaining perspective 22 Professor of Psychology Gail Sahar went to the Middle East last summer as one of 10 U.S. academics selected for a special program organized by the Palestinian American Research Center and sponsored by the U.S. State Department. She writes about her personal observations and reflects on how the trip connects to her own scholarship. By Gail Sahar The secret service 28 Wheaton College Archivist Zephorene Stickney takes us back in time with her look at the critical role that some Wheaton students played in helping to decode enemy communications during World Ward II—in secret. By Zephorene Stickney The beat of her own drum 32 Cover illustration Katharine Boyce ’71 is one of the longest-serving female partners in a well- David Laferriere known Washington, D.C., firm, where she has become an expert in tribal law. By Bo Schwerin On this page Chapel Field Go Beyond 34 Photo by Amie Rosenblum ’12 Newsmaker: Aimee Lambert Poor ’84 1 WHEATON QUARTERLY VOL. XCIX, NO. 2 Newsmaker: Robert Lamarche ’94 2 Editor Sandy Coleman Senior Writer Hannah Benoit Alumnae/i News: Rugby becomes more than a game 3 Art Director Barbara Dill P’92 Designer David Laferriere Newsmaker: Margaret “Maggie” Astolfi ’07 4 Staff Writers Scott Dietz, Lisa Nelson Assistant Vice President for Communications Michael Graca End Page 64 The Quarterly (ISSN 1068-1558) is published four times a year (summer, fall, winter and spring) by Wheaton College and printed by Lane Press of Burlington, Vermont. Periodicals postage paid at Norton, Mass., and additional mailing offices. Postmaster: Send address changes to Wheaton College, Norton, MA 02766. Wheaton College © 2011 BETWEEN THE LINES BY SANDY COLEMAN, EDITOR A taste of adventure In the spring 2010 issue of the Quarterly, I course, the eel is smoked and covered in wrote a story about “The Complete Amateur a lovely sweet sauce). But Professor Dyer’s Naturalist” First Year Seminar, which was adventurous nature, both in and out of the taught by Professor of Biology Betsey Dyer, classroom, is truly something to behold. in collaboration with Professor of Religion We get a glimpse of that in this issue of Jonathan Brumberg-Kraus. As part of my the Quarterly. Professor Dyer writes about fact gathering, I eagerly accompanied the Professor of Biology Betsey Dyer sniffs some edible her latest culinary experience during a class and professors on a field trip to the greenery at her childhood farm in Rehoboth, Mass. summer symposium in England, where she Rehoboth farm where Dyer grew up. looking orange mushroom growing from the got to advance her scholarship as well as It wasn’t enough for students to discuss side of a tree. (Brumberg-Kraus would later entertain her taste buds with... well, you’ve and read about eating off the land in the use one of those in a stew after a student got to read it for yourself. classroom. Dyer and Brumberg-Kraus, two discovered one on campus.) Also in this issue is an essay by Professor well-known campus At one point, as the group was sampling of Psychology Gail Sahar, who reflects on foodies, wanted them to some sort of greenery from the ground and her trip to Palestine last summer as part of a experience it. So I was observing from my objective writer’s program for scholars that was co-sponsored Wheaton. distance, Dyer suggested that I eat what by the U.S. State Department; a story by On a lovely day in they were eating. And faster than I could College Archivist Zephorene Stickney about September, reporter’s say, “Are you kidding me? No way,” she had the secret work of Wheaton students who notebook in hand, I fol- popped the green whatever into my mouth! helped the war effort in the 1940s; and a lowed the group around From what I remember (I’ve been trying to profile of Katharine Boyce ’71, one of the the farm as they learned forget), she had a vague smile of satisfaction longest-serving female partners in a well- about various edible on her face as I munched in disbelief. known Washington, D.C., firm, where she flowers and plants, in- I consider myself an adventuresome diner. has become an expert in tribal law. Orange mushroom cluding a really strange- I eat raw fish and eel at sushi restaurants (of Bon appetit! NICKI PARDO PHOTOS Autism story shows contrast to spoken language. Applause for role of music in earlier days I taught at the school (Westchester Exceptional Crutcher’s life Children, Inc., in North Salem, N.Y.) for 27 years. Congratulations on your article about autism in The school grew and thrived and now serves I loved the Convergence essay by President the winter Quarterly. It is truly amazing to see about 85 special-needs children. Once they reach Crutcher in the winter Quarterly about his lifelong how many media stories there are now about 21, many of these students will move into adult experience of playing the cello. I was fortunate to autism spectrum disorders, something few people group homes and lead productive lives. meet him a couple The Quarterly welcomes letters knew of back in 1974 when I was hired to teach a of times during the —Lydia Smith Kaeyer ’62 to the editor on topics you’ve class of 3-year-old autistic children. year leading up to read in these pages or on other I answered an ad in the local Westchester my 50th Reunion topics concerning the Wheaton County newspaper looking for a teacher in this Great looking Quarterly in 2008. We talked community. Please address your field. When I read the ad, a lot about music, LETTERS My copy of the Wheaton Quarterly arrived today. letters to: I thought it said “artistic” The new format is beautiful. I read it from cover as I am a serious children. Since I had majored in art at Wheaton to cover with great interest and pride. Whoever is amateur pianist. Sandy Coleman, editor and had a master’s degree in elementary educa- behind the new look should be congratulated. One of the aspects Wheaton Quarterly tion, I thought I’d apply. Little did I know what I admire most —June Daisley Lockhart ’42 Wheaton College I was getting into. I had four children in my first about President Editor’s note: The Quarterly has long class, all nonverbal, severely autistic, self-abusive, Crutcher is that he 26 E. Main St. benefited from excellent design work by the now- spinning, no social skills, etc., and it was quite is a musician, and Norton, MA 02766 retired Mike Kurgansky and Art Director Barbara something to deal with. I am convinced Dill. The new “look” reflects the contributions of You can also e-mail us: We had 12 children in the school, a psycholo- that this is what our current graphic designer, David Laferriere, [email protected] gist, a speech therapist and a music therapist. It makes him such an who began designing the magazine in January was definitely on-the-job training, experimenting effective president. Playing music uses every part 2010. with lots of ways to reach these children. of the human being: It uses our physical self, as In 1974 autistic children were not mandated it takes enormous amounts of physical coordina- to be educated in the public setting. (A 1978 law Nice winter cover tion; it uses our minds, in that it takes more con- changed that.) We taught many of these kids good I liked the Quarterly cover this issue. It has nice centration than any other activity; and, of course, behavior skills and communication through the colors and is interesting to look at again and it engages our spirit and soul to hear and produce use of sign language, believing that the more vi- again. beautiful sounds. sual clues the kids had, the more they could learn —Kimberly Corey ’91 —Helen Wardwell Du Bois ’58 2 WHEATON QUARTERLY CONVERGENCE BY RONALD A. CRUTCHER, PRESIDENT Full STEAM ahead President Obama’s State of the Union address yielded one sound bite that has been replayed and re-examined a great deal. “This is our generation’s Sputnik moment,” he said, arguing for a concerted effort to reinvest in the foundations of the American economy. Some commentators have interpreted that disciplines in order to function effectively. invocation of the 50-year-old Soviet satel- It is interesting to note that about 40 lite’s launch as a call for renewed invest- percent of the connected courses at ments in the fields of science, technology, Wheaton combine science, math or com- engineering and math (STEM). To be sure, puter science with the arts, humanities and these are worthy areas on which to focus.