INSIDE Faculty and Staff Notes 2 Environmental Study Center Plan 4 Transitions 2 Hirschel Kasper Honored 4 Cornel West Is Coming to Oberlin 4 %€ Volume 18, Number 1 ^^XC/I^C^/ WXX i August 30,1996 THE OBERLIN COLLEGE FACULTY AND STAFF NEWSPAPER Moving In, Moving Out, 2 Pivotal Moment for o Long-Range Planning Arrives < Calling this academic year a "pivotal Every constituency within the Oberlin moment in Oberlin's history," President community has an important role, and Nancy Dye is about to kick off nine should have a say in decision making months of long-range planning for the and moving things forward." College's future. Following a process devised this past spring, the entire Historical Context Oberlin community—trustees, faculty, As Oberlin envisions its future, a key students, staf£ and alumni—soon will focus will be its institutional mission. be coming together in small and large Oberlin's sense of its mission in earlier groups to plan what Oberlin may look eras has reflected the social, political, like well into the 21st century. and economic conditions of the times, In the next few weeks Dye will says presidential assistant Diana appoint an advisory committee to shep¬ Roose, who is coordinating much of the herd the planning process, using as its strategic planning. "So we can look to core the General Faculty Planning the past to inform us about the Committee, supplemented by trustees, future—to give us a sense of the fit we students, staffj and alumni. need between our goals and the social, But everyone else in the College political, and economic conditions of community will be included in the our times," she says. Roose is working planning process, says Dye. with the Alumni Council to plan a "All of us are necessary to envision September 21 presentation for the our future. We are talking about ques¬ whole campus titled Think One Person tions that affect the whole institution. Continued on page 4 Trustee Meeting June Trustee Meeting Includes Building and Golf-Course Decisions The most recent meeting of the Oberlin under lease to the dub, keeping in mind College Board of Trustees was June 7 that the will of Charles Martin Hall stip¬ and 8. ulates that the land benefit the Oberlin The board welcomed a new member community during the meeting: Victor Louis Hymes, whose term expires January 1, Building Projects 2002. Hymes fills The board approved an increase of the vacancy creat¬ $543,000 to the Environmental ed upon the death Studies Center (ESC) budget, funding of Sylvia Williams the project through the schematic- in February. As design, design-development, and con¬ About 60 people moved into Peters Hall this summer, and Davida principal and di¬ struction-documents phase. The Gavioli (top photo), director of the language lab and lecturer in Italian, rector of the San trustees reiterated that no construction was the first. Even the building's external renovation is nearly complete Francisco Bond will begin until all funding is in hand. now. Offices, classrooms, and the new Paul and Edith Cooper International Hymes Group of Scudder, The board also approved the architects' Learning Center—occupying part of the space formerly known as the Stevens & Clark, conceptual design of the ESC. Bradley Auditorium—are ready for business. King Building saw the Inc., Hymes has oversight responsibili¬ Another building project the return of some old-timers this summer (middle photo): Associate ty for the management of more that $6 trustees talked about is the new sci¬ Professor of History Carol Lasser, having completed two years as asso¬ billion in assets. Before joining Scudder, ence facility. The board authorized the ciate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, is back, and so is Asso¬ he was a vice president at Goldman, administration to engage an architec¬ ciate Professor of History Gary Komblith, who spent the past year as Sachs & Co. and, later, Kidder Peabody. tural and engineering firm to proceed acting director of computing. Professor of History Clayton Koppes left He earned a B.Mus. degree at Oberlin through development of a building pro¬ King for Cox a few weeks ago, joining his new sidekicks in the arts and in 1979, and he holds an M.BA from the gram, conceptual plans, and cost esti¬ sciences' dean's office (bottom photo), Professor of Physics Bruce Stanford Graduate School of Business. mate for the proposed facility, and Richards and Associate Professor of East Asian Studies Suzanne Gay. approved a budget of $197,500 for that Koppes is acting dean of the college, and Richards and Gay are the act¬ Financial Matters phase of the project. All expenses ing associate deans. Financial discussions included final incurred during the initial phase will 1996-97 budget approvals. Trustees be reimbursed through future fund- also gave the Office of Human Resources raising specifically for the science facil¬ the go-ahead to conduct an in-depth ity, the trustees said. Oberlin: Best College Town in Ohio review of employee benefits. And after It's not our little secret any more. of Miami University, and Athens, considering the option of selling the Board Accepts Report Ohio magazine has plastered the home of Ohio University. land to the Oberlin Golf Club, the board In other action the board reviewed news all over its August issue: Representatives of the College asked Vice President for Finance Andy and accepted an independent report Oberlin is the best college town in and town don't intend to let the acco- Evans to explore with the golf club a on several investment programs that Ohio. Runners up are Oxford, home Continued on page 3 new 50-year lease of the land currently Continued on page 3 Page 2 The Observer August 30,1996 Faculty and Staff Notes AN APPEAL TO FACUITY AND STAFF: tance for humanity, and—not inciden¬ held September observation of his anniversary. "It was Even if you don't yet foresee submit¬ tally—how important good philosophy 27 to October 6 fun, neat," he says. The congregants ting information for this section of the can be. This is ethics at its best." • Dean in Genoa, Italy, gave Lassen a gift of the book The Faith Observer this year, please send a pho¬ of Student life and Services Charlene and in November of a Physicist by J.C. Polkinghome. • tograph of yourself for the Observer Cole-Newkirk represented Oberiin he will judge the Carter McAdams is one of eight files now so that we have it on hand College when the San Angela, Ifexas, Princeton gradu¬ when we need it. After we scan it, we Early Settlers Young Artists' ates who presented will return your photo unharmed. Association of the CompetitioiL • works at a concert Black and white is usually best, but Western Reserve hcn- Affiliate Scholar Marcia Goldberg marking the uni¬ many good color photographs repro¬ orcd Lucy Stanton has received the Throne/Aldrich Award versity's 250th anni¬ duce equally well. Send your photo¬ Day Sessions by from the State Historical So-dety of versary The Best of graph to the Observer, Office of inducting her into Iowa. The annual award is given to the Princeton: Alumni Communications, 153 West Lorain the Cleveland Hall author of an article appearing in the Choreographers Street.—Ed of Fame July 22. Sessions, a member of society's journal, The Palimpsest. and Dancers in Concert was April 11. the Class of 1850, was the first black Judging is based on scholarship and James McMillan, Governor George woman to graduate from Oberlin. She the contribution of new information on director of stew¬ Voinovich has re¬ was a writer, abolitionist, and educator Iowa history. The subject of Goldberg's ardship and pub¬ appointed College of freedmen in the post-Civil War South. article was a set of glass-plate nega¬ lic programs, has Archivist Roland • President Nancy Dye was among tives of 1902 that depict the operations established an Baumann to his more than 40 col¬ of a small-town canning factory and the electronic mailing fourth three-year lege presidents and Victorian home of its owner. (See the list called Stew- term on the Ohio representatives Observer of November 9, 1995.) On ardshiplist. The Historic Record Pre¬ who, along with July 19 Professor of History and Acting list fosters discussion about steward¬ servation Advisory Board. The board civil-rights lawyers Dean Clayton Koppes gave a presen¬ ship, gift acknowledgment, fund man¬ evaluates federal grant applications and others, attend¬ tation to the alumni V12 group, on agement, donor relations, and event submitted to the National Historical ed a two-day meet¬ campus for a re¬ planning. The list was mentioned in the Publications and Records Commission ing in May to union. His "Holly¬ August 16 issue of the Chronicle of and sets the historical-records plan¬ discuss the future of affirmative action. wood Goes to War: Higher Education. • Associate ning agenda for the state of Ohio. • In Harvard's law and education schools How Politics, Pro¬ Professor of August Rowman and Littlefield pub¬ sponsored the meeting. In its coverage of fits, and Propagan¬ Physics Daniel lished a new book by Professor of the meeting the May 31 Chronicle of da Shaped World Styer has been Philosophy Higher Education reported that"... the War II Movies" appointed an asso¬ Norman Care: participants engaged in a thorough and included a clip from ciate editor of the Living with One's sometimes intense discussion about the 1944 Ginger Rogers movie Tender American Journal Past: Fkrsonal Fates why diversity matters in higher educa¬ Comrade. In the film, says Koppes, of Physics for the and Moral Pain.