E-Trail
September 2009
 

Time to Reminisce
On October 23-25, 2009 the College will be hosting our annual Reunion/Family and Friends Weekend.  Among many exciting events, the highlight of the weekend will be the Distinguished Alumni Brunch and the Hall of Fame Induction, both on Saturday, October 24.

The Distinguished Alumni Brunch will be held at 11:00 a.m. in the Murdock Hall Sammer-Dennis room. . This year's recipients are:  Steven Ryder '92, Oscar Lanza-Galindo '01, and Janice Messer, Executive Director of Alumni Relations and Development. 

The Hall of Fame is in the Church Street Center Social Hall with cocktails at 5:30 p.m. and the dinner beginning at 6:30 p.m.  This year's inductees include:  Bill Caprari '75, Tom Cronin '87, Sam Gomez* (posthumously), Jim Hachey '86, Andy Marhoffer '83, Sue Plankey LeClair '01, Laurie Pecoraro '00, and Steve Swail '89.  Hope to see you there!

Annual Phonathon Begins!
Be sure to answer your phones. The Phonathon begins this week and runs through November 19. All of our student callers are excited to hear about your experiences at the College, update you on new happenings on campus, and to ask for your support for the Annual Fund. Don't forget, 100% of the Annual Fund goes straight to student scholarships. You can make a gift anytime by visiting: www.mcla.edu/giving.

Enrollment Soars to New Heights
This fall, MCLA welcomed a total of 535 new students-360 freshman and 175 transfer students.  We had over 85 "Helping Hands" volunteers, including several alumni, to help incoming students and parents move into the residence areas on September 6. 

On Monday, September 7, nearly 200 students hiked up Mt. Greylock while an additional 70-plus students participated in service projects throughout the community.

The next day MCLA formally opened the semester with the annual Convocation celebration, featuring an inspiring challenge from speaker Cynthia Borek Normandin '76, owner of Braun's Express, who suggested the incoming students face the challenges ahead with a positive attitude, to set goals, make good choices, and be kind.     

The Campus Welcomes New Faculty
The MCLA community is pleased to welcome new faculty members to the College this fall, including Sharon Claffey in psychology, Petra Hejnova in political science and public policy, Ely Janis in history, Paulette Gagne Remillard '82 in business administration, and Jennifer Zoltanski in sociology. 

Mayoral Candidates Square off at MCLA 
2009 is an election year in North Adams. Berkshire Chamber of Commerce and MCLA sponsored a mayoral debate in the Church Street Center on Wednesday, September 30. Students in the College's public policy major and the Chamber of Commerce members submitted questions for the debate.

History Professor, Dr. Robert Bence provided the welcoming address, and the debate was moderated by Tim Farkas, executive editor of the Berkshire Eagle.

Athletics update
Jane Brooks Allen '61 and John Allen M.Ed '65 honored at Golf Classic
The MCLA Golf Classic took place Monday, September 21 with nearly a full field of golfers. This year's honorees were Jane Allen '61, chair of the MCLA Board of Trustees, and local coaching legend John Allen M.Ed '65. Funds raised at the tournament support athletic programs at MCLA.  

Changes in the lineup for Athletics
Head baseball coach Jeff Puleri will now serve as sports information director. Deb Raber will take over the equipment room and fitness center in addition to her duties as head women's soccer coach. Head men's soccer coach Adam Hildabrand '99 will also manage the intramural and recreational programs and the pool. Holly McGovern will serve as the College CHOICES Program Coordinator and head women's basketball coach. Finally, Amanda Beckwith '03 will expand her work as MCLA's head coach for women's volleyball.

For information on the entire fall sports lineup, including scores, schedules, and highlights, see our Athletics site.    

Congratulations To:
Art professor Greg Scheckler, whose painting Field of Probability was licensed by Interscope records for use as cover art for the MP3 single "At the Bottom" by the band Brand New.

English/Communication professor Don Washburn, whose poetry collection, In the Eye of the Red-Tailed Hawk: An Essay on Love, was published by the Poet's Press in Providence, RI.

Philosophy professors David Johnson and Matt Silliman, on the publication of their book Bridges to the World: A Dialogue on the Construction of Knowledge, Education, and Truth, published by Sense Publishers in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

English professor Joe Ebiware, who served as a reviewer to the recently published third edition of Television News: A handbook for reporting, writing, shooting, editing & producing, from Holcomb Hathaway publishers in Scottsdale, AZ.

Art professor Melanie Mowinski, whose exhibition, Can a Rock be Purple? opened Monday, September 21 at the Elf Parlor gallery at 303 Ashland Street, North Adams, MA.

Alumni update
Representative Paul Kujawski '76 recently celebrated 15 years with the Massachusetts Legislature. He was first sworn in on June 22, 1994 and is serving his eighth full term in the Massachusetts House of Representatives representing the historic communities of Dudley, Webster, Douglas, Uxbridge, and Oxford. Representative Kujawski currently serves on the Committees on Personal and Administration, Election Laws and Public Service.  He has served as Chairman of the influential House Committee on Steering, Policy and Scheduling and also as Vice Chairman of the House Rules Committee.

Katie Lorenz '07 recently started work at Drury High School as a Massachusetts Campus Compact college access advisor. Katie will spend the year at Drury working to help make higher education an attainable goal for all students, in consultation with the MCLA admissions office.

Amanda Hillman '08, who graduated from MCLA with a mathematics degree and an economics minor, has been accepted into two graduate programs at the University of Michigan. Amanda will be pursuing a Master of Supply Chain Management with the Ross School of Business starting this January and in the fall of 2010 will begin a Master of Science in Sustainable Systems with the School of Natural Resources and Environment. This is one of the top programs in the country.

Scott Fleishman '00 received the Sports Announcer of the Year Award from the Oregon Association of Broadcasters for his work at KMTR-TV. 

Upcoming events:
Look at our website www.mcla.edu/events for upcoming events.