URI QuadAngles Spring 2011

QUADANGLES

ALUMNI MAGAZINE | SPRING 2011 VOLUME 18, NO. 3

Guardian of the Gardner Anthony Amore ’89

ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

Big Chill Weekend 2011 CHILLIN’ FOR SCHOLARSHIPS

Our 2011 event was a great success!

The Big Chill Scholarship Evening & Auction was held on Saturday, January 22 at the Rosecliff Mansion and the Newport Marriott.

With nearly 300 guests attending, we raised over $80,000 for the URI Alumni Association’s student scholarship fund.

Photo gallery | uri.edu/quadangles NORA LEWIS

QUADANGLES DEPARTMENTS

FEATURES

PRESIDENT’S VIEW 3

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UP FRONT 4 News and views

ALUMNI MAGAZINE | SPRING 2011, VOLUME 18, NO. 3

URI’S AMATEUR STOCK ANALYSTS IMPRESS PROS

By Dave Lavalle ’79, M.P.A. ’87 The 11 analysts are seniors in the College of Business Administration who participated in the Ram Fund during the fall semester

PRESS BOX 8 ALUMNI CHAPTERS 28 Upcoming events and contacts CLASS ACTS 30 News from your classmates, photo wrap-ups, and alumni profiles BACK PAGE 40 Focus on Nature: The Photography of Evan Pagano INSIDE BACK COVER The 2011 Golf Tournament BACK COVER 50th Reunion and Golden Grad Weekend WEB EXTRAS URI.EDU/QUADANGLES AN ‘UGG’LY AFFAIR STU FITELSON ’55: AGELESS ATHLETE GET PAID WHAT YOU’RE WORTH MORE . . .

COVER: NORA LEWIS CONTENTS: MICHAEL SALERNO; © ISABELLA STEWART GARDNER MUSEUM, BOSTON; NORA LEWIS

10 KINESIOLOGY

By Bethany Vaccaro ’06

Kinesiology students can go anywhere from

working with a cardiac patient to training a

highly conditioned athlete 12 TONY HORTON: THE FACE (AND BODY!) OF P90X

By Shane Donaldson ’99

Give Tony Horton 90 days of your hard

work and sweat, and he’ll help you chase

your dream of healthy living 14

ART HEIST EXPERT

By Bethany Vaccaro ’06 As director of security at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, Anthony Amore is charged with cracking the world’s single largest art theft

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TUCSON SHOOTING INSPIRES PUBLIC SERVICE

By Jan Wenzel ’87 Cell phone messages alerted URI seniors Tristany and Kirsten Leikem about the shooting in their hometown of Tucson that involved U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords

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MAKING URI A PLACE WHERE EVERYONE FEELS SAFE, RESPECTED, AND VALUED

By John Pantalone ’71 URI is moving ahead to institutionalize inclusion for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender students to establish a safe environment that encourages learning and personal development for all students

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A RECIPE FOR SUCCESS

By Martha Murphy ’81 Tom Verde and Nancy Verde Barr have a lot in common: They are brother and sister, URI alumni, and cooking enthusiasts. They are also both writers, as in published authors

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QUADANGLES QUADANGLES is a publication of the University of Rhode ­Island Alumni Association, Division of University Advancement, 73 Upper College Road, Kingston, RI 02881. p: 401.874.2242.

ALUMNIONLINE

QUADANGLESONLINE

No matter where you live, you can stay connected to URI. Take a look at these upcoming events, and register online.

What could be easier?

Take a look at great videos, photos, and more included in QuadAngles Online.

You can also sign up for a subscription to QuadAngles Online by going to advance.uri.edu/esubscriptions.

advance.uri.edu/alumni

uri.edu/quadangles

TEE TIME? Mark your calendars

for the annual URI Alumni

Association Scholarship Golf

Tournament, which will be held

at Quidnessett Country Club in North Kingstown, RI, on June 6. Find out more at advance.uri.edu/alumni/golf.

WATCH AN INTERVIEW

with the man behind P90X, super fitness guru and author Tony Horton—and renew your New Year’s resolutions. It’s not too late!

YOU’LL WANT TO PACK YOUR BAGS once you

check out the great Alumni Association trips offered in 2011 to the Greek Isles and Tuscany. The world is yours at advance.uri.edu/alumni/travel.

ADD SOME DELECTABLE— AND HEALTHY—RECIPES

to your cooking repertoire thanks to author Nancy Verde Barr ’76, who is sharing some of her favorites from her latest cookbook with us.

YOUNG ALUMNI, mark your calendars for May 13 and the second annual Newport Storm Brewery tasting event, hosted by the Young Alumni Council. To learn more about this and other activities planned for graduates of the past decade, go to advance.uri.edu/alumni/newgrads.

BE AMAZED AT THE STUNNING NATURE PHOTOS of URI freshman

Evan Pagano ’14.

ALUMNICONNECTIONS

alumniconnections.com/rhodeisland To subscribe to our email news lists, go to Member Services at alumniconnections. com/rhodeisland. Select Email Preferences to opt in or out of our email news lists.

ALUMNI NEWS AND EVENTS Upcoming alumni programs, such as Homecoming, chapter events, reunions, cultural events, and member events.

RIRAA ONLINE Information about athletic events, special ticket offers, priority points, gifts to RIRAA, and more.

SUPPORTING URI Giving news and announcements about gifts to URI, including gifts to the endowment, the Fund for URI, planned giving, and more.

The ideas and opinions expressed in QUADANGLES do not necessarily reflect those of the Alumni Association, the editor, or the University. QUAD ANGLES is published four times a year for alumni and friends of the University of Rhode Island; standard postage paid at Burlington, Vt. QUAD ANGLES is printed at The Lane Press, South Burlington, Vt., and is recyclable.

URI is an equal opportunity employer committed to the principles of affirmative action.

2 QUAD ANGLES SPRING 2011 | URI.EDU/QUADANGLES

Vice President for University Advancement Robert M. Beagle Executive Editor Michele A. Nota ’87, M.S. ’06 Editorial Committee Jodi Hawkins Mike Laprey Dave Lavallee ’79, M.P.A. ’87 Liz Prager O'Brien ’83 Managing Editor Vida-Wynne Griffin ’67, M.A. ’72 Associate Editor Barbara Caron, Online Edition Jan Wenzel ’87 Art Director Kim Robertson Interim Director of Publications Russell Kolton Director of Communications & Marketing Linda A. Acciardo ’77 Contributing Editors Gigi Edwards, Online Edition Mary Ann Mazzone, Class Acts Nicki Toler, Alumni Online & Chapters Contributing Designers Johnson Ma Bo Pickard Verna Thurber Photographer Nora Lewis Alumni Relations Staff Robert Ferrell ’07, Program Assistant Michelle Fontes-Barros ’96, Assistant Director Kathleen Gianquitti ’71, M.S. ’82, Assistant Director Lisa Harrison ’89, Executive Assistant Sarah Lobdell ’96, Associate Director Jess Raffaele ’04, M.S. ’09, Program Assistant Kate Serafini ’08, Specialist Gina Simonelli ’01, M.S. ’03, Assistant Director Alumni Association Executive Board Donald P. Sullivan ’71, President Joseph M. Confessore ’96, President Elect Gary W. Kullberg ’63, Past President Louise H. Thorson, M.B.A. ’85, Vice President Raymond L. Watson M.C.P. ’05, Vice President Ronald P. Joseph ’67, Treasurer Councilors-at-Large Brandon F. Brown ’10 William M. Dolan III ’81 Allison E. Field ’95 John Finan ’80 Kelly J. Nevins ’90, M.S. ’02 Kathleen P. O’Donnell-White ’90 Edwin R. Pacheco ’05 Gregory S. Perry ’88 Benjamin W. Tuthill ’04 Christos S. Xenophontos ’84, M.S. ’85 Representatives Arts and Sciences: Jerome H. Kritz ’76 Business Administration: Laurel L. Bowerman ’77, M.B.A. ’84 Continuing Education: Edward Bozzi Jr. ’68 Engineering: Leo Mainelli ’58 Environment and Life Sciences: Wayne K. Durfee ’50 Human Science and Services: John Boulmetis ’71, M.S. ’73 Nursing: Denise A. Coppa ’72, Ph.D. ’02 SAA President: Chris Aiudi ’14 Student Senate: David Coates ’11 URI Foundation: George Graboys, Hon. ’99

NORA LEWIS; ISTOCKPHOTOS.COM; ©WIKIPEDIA.COM; DENNIS COWLEY; EVANPAGANO.COM

Transformation 1.

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President’s Advisory Council 1) President David M. Dooley met with members of his Advisory Council at the Alumni Center on March 4.

Participants seen here include on the president’s right, 2) Alfred J. Verrecchia ’67, M.B.A. ’72, Hon. ’04, former chair, Hasbro, Inc.; Wesley R. Card ’70, CEO Jones Group, Inc.; Robert S. Russell ’75, president, Cosmo, Inc.; and Vice President for University Advancement Robert M. Beagle; 3) the Honorable Mary M. Lisi ’72, chief judge, U. S. District Court; and Robert D. Ballard, Ph.D. ’75, Hon ’86, URI professor of oceanography; 4) Wesley R. Card ’70 and Robert S. Russell ’75.

NORA LEWIS

I would guess that very few members of the larger URI community—our alumni, friends, and partners—are unaware of the substantial challenges facing public higher education in Rhode Island and across the United States.

Many of these relate to the precarious balancing act among access, affordability, and quality in which public research universities are engaged.

Less evident, perhaps, are the challenges we face in adapting to the global demands of the 21st century. Of course, the economic climate is foremost among these, but other factors are also important to our future: Globalization, climate change, development, health, energy, political and regional conflicts, and more.

Collectively, these challenges compel the University of Rhode Island to critically assess and transform its teaching, research, and service to prepare our students and help our nation to thrive in the 21st century.

We have identified four transformational goals for the University of Rhode Island. If we achieve these goals, URI will continue to be a leader in preparing its students for success. If we achieve these goals, URI—through the work of its faculty and students—will have a major impact on economic renewal in our state and region, and in maintaining our quality of life.

The transformational goals for the University of Rhode Island are as follows: Creating a 21st Century 24/7 Learning Environment: To prepare our students to excel and lead, URI must take full and systemic advantage of the most advanced educational tools and practices. We must provide expanded opportunities for experiential learning (research, creative work, and scholarship), as well as opportunities to learn and work across disciplines and fields of knowledge. It is essential to provide “hands-on” learning—for example, in research laboratories, in field work, and in internships. Through the use of technology, improved advising, and innovative curricula URI must do its part to reduce barriers to graduation and enable more of our students to complete their degrees in four years.

Increasing the Magnitude, Prominence, and Impact of URI’s Research, Scholarship, and Creative Work: URI must place additional emphasis on its core mission of research, scholarship, and creative work. To do so will help preserve and enhance the nation’s global competitiveness; help create a Rhode Island economy that is vibrant, competitive, and sustainable; help provide new knowledge, understanding, and insight; and will enrich our culture and society. Increasing the research, scholarship, and creative work undertaken by our faculty and research staff will provide more opportunities for students to be engaged in these activities, thereby providing a stronger education.

Internationalizing and Globalizing the University of Rhode Island: It is simply essential for our students’ success that they are prepared to work and live in an increasingly globalized economy and society. It is essential to the future of Rhode Island and the U.S. that we improve our competitive position internationally and that we are globally engaged. URI must substantially increase the number of our students who study abroad and the number of international students who study at URI. We must expand the number and scope of our international research and education partnerships.

Building a Community at the University of Rhode Island that Values and Embraces Equity and Diversity: In order for our students to thrive in an increasingly diverse and complex context, URI must assist them in developing their abilities to communicate, understand, and engage productively with people who are very different than they are. Building a community at URI in which every member is welcomed, supported, and valued is an essential foundation to education and learning, and therefore is central to our identity and mission.

—David M. Dooley

UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND 3

NEWS&VIEWS URI Invents Fast, Inexpensive Blood Test

Xeroxing Patents Thomas Edison said the value of an idea lies in the use of it. As principal scientist at Xerox Research Center in Webster, N.Y., electrical engineering alumnus Zhigang “Zeke” Fan, M.S. ’86, Ph.D ’88, follows Edison’s practical philosophy. Fan has converted many of his innovative ideas into patents. In fact, he earned his 100th patent last fall. Before 2010 ended, that number had already climbed to 106.

Not one to rest upon his past inventions, Fan has another 70 patents pending. And his problem solving ability and scientific curiosity apparently never rests. On average, Fan has been submitting 10 to 15 applications annually in recent years. Patent approval generally takes 3 to 4 years.

Fan is a terrific collaborator—he shares about 70 percent of the patents with his co-inventing colleagues and solos on the remaining 30 percent.

While he doesn’t earn royalties from the patents, Fan says that Xerox fosters innovation by rewarding employees with patentable ideas.

Born in Shanghai, China, Fan was encouraged to come to URI with his wife, Yijuan Shen ’88, by a friend studying physics here.

The friend also encouraged the Department of Electrical Engineering to accept Fan as a student: “He’s quite bright,” the friend remarked.

4 QUAD ANGLES SPRING 2011 | URI.EDU/QUADANGLES

A team of URI engineers and students, thinking big, and invented a small device that will eliminate shipping blood to a laboratory and anxiously waiting for several days to get the results.

The portable device needs just a pinprick of blood and provides results in less than 30 minutes.

Testing can be performed in a clinic, in a doctor’s office, or right at home, according to Mohammad Faghri, professor of mechanical engineering and lead researcher on the project: “Patients can have their blood tested when they walk into the doctor’s office, and the results will be ready before they leave.”

With the new lab-on-a-chip technology, a drop of blood is placed on a plastic polymer cartridge smaller than a credit card and inserted into a shoebox-sized biosensor containing a miniature spectrometer and piezoelectric micro-pump. The blood travels through the cartridge in tiny channels 500 microns wide to a detection site where it reacts with preloaded reagents enabling the sensor to detect certain biomarkers of disease.

Several patents are pending on the invention. Compared to similar devices in development elsewhere, the URI system is much smaller, more portable, requires a smaller blood sample, and is less expensive. While the sensor costs about $3,200, each test costs just $1.50, which is the cost for the plastic cartridge and reagents. Commercialization should begin shortly.

Faghri envisions further miniaturization of the invention so that it can be adapted into a smart phone application. Patients will be able to test themselves and send the results to the doctor’s office. Now that has quite a healthy ring to it!

New Medical Physics Degree What do you get when you combine physics and medicine? An innovative dual degree program that allows students to become medical physicists and enter a field that offers multiple career opportunities and salaries that often start with six figures.

URI, in collaboration with Rhode Island Hospital, will launch a 5-year medical physics degree in fall 2011 that combines a B.S. in physics with an M.S. in medical physics. The 162-credit program will be the first in New England and may well be the only 5-year program in the country.

Only 26 universities in the U.S. and Canada currently offer accredited graduate medical physics programs.

There is a significant shortage of qualified clinical medical physicists.

And, with each passing year, the shortage becomes more acute.

Why such demand? The increased development and use of complex technology in radiation oncology and medical imaging requires skilled scientists. Almost 1.1 million cancer patients underwent a course of radiation in 2009, up 15 percent from 2007.

The increase may reflect the growth of cancer screening and early detection initiatives, along with the aging of the baby boomers.

To find out more about the program, contact Physics Professor Len Kahn at 401.874.2053 or lkahn@uri.edu.

Heat From The Street Ever find your street so hot that you could fry an egg on it? A team of URI professors are interested in using heat from the pavement to power streetlights, melt ice, heat buildings, and illuminate signs.

“We have mile after mile of asphalt pavement around the country, and in the summer it absorbs a great deal of heat, warming the roads up to 140°F or more,” said K. Wayne Lee, professor of civil and environmental engineering and leader of the joint project. “If we can harvest that heat, we can use it, save on fossil fuels, and reduce global warming.”

With Chemistry Professor Sze Yang and graduate student Andrew Correia, Lee has identified four approaches.

One of the simplest is to hang flexible solar cells over the top of Jersey barriers to power streetlights and illuminate road signs.

Another practical approach would be to embed water pipes beneath the asphalt. The sun-heated water could be piped beneath bridge decks to melt ice and reduce the need for road salt.

A third approach uses thermoelectricity produced with semiconductors when hot and cold temperatures meet. With thermoelectric materials embedded in the roadway, enough electricity could be generated to defrost roadways.

Perhaps the most futuristic idea is to completely replace asphalt with large, durable electronic blocks that contain solar cells, LED lights, and sensors.

Lorne Adrain ’76 to head Rhode Island Board of Governors Gov. Lincoln Chafee has tapped four talented URI alumni to serve on the state’s Board of Governors for Higher Education.

Leading Providence businessman Lorne A. Adrain ’76 will chair the board.

Adrain is managing director of Ballentine Partners, LLC, an independent wealth management firm. He is the founder of the initiative to establish National Neighborhood Day and of KindMark, a leader in the creation of software and technologies that advance philanthropy. He is cofounder and former chair of Social Venture Partners—Rhode Island, an organization that engages entrepreneurs in community initiatives. He is also cofounder of BetterProvidence.org, which aims to bring the voice of citizens and taxpayers together for better governance. Adrain received his M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.

According to URI Vice President Robert M. Beagle: “Lorne is a consensus builder who likes to look at the big picture. As URI Alumni Association president, he proactively worked with us to build the Alumni Association into a national organization. He has a strong commitment to the importance of public higher education and its value to Rhode Island.”

In addition to Adrain, the other appointees with URI degrees are Dr. Antonio Barajas ’91, Eva-Marie Mancuso ’82, and John A. Walsh, Ph.D ’08. URI Vice Provost Emeritus Thomas Rockett, whose term expires in 2012, will remain on the board.

COURTESY OF XEROX; JOHN PETERSON; JANE MARTELLINO; NORA LEWIS

Graceful Cooking Eight-year-old Grace, a lover of books and reading, was the first child to sign up for a 2009 summer library camp run by librarian Jane Martellino, M.L.S. ’96, at the Consolidated School in New Fairfield, Conn. Grace never got the chance to attend. Doctors discovered she had a brain tumor and operated. A week after the surgery, she slipped into a coma for five weeks.

Martellino traveled to the New York City hospital each week to read to her would-be camper.

Today, Grace is in recovery with a cookbook named for her. All Because of Grace, spearheaded by Martellino, was designed as a fundraising project to help with Grace’s medical expenses. Profits from the book go to the Yes! Grace Rocks Foundation.

In planning the book, Martellino thought it would be nice to include a handful of children’s book authors so she wrote to a few she had met through the years, explaining the project. She asked each to share a favorite recipe and provide a story explaining why the recipe was meaningful.

Within four weeks, Martellino received responses from more than 130 award-winning children’s book authors and illustrators. Support did not stop there. Publishing giant Scholastic donated $2,500 to help cover the cost of printing the book.

Grace still has a long way to go. She slipped into another coma that has hampered her recovery. She suffered nerve damage that impacts her speech and vision.

Through it all, books have kept the young patient’s spirits up. “We write stories together,” Martellino reports. “Grace has a gift for telling stories, which makes the project that much more perfect.”

UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND 5

Gulp! That’s Hard to Swallow Plenty of people have swallowed coins. But how many have tossed a beaded crucifix or a spoon down the hatch? Or for that matter how many have ingested safety pins, porcelain dolls, or a 4-foot long window chain?

All that and much more shows up in English Professor Mary Cappello’s latest book, Swallow: Foreign Bodies, Their Ingestion, Inspiration and the Curious Doctor Who Extracted Them.

Cappello came across the Chevalier Jackson Foreign Body Collection during a trip to the Mütter Museum at the College of Physicians of Philadelphia more than four years ago.

Jackson, a laryngologist who worked in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, had a near-perfect success rate of extracting foreign objects without causing injury or death to thousands of patients.

And he did it without using anesthesia.

“Jackson had a way of being able to calm patients down, especially children,” Cappello said. “He used rigid, brass instruments and proved that the human body is more capacious than we tend to think.”

Her goal was not to offer a definitive piece on the life and career of Jackson, but to peel away some of the layers behind the stories of the objects themselves. She succeeds by approaching the subject with splendid imagery and lyricism.

She researched many of Jackson’s cases through archives held at the National Library of Medicine in Bethesda, Md., and found more than 40 boxes filled with detailed accounts of Jackson’s patients, such as the 9-month-old boy who survived despite having been forced to swallow safety pins, buttons, cigarette butts and more.

“Reading the background on many of the cases proved to be shockingly illuminating,” Cappello said. “Jackson often reduced the presence of foreign bodies to carelessness, and he didn’t really take into account the complexity of human psychology. There was accidental ingestion, purposeful ingestion, forced ingestion and in some cases phantom ingestion, where people were imagining and even showing symptoms that they had swallowed something that wasn’t there.”

DISCOVERY@URI BIG IDEAS TAKE SHAPE. Join us April 13, 2011 RESEARCH • SCHOLARSHIP • INNOVATION CAROTHERS LIBRARY, KINGSTON, RI

uri.edu/discovery

6 QUAD ANGLES SPRING 2011 | URI.EDU/QUADANGLES

COURTESY OF MARY CAPPELLO; EVANPAGANO.COM

Taking Stock: Senior finance majors Will Martel, a member of the Rams’ basketball team, Erin Murphy, and Kevin Flynn put their heads together over the Ram Fund.

URI’s Amateur Stock Analysts Impress Pros

A Brief Pause: Yihe Luo pauses for a minute from analyzing some data.

A Bit of Direction: Finance Professor Peter DaDalt, runs the Ram Fund class.

What if you worked for a major investment house and learned of 11 amateur financial analysts who developed a portfolio that outperformed Standard & Poor’s 500 and two other S&P indices?

At a minimum, you’d want to interview them, but you’d be smart to make them part of your team.

The 11 analysts are actually seniors in URI’s College of Business Administration who participated in the Ram Fund during the fall semester. Established in the spring of 2001 with $100,000 in seed money from the Alumni Association, the Ram Fund gives advanced business students the opportunity to invest and manage money for the long term.

When the 11 members of the class presented the results of their work in December, members of the Alumni Association Executive Board and professionals from Fidelity Investments, Washington Trust Bank, Bank of America, and Goldman Sachs were all smiles as they learned that the portfolio was valued at $169,979. The fund holds shares in 21 companies.

Samuel Cox, an equity research analyst at Fidelity Investments, said the level of detail in the group’s research was impressive, especially its completion of discounted cash flow analysis on each stock. Andrew Macken, vice president and regional director of Goldman Sachs Asset Management, added similar praise.

Finance Professor Peter DaDalt, who runs the Ram Fund class, said this is the first time the entire class had to complete discounted cash flow analyses: “Two years ago, only one student could complete this type of analysis; now this entire group can.”

“This program opens doors and leads to careers,” said former finance major Joseph M. Confessore ’96, vice president and team leader of commercial lending at Washington Trust’s Warwick office and president-elect of the Alumni Association.

Former Ram Fund member Nicholas Storti ’09, an associate

MICHAEL SALERNO

underwriter for Bank of America, commented that: “The most important things I got out of participating in the Ram Fund were the team aspect of the class and the end-to-end credit process. To have to justify your decisions in front of your peers was a great learning experience. You have to pay attention to very small but important details. This is essential for a college that wants to attract top students who then graduate and land great jobs in the financial services industry.”

Ram Fund Team Members Current Ram Fund Florian Behrman members echo what n, Hamburg, Ge rmany Benjamin Chen Storti said. Erin ey, Newton, Mas s.

Kevin Flynn, John Murphy, a senior ston, R.I. finance major, was the Michael Holden , Winthrop, Mas s. only woman on the Yihe Luo, East Pr ov id en ce , R.I. team last semester: Will Martel, Fairh aven, N.J. “I am soft spoken and Eric Mundorf, So uth Kingstown, tiny, so Professor R.I. Er in Murphy, Port DaDalt said I needed land, Conn.

Derek Olson, Co to speak up more. ventry, R.I. This was one of the Zachary Pierce, North Kingstow n, R.I. best experiences of Ryan Ransford, Portland, Conn. my time at URI because it was like an internship.”

Kevin Flynn, a senior accounting major, commented that Murphy’s work didn’t need much criticism: “Plus she was a lot nicer to us when she critiqued our work.” Flynn added that working on the Ram Fund was like working on a real investment team.

“By talking in class, we became really close; we became comfortable learning from each other.”

Senior finance major Will Martel, a member of the Rams’ basketball team, said class presentations prepared him well for the formal presentation to financial professionals: “I knew I would be presenting to very bright students in class. Before the formal event, I took a look at my fellow students’ résumés, and I realized my experience was nothing like theirs. I feel honored to be in a class with some of the smartest students in the college.”

By Dave LaVallee ’79, M.P.A. ’87

UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND 7

PRESSBOX

Rhody Football Earns 12 Spots > > > > > > > > on All-CAA Academic Team The Rhody football team placed 12 student-athletes on the CAA Academic All-Conference team. In each of the last two years, Rhody has placed 22 players on the Academic All-CAA squad behind only Delaware (26) and Towson (24). Freshman Doug D’Angelo, junior Kyle Elliott, sophomore Michael Farr, junior Louis Feinstein, sophomore Matt Greenhalgh, freshman Jeff Kennedy, senior Tom Lang, freshman Brian Louth, junior Steve Probst, junior Willie McGinnis, junior Matt Rae, and freshman Mike Rinaldi were selected for excellence both in the classroom and on the field. To be eligible for the CAA Football Academic All-Conference Team, a player must be a starter or important reserve and have a cumulative GPA of 3.00-or-better for his entire academic career.

Rae Adds to List of Academic Honors > > > > > > > Junior defensive tackle Matt Rae added to his list of career academic honors as he was named to the 13th annual Football Championship Subdivision Athletics Directors Association Academic All-Star Team. Rae was one of 52 players selected to the team. The York, Pa., native holds a 3.75 grade point average in biological sciences. This past November, Rae was named to the College Sports Information Directors of America Academic All-District team for the second straight year. At the URI football team’s annual banquet, he earned the A.A. Savastano Scholar-Athlete Award. On the field in 2010, Rae started every game and ranked eighth in the CAA for tackles among defensive lineman. He closed out the 2010 campaign with a career-high eight tackles in a win over nationally ranked Massachusetts. In his final three games he posted 19 tackles.

Shoniker Named to Capital One > > > > > > > > > > Academic All-District I Team Senior Megan Shoniker has been named to the Capital One Academic All-District I Women’s Basketball Second Team, selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America. A two-year captain for the Rams, Shoniker has excelled in the classroom, posting a 3.44 cumulative GPA as a physical education major. On the court, she is ranked among the top scorers in the country, averaging close to 20 points per game.

On Dec. 29, 2010, Shoniker became the 19th Rhode Island women’s basketball player to reach the 1,000 career point milestone. She will finish her career ranked among the program’s all-time leaders in points, 3-pointers made, and assists.

8 QUAD ANGLES SPRING 2011 | URI.EDU/QUADANGLES

COURTESY OF URI ATHLETICS DEPARTMENT, NCAA

Needham Named Women’s Soccer Head Coach > On Jan. 14, Michael Needham ’96 was named the seventh head coach in the history of the women’s soccer program. Needham returns to Kingston after a two-year stint as head coach at New Mexico State. “We are excited about having Michael Needham return to URI to lead our women’s soccer program,“ said Thorr Bjorn, URI’s director of athletics. “He is a proven winner with a passion for URI soccer. I believe our women’s soccer program should compete year-in and year-out for an A-10 championship and the NCAA tournament. I am confident that Michael is the person who will be able to achieve those goals.”

In two seasons in Las Cruces, Needham guided the program to 16 wins, including a nine-win campaign in the program’s inaugural season in 2009. That season, Needham guided NMSU to the postseason, entering the Western Athletic Conference Tournament as the fifth seed. The Aggies finished the season ranked No. 15 in the NCAA in attendance, averaging 1,129 fans for seven home matches. Needham’s teams at New Mexico State were also successful in the classroom. The 2010 squad earned the National Soccer Coaches Association of America Team Academic Award, after posting a team GPA of 3.33.

Bissett Named Men’s Soccer Assistant Coach > > Callum Bissett ’08 has returned to Kingston as the newest assistant men’s soccer coach. A four-year starter and three-time team captain for the Rams, Bissett was a member of two Atlantic 10 Championship teams and helped lead the Rams to the NCAA Tournament in both 2005 and 2006. The Pencaitland, Scotland native also earned three Atlantic 10 AllConference awards and was a two-time National Soccer Coaches Association of America All-Region selection. Bissett was a member of the Atlantic 10 Commissioner’s Honor Roll from 2004-2007 and received the league’s 2008 Sporting Award.

Cloutier Earns Top Basketball Honors in Canada After helping to lead her 2008 Canadian Junior National Team to three straight gold medals, freshman forward Emilie Cloutier was named best teammate at the national level in Canada. Playing for the Cégep de Sainte-Foy Dynamiques, Cloutier helped lead her team to three straight national championships—a feat that was only accomplished once before some 40 years ago.

COURTESY OF URI ATHLETICS DEPARTMENT

UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND 9

Kinesiology is a broad field encompassing all facets of human movement.

“Our students can go anywhere from working with a cardiac patient to training a highly conditioned athlete.”

Deborah Riebe, chair of the Kinesiology Department

Kinesiology Every day, Chris Raymond ’10 walks into work at Raytheon in Portsmouth, R.I. and heads straight into the fitness center. As an exercise specialist with Plus One, a corporate fitness and wellness company, he spends his day running group fitness classes, teaching clients safe and effective exercise programs, and promoting wellness for the employees at Raytheon. “I’m doing what I always wanted to do,” he says. “I love getting to be in the fitness world every day.” His position allows him to share his passion for exercise and to provide tips to his clients to assist them in making better health choices. Another perk: “I get to work out at work!”

Raymond landed his job after completing the Kinesiology Program at URI. When he entered the program as a transfer from CCRI, Raymond thought he’d be headed into the physical therapy field. But he, like many others in his department, soon found that physical therapy is just one of many career opportunities available to kinesiology graduates.

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“The majority of our students come into our program with the goal of becoming physical therapists,” says Professor Deborah Riebe, chair of the Kinesiology Department. “They learn that physical therapy is a great field, but there are other options.”

Riebe explains that kinesiology is a broad field encompassing all facets of human movement and a wide variety of professions: “Our students can go anywhere from working with a cardiac patient to training a highly conditioned athlete.” Graduates could work in a clinical environment creating exercise prescriptions for people with such health issues as heart disease, obesity, diabetes, or cancer. They could work in a research setting studying the effects of resistance training on strength and balance in older adults. They could design training programs for professional athletes. Or they could be certified to teach physical education and health in elementary and secondary schools. “There are a lot of opportunities!” says Riebe.

kinesiology | k �nese'äl je; -ze- | noun the study of the mechanics of body movements; a field with multiple opportunities.

About 85 percent of the Kinesiology Department’s 600 undergraduates focus on exercise science or health fitness, with the remainder entering the physical and health teacher education program. With 75 students currently on the program’s waiting list, kinesiology is increasingly becoming a popular major.

Chris Raymond credits his professors with his success both in the program and after graduation: “The professors really know their stuff, they have lots of experience, and they really care about their students.” It was a tip from Riebe that led Raymond to his current position with Plus One. He now works with another URI grad, Andrew DeMacedo ’07, who manages the facility at Raytheon.

Current student Jessica Russo also speaks highly of the individual attention the kinesiology professors give their students. When she visited URI as a high school student, it was a professor’s willingness to give her a personal tour of the facilities that helped set URI apart. Now she is a senior planning to head into a doctoral physical therapy program after graduating in May: “The professors genuinely care about the success of their students and try to give us as many opportunities as possible,” says Russo, who was also attracted to the structure of the program and the preparation it gave her for graduate school. “It was a relief that the program was set up in a way that had me go above and beyond the basic requirements of graduate schools,” she says. “I was never scrambling to fulfill prerequisites because those classes had already been part of my major.” Russo is currently completing her semester-long internship at a private physical therapy clinic in Narragansett.

Internships are a prominent component of the Kinesiology Program. “Every single student in our department does one,” explains Riebe. “We have an internship director who works with the students to find a suitable environment for them.” Usually, internships are in physical therapy clinics, NORA LEWIS

hospitals, cardiac rehab centers, and health and wellness companies. “We’ve even had students go to the Olympic Training Center!” says Riebe. The internships provide work-related experience but also provide students with opportunities to explore other career paths. During the internship seminar, the department brings in speakers from a variety of professions within the kinesiology field to expose students to different career possibilities.

Ronald Scott ’10 was initially thinking of going into physical therapy but had a change of heart when he discovered an unexpected interest in the human heart. At a professor’s recommendation, he began volunteering at the Center for Cardiac Fitness at the Miriam Hospital in Providence. He went on to do his internship at Miriam and was offered a position there after he graduated. He now works at Miriam as an exercise physiologist, creating exercise prescriptions for cardiac patients. He loves seeing the results of his work: “Our patients start off on the first day and sometimes can barely walk five minutes on the treadmill.” But after completing the Center’s 12-week program that includes exercise, nutrition information, stress management tips, and behavioral or dietary modifications, the patients’ stamina and wellness increase dramatically. Scott hopes eventually to become a physician’s assistant.

“That internship was a big help,” he remembers.

“Not just for me, but for a lot of my classmates.

The internship really helps you decide what you want to do for your career.”

Wherever the program leads its graduates, they are able to incorporate a love of physical activity into their careers. “You get intrigued by how the human body works, by how it responds to exercise,” says Riebe. Pursuing a passion for the body and exercise and then being able to share the results with others—from students to the broader community—makes for an ideal work day, every day.

“It’s like working your hobby!” says Riebe.

By Bethany Vaccaro ’06

Chris Raymond ’10 is an exercise specialist with Plus One, a corporate fitness and wellness company in Portsmouth, R.I.

Jessica Russo is a senior planning to head into a doctoral physical therapy program after graduating in May.

Ronald Scott ’10 is an exercise physiologist creating exercise prescriptions for cardiac patients at the Center for Cardiac Fitness at Miriam Hospital in Providence, R.I.

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TONY HORTON:

The Face (and Body!) of P90X It’s been 30 years since Tony Horton left the University to chase his dream of making it in Hollywood. Give him 90 days of your hard work and sweat, and he’ll help you chase your dream of healthy living.

Not to mention a seriously ripped body.

Video | uri.edu/quadangles

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The face (and body!) of the world’s pre-eminent home workout system got his start on the Kingston Campus. Horton and the team at BEACHBODY have transformed the workout program P90X into a $200-million franchise that is changing lives. Horton released his diet and fitness book Bring It! in January, and his exercise programs are causing the U.S. Congress to rethink the way the nation’s military forces are trained.

“Obviously there is a lot of debate that goes on in D.C., but physical fitness and wellness is a totally bipartisan issue,” Horton said. “It started with congressmen Heath Shuler and Paul Ryan working out in a hallway outside the congressional gym, but now they have completely restructured the gym so more people can use P90X.”

Shuler is a Democrat from North Carolina

and a former NFL quarterback, while Ryan is a Republican from Wisconsin who learned of P90X through a friend who was a Navy SEAL. The two are now joined by dozens of congressmen who have made P90X part of their workout regimen, and they have arranged for Horton to visit U.S. military bases around the world to help incorporate his workout program into military training.

Beyond the military, the issue of obesity, particularly in children, strikes a chord with Horton. Growing up in Trumbull, Conn., he remembers seeing a mere handful of overweight children: “Now, with the amount of sugar and salt people consume combined with lack of exercise, more and more people are simply unhealthy. My purpose is health and fitness; my goal is to change behaviors.

“I don’t offer a magic pill or potion, and I don’t give shortcuts,” Horton continued.

“P90X requires hard work. I don’t pretend it’s easy because it isn’t. But it works.”

Colonel Steven Shepro is certainly convinced. After using P90X himself, the commander of the 316th Wing and Installation Command of Andrews Air Force Base, Md., made it a requirement for personnel at Andrews to workout with the program twice a week.

In spring 2010, Horton participated in the Armed Forces Entertainment Tour, visiting three U.S. military bases in northern Italy. Because the P90X workout can be completed in small spaces, it is ideal for troops on Army bases like Camp Darby and Caserma Ederle, or on the Air Force’s Aviano Air Base.

“It was really hard to believe at first, but our government and our military use P90X, which is a thrill for me,” Horton said.

“I feel honored to be involved with something having that much of an impact.”

Beginning of a Dream Horton arrived at URI in 1976 as a theatre major hoping to turn his passion into a career as an actor. A football player in high school, he also developed an interest in weight lifting and physical fitness.

“Looking back, it’s interesting that my two main areas of interest were on opposite ends of campus,” said Horton, who was a member of URI’s Phi Kappa Psi fraternity

PHOTOS COURTESY OF TONY HORTON

chapter. “Theatre was at the top of campus, and the gym was at the bottom of campus.

The two passions combined in the middle and led me to my career.”

One of the key lessons Horton learned in a weightlifting class he took at URI has played a pivotal role in his teaching approach with P90X: “The guy teaching the class was willing to work with me and teach me at a speed and pace at which I could learn. I never forgot that, and it’s why with the P90X, I show each exercise with three different methods at beginner, intermediate, and advanced levels. If someone is struggling with an exercise, we show alterations he or she can make in order to keep pushing themselves. They do what they can rather than getting frustrated by what they can’t.”

In the summer of 1980, Horton was a handful of credits shy of earning his degree in communications. He was deciding what summer job to take while he finished his course work when a friend asked if he wanted to go out to California: “It took me about four seconds to think about it and say ‘yes.’”

Armed with two suitcases of clothes, his stereo (minus the speakers, which wouldn’t fit in the car), and $400, Horton headed for the West Coast. By the time he got there, he still had the clothes and stereo, but he was out of money. To get by, he made money as a street performer doing mime, a skill he learned and honed back in URI’s Fine Arts Center.

likes of Bruce Springsteen and Antonio Banderas. He eventually met Carl Daikeler, CEO of BEACHBODY and creator of 8-Minute Abs, the parent company of P90X. Working together, Daikeler and Horton first developed Power 90, the precursor to P90X.

Over the last 12 years, Horton and Daikeler have worked to fine tune P90X, which has sold more than 1.5 million units.

“P90X has been a 30-year journey for me, but it has really hit big in the last several years,” Horton said.

Once a personal trainer for celebrities, Horton has become a celebrity in his own right. Infomercials for P90X can be seen most any night on television, and he is often recognized by fans when he is traveling.

“It is weird for me to get stopped by people in the airport who get excited to see me,” Horton said. “But at the same time, I love it. It’s a constant reminder for me about why I am doing this. When people share their stories about how P90X has improved their lives, you realize that you are helping people make a positive impact on themselves. That’s just a great feeling.”

Shane Donaldson ’99

A Career Takes Shape Horton landed small acting gigs and did stand-up comedy for a while. Eventually he landed a job as a production assistant with 20th Century Fox, and he worked out on the side to stay in shape for the auditions he went on. His boss noticed Horton’s physique and asked for help getting into better shape; this was the beginning of Horton’s career as a personal trainer. Through his boss, Horton was connected with legendary musician Tom Petty and helped him stay in shape for concert tours.

Word of mouth led to connections with other celebrities, and Horton began working with the

UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND 13

Art Heist Expert Anthony Amore ’89 is charged with solving the biggest art heist in history and protecting the multi-billion dollar collection of over 2,500 artworks housed in the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum.

If it’s the middle of the night, chances are Anthony Amore is up, going over the details of his case, yet again, or meeting a shadowy figure in an obscure bar, hoping this person knows something. As director of security at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, Amore is charged with cracking the single largest property theft in recorded history.

“These two are the banes of my existence,” says Amore, displaying black and white sketches of the suspected art thieves, who entered the museum in the middle of the night on March 18, 1990, disguised as police officers, and made off with 13 works of art. Among the abducted was “The Concert” by Jan Vermeer, one of only 36 known paintings by the artist, making it the most valuable stolen painting in the world. Also taken was “The Storm on the Sea of Galilee,” Rembrandt’s only known seascape, and a Manet, Degas etchings, a Chinese ku, and an eagle-shaped finial topping a Napoleonic flag. Together, the 13 stolen pieces are valued at a half billion dollars.

© ISABELLA STEWART GARDNER MUSEUM, BOSTON; NORA LEWIS

March 18, 2011, marks the 21st year that frames hang empty at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum as homage to the missing artworks and as a placeholder for their return. The Gardner Museum, in cooperation with the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, remains as committed as ever to the return of these stolen artworks.

UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND 15

At top, Gardner Museum courtyard garden. Above, Manet, “Chez Tortoni,” 1878–1880.

“It was the biggest heist in history,” says Amore.

Recovering the artworks dominates his time, both at and away from the museum: “I’m obsessed with the investigation!”

When Amore, a Providence native, came to orientation at URI in 1985, he wasn’t sure what he wanted to do. Interested in writing and literature, he declared English as his major and ended up in a class taught by Professor Lois Cuddy. “I was one of those students who would sit there and look at her like she was the great oracle,” Amore smiles.

“To this day, I still send her an email at least once a year thanking her for everything she taught me because it’s served me so well.” He didn’t know this at the time, but the skills he formed as an undergraduate at URI would play a large role in shaping his future career path. “The ability to write a solid report, to articulate what happened and make a strong case for your opinions, is what sets you apart from other people. It is paramount in this field,” he says.

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After graduating from URI, Amore followed his interest in federal law enforcement to Boston, where he worked as an inspector and port intelligence officer for the Department of Justice’s Immigration and Naturalization Service. He spent five years boarding ships to look for stowaways, processing refugees, and looking for evidence of fraud. From this, he transitioned to a position with the Federal Aviation Administration’s Security Division working out of Logan Airport overseeing six airports in the region.

After earning a master of public administration degree from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government, Amore briefly went into private consulting in transportation and security assessment. Seven months in, he was at a meeting in New Hampshire sitting at a sports bar in a cocoon of TVs, watching planes go into the World Trade Center in New York. Shortly after, the federal government asked him to return to the FAA. “With my background,” he explains, “I couldn’t say no.”

Amore was in the vanguard as the FAA transitioned into the newly-created U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Transportation Security Administration (TSA). “Everything went from private screeners to federal screeners,” he explains.

“Checked baggage didn’t used to be screened.

Then, the next day, it all had to be screened.” Amore was directly involved in this monumental shift seven

© ISABELLA STEWART GARDNER MUSEUM, BOSTON

days a week, often for 14 hour stretches: “I didn’t take a day off for five or six months.”

Once airport security was revolutionized, Amore was asked to take over the inspections division, evaluating security breaches. This would prove the perfect segue into his next role of art heist expert: “After five years, things get stale for me,” Amore explains. “I felt I had accomplished all I needed to.” When he came to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum to interview for the director of security position, he had a difficult time focusing on the person talking to him. Instead, he was captivated by the verdant interior garden and courtyard modeled after a 15-century Venetian palazzo: “There was so much to look at!”

Today, Amore is in charge of protecting the multi-billion dollar collection of over 2,500 artworks housed in the Gardner Museum. The practical

security considerations that are second nature at airports have provided an excellent template for running security at a museum. At the Gardner there are paintings by Rembrandt, Titian, Raphael, Degas, and Sargent to protect. Walking through the rooms in the museum, Amore can readily explain the background and provenance of many of the pieces: “I have such an affinity for this collection. I’m really honored to be the person in charge of protecting it. It’s really something when you can get up from your desk and look at a Rembrandt or Botticelli. Few people get to do that.”

A significant amount of his time is spent checking every lead on the continuing art heist investigation, great or small. Tracking them down has led him into many a dark alley or mysterious manor.

Amore pursues every one of them. “Every time you close a lead, you get a little closer,” he says.

Amore is returning to his English background as author of an upcoming book, Stealing Rembrandts, due out this summer from Palgrave Macmillan Publishers: “Researching this book tells me that the art is definitely out there. We can get it back. It’s just touching on the right points and talking to the right people.”

And so the dominant theme to Amore’s life remains solving the biggest art heist in history. Every morning, as he sits down to check email and voice messages, it is with the fresh anticipation that this might be the day. “I don’t know who might call me today,” Amore says, the thrill of the hunt still gleaming in his eyes. A $5-million reward remains in place for information leading to the recovery of the stolen artworks. Anyone with any information is encouraged to contact Amore at 617.278.5114 or theft@gardnermuseum.org.

By Bethany Vaccaro ’06

Above, left to right, Rembrandt, “The Storm on the Sea of Galilee,” 1633; Vermeer, “The Concert,” 1658–1660; drawing by Degas, “La Sortie de Pesage.”

At left, Rembrandt, “A Lady and Gentleman in Black.”

Amore is the author of Stealing Rembrandts.

“Researching this book tells me that the art is definitely out there. We can get it back. It’s just touching on the right points and talking to the right people.”

UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND 17

Tucson Shooting Inspires Public Service Cell phone messages alerted URI juniors Tristany and Kirsten Leikem about the shooting in their hometown of Tucson that involved U.S. Rep. Gabrielle “Gabby” Giffords and others.

The twins were home on winter break.

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“It was so traumatic for us,” said Tristany, who along with her twin sister Kirsten had interned last summer in Giffords’ busy Tucson office where the phones rang every two minutes and the rule was no phone should ring more than twice.

Arizona appeared to be the epicenter of the country’s contentious politics and Giffords’ office was in the midst of political bickering, particularly prior to the November elections.

“At times the anger was palpable,” said Kirsten, a double major in political science and economics. “After a phone call, I often had to re-group. I understand that it was and is a frustrating time with the economy and other things going on in people’s lives but…”

The twins gave the hardest calls to Gabriel “Gabe” Zimmerman, Giffords’ personable community outreach director. He was the “go-to-guy” for everything from callers to a printer on the brink. The 30-year-old Arizonian, who drank diet soda by the case, was funny, smart, and handsome. He knew legislation and how to get information and locate resources for constituents.

He organized “Congress on Your Corner” events for the congresswoman and was in the Safeway parking lot when the gunman opened fire on the crowd, shooting 19 people, six fatally—including Gabe.

When Giffords’ office re-opened after the shooting, the twins volunteered their services. “We personalized the violence because we had directly experienced anger and frustration from constituents,” said Tristany.

“Political discourse did not cause the shooting, of course. But everyone, even lunatics, are influenced by society, and you can’t ignore the unhealthy, perpetual anger that exists.”

COURTESY OF TRISTANY AND KIRSTEN LEIKEM

After the shooting, Giffords’ office was chaotic with the press and members of the public crowding into the office with prayers and thoughts for the congresswoman’s recovery.

Tristany and Kirsten handed them sheets of paper to express their thoughts. “People seemed to feel better after writing their thoughts,” Kirsten said. “They felt like they had made a contribution.”

The twins, key members of the women’s tennis team starting in both singles and doubles for the Rams, returned to campus for practice and spring semester.

“Being back on campus has brought some sense of normalcy back, but the shooting is always in the back of my mind,” said Tristany a double major in political science and journalism. “It was a life changing experience. It has given me more direction in what kind of work I want to do, and what kind of person I want to be. I’m more motivated than ever to live up to the standards that Gabe and Representative Giffords set.

“Gabe was amazing, but he wasn’t the exception. All the staff members are special. They’re hard workers, kind but know how to have fun in the process. They don’t ask for recognition, but this staff and other staffs like it in the country are the backbone of our government.”

“I have a better appreciation for life. You learn from it. Do you retreat?

Or do you move on? I’m more geared now toward public service, public policy,” said Kirsten, noting that she and her sister would like to work in the representative’s office this summer if their schedules allow it.

By Jan Wenzel ’87

“It was a life changing experience.

It has given me more direction in what kind of work I want to do, and what kind of person I want to be.”

—Tristany

NORA LEWIS

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Making URI a Place Where Everyone Feels Safe, Respected, and Valued The University of Rhode Island doesn’t make national news every day. But last September, while President David Dooley was meeting with alumni in California, the University was in the national spotlight.

A group of about 10 students had staged a sit-in protest in the 24-hour study room of the URI Library, declaring that they wouldn’t leave until the administration met their demands.

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The students were gay and lesbian, bisexual and transgender, and included some who were still struggling with their sexual or gender identity. They were ready to make their stand despite fears about harassment and threats of physical attacks. A few of them had been targeted earlier in the semester, called names, and threatened. It wasn’t the first time they had made their concerns known.

Andrew Winters, who was hired by the Office of Student Affairs in 1995 as assistant director for residence education, said he detected problems in the campus climate for sexual minorities soon after arriving here. An openly gay man, Winters said he brought the issues up to administrators but saw little progress in addressing them. In 1999, when the University was establishing the Rainbow Diversity House, there were incidents where epithets were shouted at him and at students, and someone spraypainted “No Fags” on the side of the building. Several months later a gay student working on a seminar with Winters was attacked. At about that time, URI was twice listed among the 10 most homophobic campuses in the country by The Princeton Review.

At that point, Winters said he went to Vice President for Student Affairs Thomas Dougan and urged that his job make him a more direct administrative liaison with gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender students. Dougan agreed, and Winters was promoted to assistant to the vice president for GLBT programs.

“The climate problems persisted,” Winters said.

“We were able to get the GLBT (Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender) Center established, and that has become a vital place for programming and a place where students, faculty, and staff can meet and share concerns. But the center has been understaffed and under-resourced, and progress in other areas just wasn’t happening.”

A student-organized silent vigil took place on the Quad in the fall of 2009 to protest incidents of racial and sexual bigotry. The following year, in late winter, students gathered with faculty, staff, and administrators for a retreat to examine the climate on campus. During the summer, student leaders issued a report to administrators detailing problems for GLBT students, racial minorities, and disabled students.

They received a written response, and administrators said they would address many of the issues, but

this past fall the students felt that nothing was being done to move their concerns forward. That is when they decided to stage the library sit-in.

They submitted a list of demands that included stronger responses to harassment and bullying, better and more training for residence staff and others on campus, hiring of an upper level administrator responsible for diversity and equity issues, and a new, better-staffed GLBT Center. They argued that the current center, a small portion of the first floor in Adams Hall, invited harassment and attack. They were dealing every day with other students calling them names, insulting them, and making them feel unsafe. They had had enough.

The sit-in lasted eight days. During this period a Rutgers University freshman committed suicide after his roommates circulated video of him engaging in sexual activity with another male student. That incident stirred a national debate on bullying and the treatment of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender students at colleges and high schools nationwide.

URI’s student protest became part of the story highlighted in national news reports.

In response, the University agreed to create a new GLBT center in a house on Upper College Road, to hire more staff, and to provide more staff and faculty training. In December the University hired ­Kathryn A. Friedman, former executive director of diversity and equity at the University of Vermont, as interim associate vice president for community, equity, and diversity. Winters’ direct reporting line to Dougan was also restored.

President Dooley said that the administration had been making a good faith effort to address complaints and that the protest resulted from “too infrequent communication.”

“The perception was we weren’t moving fast enough,” he said. “We were working on some of these issues before last summer. The fact is, what they were asking for resonates with my vision for the University as a community. We believe the University should be a safe, nurturing place for all students.”

Easier said than done.

According to experts who have examined the climate for gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, and transgender students, faculty, and staff at colleges across the country, URI is not atypical. The civil rights of sexual minorities have not been as protected as those of

“I didn’t come out until I was 25 and working in Chicago, where there is a very strong gay community.”

UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND 21

“I was accused of being gay because of the cologne I used.”

other groups, the studies conclude. Gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender students suffer harassment and bullying on a regular basis, and faculty and staff suspect discrimination. Ironically, things might actually have become worse as these students have become more assertive in demanding their rights in the national arena. A backlash has occurred on a personal scale, and college students who are often isolated amid opponents of gay rights say they feel unsafe and unwelcome at many institutions.

“The challenging nature of the climate surprised me,” said Susan Rankin, a lead researcher for the “2010 State of Higher Education for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender People” conducted for Campus Pride, a national organization focused on gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, and transgender issues. “The most surprising result of this survey to me was how many people said they have considered leaving their schools because of the climate. They don’t feel safe or welcome.”

Rankin, a professor at Penn State University, has researched these issues for three decades. She agrees that gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, and transgender students have become more visible since a similar study done in 2003, but most college campuses have not made significant changes to improve the climate.

Few schools have centers where gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender students can gather to socialize and discuss issues in a safe place, she noted. “Only 13 percent of schools have sexual orientation and gender identity in their equal opportunity clauses,” she said.

URI has been ahead of many other schools in some ways, but perhaps not far enough ahead. Several alumni interviewed for this story said they felt the same way that today’s undergraduates feel.

James Moore ’88, an attorney in California who was the 1988 Commencement student speaker, said he wanted to come out when he was at URI, “but it wasn’t the right place to do that. My roommate freshman year was extremely homophobic. I was in the closet, but believe it or not, I was accused of being gay because of the cologne I used.”

Moore served on the Student Senate and says he remembers feeling torn when confronted with a committee decision on whether to fund a gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender student organization: “I was worried that if I supported them, I would

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be outed, but at the same time, I admired what they were doing. I worried that if I opposed them, I’d be accused of over-compensating. It was a terrible dilemma for me.”

His experience parallels others gathered for this story. A 2007 alumnus (who asked not to be identified) said he had to move from his residence hall as a freshman because of harassment from his roommate. Current students said they knew of cases where gay students or non-white students who have complained about roommate harassment have been moved rather than the student who caused the problem.

Partly in response to campus incidents, Vice President for Advancement Robert Beagle and the Alumni Association have formed a new chapter for gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, and transgender alumni and friends called the LGBTIQ2 Alumni and Friends Chapter. Marc Archambault ’73, who co-chairs the chapter, said, “I should have pushed for this much earlier. I had a good experience at URI, but it did not encourage me to identify as gay. I want to make sure my University is a safe place for gay students.”

Jessica Raffaele ’04, M.S. ’09, the Alumni Relations staff member coordinating the chapter, said mentoring has been identified as a primary activity for chapter members as has advising administrators on improving the campus climate. She also said the chapter, which held its first networking event at the Alumni Center on February 4, will encourage connections between alumni, faculty, and staff.

Alumni and students interviewed for this article all said that fear of being outed is a constant condition for gay men whose families would not support their decision. It was in the 1970s when Marc Archambault was an undergraduate, and it was for Jim Moore a decade later as it has been for other students ever since. Other alums, including those who said they had a great experience at URI, said they chose not to come out as undergraduates because of the climate on campus. “I wasn’t ready, and I wouldn’t have been ready even had Rhode Island been the most gay-friendly environment,” said Kate Chesley ’79, who was among alumni who met with Dooley in California.

Even current students who are out say they wouldn’t recommend such disclosure to others because of the harassment they’d suffer.

“Absolutely not,” said Brian Stack, a junior who was one of the leaders of the September protest.

“Disclosure just invites too much harassment. We held the protest out of frustration. Ultimately, we want the University to specifically say that it does not and will not tolerate homophobic actions.”

Riley Davis, a sophomore leader of the protest who hopes to become a doctor, said she just accepted mistreatment. “I was always laid back about it,” she said. “I considered that that was the way people were. But things seemed to get worse here, and more kids were coming to the GLBT Center and talking about problems they had. Incidents where people were attacked just made me furious, and I felt we had to do something about it.”

Winters understands the students’ frustrations: “They know that I’ve been bringing these things up for years. Some efforts have been made, but students have still been attacked, and the environment does not feel safe to them because it isn’t safe.

We’ve never really had a full and open discussion about this on campus.”

Among other points, Winters and others note that if a gay student is attacked, he or she faces the dilemma of having to come out in order to report the incident. At 18 or 19 years old, without support from family, that can be extremely difficult. “Even last year, when the silent protest was held, administrators didn’t believe the extent of it,” Winters said. “It’s hard for good people to believe this and to face up to it. But we have to own it in order to change it.”

It took students to do the convincing. At a meeting with President Dooley at his home, students recited incidents of harassment, bullying, and vandalism. Marc Archambault, who attended that meeting, said administrators didn’t seem to believe that it could be so widespread. When one of the students showed a YouTube video posted by a URI student who was shouting epithets as he passed by the GLBT Center in his car, “administrators understood what the students were telling them,” Archambault said.

Several steps to address the climate are in early stages. Provost Donald DeHayes has asked the Faculty Senate to examine general education curricula to incorporate more diversity and multicultural material. A bias response team formed last year to track complaints of harassment and assault has been altered to make certain that victims can learn

the disposition of cases even though student discipline records are private. Diversity task forces now exist throughout the University. In January, resident assistants underwent training about issues concerning sexual minorities, and faculty in several of the University’s colleges attended diversity workshops as part of an effort to raise awareness of issues of power and privilege campus-wide.

Kathryn Friedman, the new interim associate vice president for community, equity, and diversity, said these steps have put URI ahead of other campuses, but there’s still a long way to go “to institutionalize inclusion.” She recommends a structure to bring all the diversity task forces together and to assign various University departments with moving on inclusion and anti-discrimination issues. “That is how you institutionalize inclusion,” Friedman said. “You have to hold people accountable, and it has to start with the leadership of the University from the president to the provost to deans and faculty.”

Does Friedman, who has held similar positions at other schools, worry about backlash? “There is always backlash when you are engaged in social justice and social change,” she said. “But the only way to achieve the change is to move forward.”

The student protest instigated some movement.

“There’s no doubt that the protest made the University pay more attention to these issues,” Winters said. “During the protest over 1,000 people came to talk to the students. It focused the conversation on campus for over a week.”

Ironically, Vice President Thomas Dougan, one of the first officials to arrive on the scene of the protest, told the students that if they left to go to class, they should take a campus police escort. Some agreed; others did not and faced harassing remarks and insults. “It happens all the time,” said Brian Stack. “Now, at least, people are aware of it.”

Dooley agreed that the protest, while it might have cast URI in a negative national light for a time, “was good for the campus. It helped us all understand what these students are facing and what we need to do to make the campus more supportive and welcoming. It is our responsibility to make sure that every student feels safe and can enjoy an atmosphere that encourages learning and development.”

“You have to hold people accountable, and it has to start with the leadership of the University from the president to the provost to deans and faculty.”

— John Pantalone ’71

UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND 23

They hope to co-author a book someday.

Tom says, “I dream of doing a book that merges my love of history and culture with Nancy’s expertise and knowledge of food.

24 QUAD ANGLES SPRING 2011 | URI.EDU/QUADANGLES

Tom Verde and Nancy Verde Barr have a lot in common: They are brother and sister, URI alumni, and cooking enthusiasts. They are also both writers, as in published authors. Between them, they have written 10 books and countless articles covering diverse subjects.

Despite those similarities, they have not followed the same path (nor a course that has run smooth).

When Tom graduated from high school in 1976, his plans didn’t include more time in the classroom. “I was 18 and stupid,” is how he explains it. “My sister Nancy said, ‘Tom, you are going to go to college!’ She actually filled out my application for URI.”

UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND 25

N

ancy knew what she was talking about. She had graduated from URI in January 1967, earning a B.A. in English after transferring there in her junior year, attracted by the school’s English department.

“At the time URI had a Shakespearean scholar, Professor Warren Smith, whose reputation was known well beyond the campus. The entire department was terrific; I could have gone on for 15 years and not depleted the wealth there.”

Enrolled in creative writing, she found herself in class with Tom Griffin ’68, the now-famous poet and playwright. “He was very good. I’d listen to him and think, ‘that’s a writer.’ By comparison, I thought I didn’t have anything to say.” A few years later, her interest in cooking would change all that.

Salad Days “Getting involved in food” had not been part of Nancy’s original career plan. “In 1970, I was teaching in Washington, D.C. and looking for something to do at night while my husband was in school. A friend and I found cooking classes, and I loved it!”

A few years later, now living in Rhode Island, Nancy was invited to assist Julia Child at a fundraiser in Providence. The two hit it off immediately. Nancy went on to work with Julia for the next 25 years, forming a deep personal friendship as well.

“Julia encouraged me to write. My first article was published in 1983 in Food & Wine.” That first article was followed by others in Gourmet and Bon Appétit. “Then, Julia began encouraging me to write an Italian cookbook. She insisted I study with ­Marcella Hazan. I knew southern Italian cooking from home, but this is when my love affair with all Italian food began.”

The book provided an opportunity for Tom and Nancy to work together as writers. We Called it Macaroni: An American ­Heritage of Southern Italian Cooking (published by Knopf in 1990), included stories of the people behind the food.

“My brother did all the interviews for that book. His strength is knowing how to ask questions. Every single minute working with Tom on that book was terrific.”

26 QUAD ANGLES SPRING 2011 | URI.EDU/QUADANGLES

The Pink Ribbon Diet, coauthored by URI alumnae Nancy Verde Barr ’67 and Mary Flynn ’78, Ph.D.’94, offers recipes for eating well, beating weight gain, and lowering cancer risk.

For the Pasta with Roasted Artichokes and Tomatoes dish featured on the previous page, see recipe at uri.edu/quadangles

The Accidental Journalist

The Writing Life

Meanwhile, Tom had been making his way in the world too. He graduated in 1981 with a B.A. in English, and after a false start in banking, a broken heart pushed him to Block Island. He contacted the editor at the local paper: Did he need a reporter? “That was my first writing job. I loved it. It set me on a track I hadn’t anticipated. It was fun, interesting, and I was getting paid to write.”

He landed next in Portland, Maine, reporting for a daily paper and National Public Radio. One day at a press conference, he literally bumped into a Bostonbased journalist for Newsweek named Kate Robins. Soon married to Kate and living in Boston, Tom continued to write for NPR (in particular for the Living on Earth program), and freelanced regularly for the ­Boston Globe.

“I was also writing for PRI [Public Radio International], a show called Marketplace.

The executive producer wanted to do a travel show; I wanted to do travel writing.”

He became a regular correspondent for The Savvy Traveler, eventually covering an assignment in the Middle East, an area that captivated him. “I traveled the Frankincense Route from the Arabian Peninsula up through Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and into Egypt.”

His Middle East experience prompted a return to school for a Master’s degree in Islamic Studies and Muslim Christian Relations. This led to a job teaching Christian theology and philosophy at the King’s Academy in Jordan, an independent boarding school founded in 2006 by King Abdullah II of Jordan and modeled after Deerfield Academy, where the king was educated.

“I wanted the experience of living in the Middle East,” said Tom, “and theology and philosophy were topics of interest to me.”

Now living in Connecticut, Tom writes regularly for Saudi Aramco World (­saudiaramcoworld.com), and teaches Christian theology at Calvary Church in Stonington. He is working on a book proposal; the topic is the life and travels of Egeria, a 4th century Christian pilgrim to the Middle East.

“We’ve always been very close,” Nancy notes. And now, it’s especially nice to share what is for most an unfamiliar occupation. “We understand the writing process. As a matter of fact, Tom edited every one of my books before I sent it in.

I rely on him for this.” Tom relies on Nancy, too. “We take turns talking each other in off the ledge. She’s a good writer, but she’ll come to me for support when she’s uncertain about her writing, and I do the same. We go back and forth.”

To date, in addition to dozens of magazine articles, Nancy has had six books published, including four cookbooks, a memoir, and a novel. Her most recent, released in 2010, is The Pink Ribbon Diet.

Tom is the author of four books and scores of articles for publications that include The New York Times. They hope to co-author a book someday. Tom says, “I dream of doing a book that merges my love of history and culture with Nancy’s expertise and knowledge of food.

“The thing about writing is that it allows you to be a perpetual student.

When you find your niche—writing about something that’s important to you— follow that path. Ultimately, I’ve ended up where my interests lie: History and the intersection of three monolithic religions. I consider writing a great privilege. It’s the best job in the world.”

Sister Nancy concurs.

By Martha Murphy ’81

MEET THE AUTHORS Alumni and friends interested in writing are invited to the URI Alumni Center on May 5, 5:30–7:30 p.m. to meet Nancy Verde Barr and Tom Verde, who will share some of their writing experiences. The event, hosted by the URI Writers Affinity Group, will give those interested in the writing life a chance to connect and enjoy refreshments. Cost is $10.

Registration is required.

To register online today, go to advance.uri.edu/alumni/chapters/

PHOTOS: NORA LEWIS, ISTOCK

UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND 27

ALUMNICHAPTERS

advance.uri.edu/alumni/chapters

FUN WITH ALUMS Chapter events are open to all alumni, family, and friends of the University. Contact your local chapter rep and join the fun!

CALENDAR OF EVENTS Upcoming Events March 30 The Texas Rhode Horn Chapter is offering a great three-game Houston Astros package for $55.

Purchase a ticket to the July 1 Astros–Red Sox game and the September 12 Astros–Phillies game, and receive a free pre-season game ticket for March 30. The regular season games will each include an all-you-can-eat buffet. Online registration available. For more information, contact Chapter Leader Jeff Ross ‘75 at JRoss67785@aol.com.

June 7 Save the date for the annual Theta Chi (Eta Chapter) golf tournament/clambake at Mike Testa's Jamestown home. For questions and details, contact Theta Chi Affinity Chapter Leaders John Eastman '62 at 401-295-1956 or Joneastman@aol.com or Mike Testa '63 at 401-423-8918 or jtown@cox.net.

June 18 The Northern California Chapter will be gathering for tailgating at the Oakland A's–San Franciso Giants game. Details available soon. Contact Sarah Lobdell at 401-874-2438 or slobdell@advance.uri.edu with questions.

April 2 The Dallas/Fort Worth Chapter will host a wine tasting at Wine Styles in Fort Worth. Enjoy a tasting of wines with food samplings, and the chance to gather with fellow URI alumni, family, and friends. Online registration available. For further details, contact David Nicolato ‘98 at rhodygrad@gmail.com or 214-341-6369.

September 24 The16th annual Northern California Chapter clambake will be held at Coyote Point Park in San Mateo from 11 a.m.–4 p.m. For more information, contact Sarah Lobdell at 401-874-2438, or slobdell@advance.uri.edu.

April 2 The Arizona Rhode Runners Alumni Chapter is hosting a “picnic in the desert” at Greasewood Flats from 4–7 p.m. Online registration available. For questions, contact Chapter Leader Julie Griffin ’99 at julez99@aol.com.

The Southwest Florida Gators hosted a luncheon at the Royal Palm Yacht Club in Fort Myers on January 22.

April 5 Join the Massachusetts Chapter Professionals Club at the TD Garden for “Professional Connections” with special guest Boston Celtics President Rich Gotham, and take in the Celtics–76ers game from a private Promenade Suite with a cash bar ($48 per person). Game time is 7:30 p.m. The Professionals Club was created to promote friendship and networking opportunities among URI professionals working in Massachusetts. Space is limited.

Online registration available. For more information, contact Chapter Leaders Mike Sams ’90 at mpsams@KandSlegal.com or Nicholas G. Chigas '03 at Nicholas.G.Chigas@mssb.com.

Events Gone By

Massachusetts Chapter alumni and friends gathered at the Improv Asylum, named “Boston’s Best Comedy Club,” for a special show on January 27.

On February 4, the LGBTIQ2 (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, Queer, and Questioning) Alumni and Friends Chapter hosted its first event, which was held at the URI Alumni Center.

The Northern California Chapter hosted a game watch party at the Englander Sports Pub & Restaurant in San Leandro for the February 5 URI–Temple men’s basketball game.

April 9 Join the Southwest Florida Gators for their annual Steak Out. This event will be held at the Port Charlotte Beach Complex at 11 a.m. Pricing and registration available soon. For questions, contact Michelle Fontes-Barros at 401-874-4854 or mfontes-barros@advance.uri.edu.

April 27 Join fellow URI alums for a Steak Roast with The Villages (FL) Alumni Chapter. Gather on the deck at Cody’s Original Roadhouse at 4:30 p.m. Dinner at 5:30 p.m.

Cost is $21 per person. Online registration available. For more information, contact Chapter Leader Al Bateman ‘59, at acbnaples@aol.com.

May 5 The Writers Affinity Chapter invites alumni and friends interested in writing to the URI Alumni Center from 5:30–7:30 p.m. Authors and siblings Nancy Verde Barr and Tom Verde (see story on page 24) will share some of their writing experiences with the group. Enjoy refreshments and time to meet other alumni with a passion for writing (or reading). Cost is $10 per person. Online registration available. For questions, contact Chapter Leader Jan Wenzel at wenzel@advance.uri.edu.

28 QUAD ANGLES SPRING 2011 | URI.EDU/QUADANGLES

The Southeast Florida Chapter hosted a viewing party at the Fort Lauderdale Chart House for the URI–Temple men’s basketball game on February 5.

The Dallas/Fort Worth Chapter got together on February 8 for a presentation by historian and oceanographer Stewart B. Nelson Ph.D. ‘74.

The Rhode Island Chapter hosted a career networking and resume critique event in Providence on February 9.

On February 11, the Phi Kappa Psi Chapter hosted its annual Founders Day event at Spirito’s Restaurant in Providence.

The New York and New Jersey Chapters got together on February 26 for the URI–Fordham men’s basketball game and a pre-game reception at the Izod Center on February 26.

On February 27, the Louisiana/Mississippi Chapter celebrated Mardi Gras in Slidell, Louisiana, with a potluck luncheon followed by the Dionysus Parade.

On March 1, the Theta Chi Chapter hosted its quarterly dinner at Chianti’s Restaurant in East Greenwich.

The Stand Up Against Lyme Chapter held its kickoff event at Senor Flacos in Westerly on March 2.

On March 4, the Massachusetts and Rhode Island Chapters got together for a Celtics game at Boston’s TD Garden.

On March 7, the Southwest Florida Gators took in a Red Sox–Orioles spring training game in Fort Myers and a pre-game barbecue.

REUNION Members of the 1985 ROTC Commisioning Class celebrated their 25th reunion during 2010 Homecoming Weekend.

TIME FOR DINNER Theta Chi Affinity Chapter members meet quarterly for dinner and brotherly camaraderie.

REGIONAL CHAPTERS

Minnesota

AFFINITY CHAPTERS

Lambda Delta Phi

Schmidt Labor Research Center

Arizona Rhode Runners

John ’92 & Kristen Turcotte ’95, Saint Louis Park, MN p: 952.285.1148 e: jfturcotte@mindspring.com keturcotte@mindspring.com New Hampshire White Mountain Rams

Alpha Chi Omega Gamma Sigma Shanon Whitt Horridge '86 Cranston, RI p: 401.383.4657 e: shannyh40@aol.com alpha phi Alpha Phi

Linda F. Desmond ’68, North Andover, MA p: 978.687.7443 (h) 978.794.3896 (w) e: lfdesmond@comcast.net

J. Richard Rose M.S. ’06 p: 401.461.2786 (h) e: rrose@mail.uri.edu Sigma Chi

Julie Griffin ’99 Scottsdale, AZ p: 480.634.1950 (h) 480.754.6147 (w) e: Julez99@aol.com California LA Rams Brett Freitas ‘99, Santa Monica, CA p: 323.833.8011 (h) e: brettfrietas@gmail.com Northern Greg Passant ’80, Pleasanton, CA p: 925.227.1878 Southern Jeff Bolognese ’02, Oceanside, CA p: 760.945.4560 e: jeff@richmondfinancial.net Colorado Mile High Rams Christy L. Gallese '03 Denver, CO p: 717.856.8525 e: christygallese@gmail.com Connecticut Tara Blumenstock ’96, Wallingford, CT p: 203.294.0246 e: tarabarbara@hotmail.com Janet Sisson ’87, Middletown, CT p: 860.214.7998 e: sissonj@independentdayschool.org Florida Southeast Riki Greenbaum ’01, Homestead, FL p: 305.978.2023 e: rhgreenbaum@yahoo.com Southwest Gators Richard Boldt ’64, Naples, FL p: 239.417.0375 e: rboldt854@aol.com The Villages Al Bateman ’59, The Villages, FL e: acbnaples@aol.com Illinois: Chicago Jimmy De La Zerda ’04, Orland Park e: jimmydlz401@gmail.com Louisiana/Mississippi Dee Canada ’62, Slidell, LA p: 985.643.8801 (h) e: delinac@charter.net Phyllis DelFiore ’68, Slidell, LA p: 985.847.1609 (h) e: feliciadf@hotmail.com Massachusetts

Clarissa M. Uttley ’04, M.S. ’06, Ph.D. ’08, Rumney, NH p: 603.786.5035 (h) 603.535.2915 (w) e: cmuttley@plymouth.edu New Jersey Lauri Pietruszka ’84, West Paterson, NJ p: 973.890.1623 (h) e: lauriann_p@yahoo.com New York: Albany Cindy Ladd Anderson ‘80, Clifton Park, NY p: 518.373.9440 (h) 518.527.4195 (c) e: rhodymom3@gmail.com New York: Metro John Companario ’93, New York, NY e: john.campanario@gmail.com North Carolina

We are seeking chapter leadership in this area. If you are interested in learning more, please contact Gina Simonelli at 401.874.5808.

Chi Phi Douglas Bennet ’77, Providence, RI p: 401.351.3522 (h) e: dbennet@aol.com Community Planning Mike DeLuca ’80, M.C.P. ’88, Narragansett, RI p: 401.789.6888 (h) 401.461.1000, ext. 3137 (w) Continuing Education Joyce Dolbec ’95, Slatersville, RI p: 401.766.2209 (h) Delta Zeta

Mark Trovato ’89, Wakefield, RI p: 401.782.0064 (h) e: mtrovato@riag.state.ri.us www.rhodysig.com Sigma Pi

Martha Smith Patnoad ’68, Wyoming, RI p: 401.539.2180 e: mpatnoad@uri.edu Music Department Alumni Allison Lacasse ’07, Boston, MA p: 508.971.3527 (h) 978.251.5177 (w) e: allisonlacasse@gmail.com Nicholas Zammarelli Jr. '97 Coventry, RI p: 401-828-5823 (h) e: nzamm1@verizon.net Phi Gamma Delta Richard Kingsley ‘71, Jamestown, RI p: 401.874.6693 (w) e: kingsley@gso.uri.edu Phi Kappa Psi

Nancy Lundgren ’54, Tiverton, RI p: 401.624.6364 (h) Graduate School of Library and Information Studies

Joe Hart ’85, Kingston, RI p: 401.783.4852 e: pkpribeta@cox.net www.ribeta.com Phi Mu Delta

Ed Doughty ’93, Charlotte, NC p: 704.995.9300 (h) 704.552.5200 (w) e: eddoughty@gmail.com

Sybil Akins '08 Wakefield, RI p: 401.783.0953 e: sma718@gmail.com

Jim DeNuccio ‘75, East Greenwich, RI p: 401.884.2993 (w) f: 401.885.2228 (w) Phi Sigma Kappa

Ohio

Jenna Hecker '09 Providence, RI p: 518.542.7654 (h) 781.769.0200 (w) e: jennahecker@gmail.com Hasbro

Kenneth Gambone ‘88, New York, NY p: 917.701.4631 e: Kenneth.gambone@barclayscapital.com Political Science

Tom Noyes ’67, Wooster, OH p: 330.345.6516 (h) 330.264.8722 (w) e: noyes.1@osu.edu Danielle Pray ’88, Walton, KY p: 859.485.6790 e: d@prayzpaws.com

We are seeking chapter leadership in this area. If you are interested in learning more, please contact Gina Bill ’74 & Betty ’74 Sepe, Hudson, OH Simonelli at 401.874.5808. p: 330.650.6715 Italian e: OHRhody@hotmail.com Rhode Island Allison Field ’95, Providence, RI p: 401.808.9463 e: allison@conderi.com Texas Dallas/Ft. Worth Cortney ’01 and David Nicolato ‘98, Dallas, TX p: 401.255.5127 (c) e: rhodygrad@gmail.com Texas Rhode Horns

Jeffrey A. Ross ’75, Houston p: 713.668.3746 (h) 713.791.9521 (w) Nicholas G. Chigas ’03, Waltham, MA e: jross67785@aol.com p: 978.505.7161 (h) 781.672.5170 (w) Washington, D.C./ Baltimore e: nicholas.g.chigas@mssb.com Hank Nardone ’90, Laytonsville, MD Michael P. Sams ’90, p: 301.803.2910 (w) Westborough, MA 301.482.1062 (h) p: 508.665.4299 (w) e: henryjn@us.ibm.com e: mpsams@kandSlegal.com Brina Masi '01, Baltimore, MD Michigan p: 401.261.5416 e: brimasi16@gmail.com David Diana ’84, Warren, MI p: 586.268.0048 e: dianad@flash.net

Alfred Crudale ’91, West Kingston, RI p: 401.783.3081 e: acwvmhs@rinet35.org Remo Trivelli, Kingston, RI p: 401.874.2383 Lucia Vescera ’96, Lincoln, RI e: lvescera@hotmail.com LGBTIQ2 (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, Queer, and Questioning Alumni and Friends) Marc R. Archambault ‘73, Wakefield, RI p: 401.932.3715 (c) e: marc@randallrealtors.com Gregory C. Waugh ‘07, North Kingstown, RI p: 401.787.3980 (h) e: Gregory.waugh@gmail.com Lambda Chi Alpha Jeffrey Hill ‘00, Shippensburg, PA p: 717.530.0188 e: firemarshal70@hotmail.com

Al Killilea, Kingston, RI p: 401.874.2183 (w) Physical Therapy Program Alumni John McLinden ’93, Wakefield, RI p: 401.783.7179 (h) 401.874.5001 (w) e: Elvis1122@aol.com RIDOT Christos Xenophontos ’84, Exeter, RI e: xenophon@dot.ri.gov

George B. Smith ‘66, Venice, FL p: 941.408.9786 e: drgeorgebsmith@verizon.net Student Alumni Association Louis R. Maccarone II ’00, Cranston, RI p: 401.486.7849 e: Louis.maccarone@gmail.com Lindsay Redfern Lazzeri ‘04, Boynton Beach, FL p: 561.735.7811 401.474.6580 (c) e: lindsayredfern@gmail.com Stand Up Against Lyme David J. Wallace ’76, ‘92, Exeter, RI e: dave@teegreensod.com Theta Chi John Eastman ’62, North Kingstown, RI p: 401.295.1956 (h) e: joneastman@aol.com Mike Testa ‘63, Jamestown, RI p: 401.423.8918 e: jtown@cox.net Theta Delta Chi Eric Lalime ’95 p: 201.962.2001 (h) 347.739.7345 (cell) e: eric_lalime@ml.com URI Difference Equations Association Michael A. Radin ‘01, Rochester, NY p: 585.461.4002 (h) 585.475.7681 (w) e: michael.radin@rit.edu Writers Affinity Group

Jan Wenzel '87, Tiverton, RI Charles St. Martin ’92, Coventry, RI e: cstm@cox.net; cstmartin@dot.ri.gov p: 401.714.6595 (c) 401.874.5190 (w) ROTC e: wenzel@ds.uri.edu William MacKinlay '69 p: 781.608.7335 e: WMacKinlay@TaskForcePro.com Military Instructor Group, Kingston, RI e: urirotcalumni@cox.net www.uri.rotc.alum.org

Are you a veteran? The Alumni Association is interested in starting a URI Veterans Chapter, and would like to hear from you. If you would like to learn more, please contact Bob Ferrell '07 at rferrell@advance.uri.edu or 401.874.7402.

UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND 29

CLASSACTS

Read Class Notes Online at advance.uri.edu/quadangles/classnotes Submit Class Notes Online at advance.uri.edu/eservices

ALUMNI DIRECTORY

STAY

CONNECTED

ALUMNI OF THE GAME Held during halftime at home A-10 men’s basketball contests, The Alum of the Game program began three years ago as a way to honor alumni who have distinguished themselves by their service to the University, by their service to the community, and/or through their

`49 Marguerite Mansolillio Lischio, CBA, of West Palm Beach, Fla., and her husband, Paul Lischio ‘49, write: “We could never have dreamed that our meeting on the Quad in 1946 would lead to a beautiful 60th anniversary celebration with family and friends at the Breakers Hotel in Palm Beach, Fla., on October 23, 2010. God blessed us with good health and lots of love.”

`55 Marvin W. Kassed, A&S, of New Port Richey, Fla., writes: “I’m spending my free time with our 9-year-old grandson, who lives with us. We’re involved with competetive soccer and having fun.”

`57 David Quincy McDowell, ENG, of Penfield, N.Y., received Honorary

READ LISTEN WATCH

Membership, the highest award of the Society for Imaging Science & Technology, for his energetic and tireless support of standards in the graphic arts and imaging industries.

David is retired from the Professional Imaging Division of Eastman Kodak Company, where he worked for 42 years.

`58 Donald B. Dinger, ENG, of Great Falls, Va., writes: “I have been appointed to serve on the National Advisory Council of the School of Engineering and Applied Science of George Washington University.”

Edward B. Dupuis, A&S, of Hilton Head Island, S.C., writes: “In May 2011, we will begin our 10th year as producers and directors of the May River Theatre Co., Inc., serving the Bluffton/Hilton Head Low Country community. We do four Broadway type musicals annually performing

QUAD ANGLES ONLINE advance.uri.edu/quadangles

30 QUAD ANGLES SPRING 2011 | URI.EDU/QUADANGLES

careers. Seen here with President David Dooley and Vice President for University Advancement Bob Beagle are four of the six alumni who are being honored this year. Gail Frechette ’72, honored at the Xavier game on January 9; Lorne A. Adrain ’76, M.B.A. ’83, honored at the St. Bonaventure game on January 16; John V. Priore ’87, honored at the La Salle game on January 22; Joseph G. Formicola Jr., honored at the Charlotte game on February 12.

before good audiences in our 200seat theatre. Chicago opens in May. Come see us if you are in the area.”

`61 Robert Edward Davis, A&S, of Crofton, Md., is a research scientist, member of the Senior Scientist Research Service, and head of the USDA’s Molecular Plant Pathology Laboratory in Beltsville, Md. For scientific contributions including discovery of a new life form of helical and motile, wall-less bacterium for which he coined the term spiroplasma, he has received the American Phytopathological Society Ruth Allen Award; the USDA’s Silver Plow Award; U.S. Presidential Rank Award of Distinguished Senior Professional; Qilu Friendship Award from Shandong Provincial Government, China; and Order of the Knights Cross from the President of the Republic of Lithuania. He was inducted into the USDA-ARS Science Hall of Fame. He is a Fellow of the American Phytopathological Society, the Washington Academy of Sciences, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science; he is a member of the National Academy of Sciences. His current research focuses on spiroplasmas and on another group of wall-less bacteria called phytoplasmas. Bob enjoys spending time with his wife, Maryann, two sons, and four grandchildren.

`63 Susan Zarchy Fischer, A&S, of Scottsdale, Ariz., writes: “I was happily married on October 2, 2010, to Jim Fischer. I am retired from many years of school counseling and now do volunteer counseling, help at a local hospital, and do Reiki with Jim. We are enjoying our five childen and eight grandhchildren, all of whom live locally! I was an elementary ed. major, not certain what it’s called now!”

`64 Richard L. Ferro, A&S, & his wife, Cecelia Amman Ferro ‘66, of Newport, R.I., write: “We have moved from Portsmouth, R.I., to Newport where we plan to retire. Recently met up with several classmates we haven’t seen since graduation.”

Herbert G. Peterson, ENG, of Barrington, R.I., writes: “My wife, Carolyn Healey Peterson ‘63 died in 2006. I’m now semi-retired from Peterson Engineering. I operate Wishing Star Observatory in collaboration with the Harvard Smithsonian Minor Planet Center; having flexible hours allows me time for long nights of star gazing.”

`66 Eugene F. Spring, ENG, of Wakefield, R.I., writes: “I moved from Richmond,

PHOTOS COURTESY OF URI DEPARTMENT OF ATHELTICS

Alumni Association Ram Award Alan Zartarian ’69, seen here with his wife, Marilyn ’70, has sat on just about every major board URI has to offer. He is among the select few to have attended all six NCAA tournament victories by the men’s basketball team. For these reasons and more, Zartarian has been honored with the URI Alumni Association’s Ram Award. The first recipient since 2005, he was honored during the Feb. 19th men’s basketball game against UMass. “I have a passion for URI,” Zartarian said.

“It started out with athletics, particularly football and basketball. Over the years, it has grown into support across the board.”

R.I., last year to a new condo in Wakefield Meadows. I also spend four months a year in Florida at my condo there. I’m still practicing in Rhode Island as a professional engineer and sole proprietor.”

`72 Michael A. Covellone, A&S, of Warwick, R.I., is president-elect of the New England Water Works Association, the region’s largest organizationo of water works professionals.

Susan Corry Luz, NUR, of North Scituate, R.I. At age 56, Army Reservist Colonel Susan Luz served as a nurse in war-ravaged Mosul, Iraq.

She was the highest-ranking female soldier in the Army Reserver’s 399th Combat Support Hospital when she was called to active duty. She has received a Bronze Star. She is the author of The Nightingale of Mosul, a Nurse’s Journey of Service, Struggle, and War. At first reluctant when she was approached to write the book, she came to see it as an opportunity to raise awareness of issues that are important to her: women in the military, volunteering to help veterans, and cystic fibrosis. She hopes the book will inspire others to live a positive life and to give of themselves to the community, to veterans, and to soldiers. She retired from the military in May 2010.

`73 John E. Anderson, A&S, of North Scituate, R.I., and his wife, Karen LeBlanc Anderson ‘73, owners of Enviro-Clean, Inc., of Smithfield, R.I., have been honored with a Business Excellence Award for 2010 by Providence Business News. One of seven recipients, Enviro-Clean was chosen in the overall business excellence category for companies with under 100 employees.

`75 Linda A’Vant-Deishinni, A&S, of Providence, R.I., is curator for the Creative Survival exhibit, which covers 200 years of African-American history in Rhode Island, at the Rhode Island Black Heritage Society. She is the first black curator in the Northeast.

Dennis R. Eckloff, A&S, of Cranston, R.I., joined Cranston-based Primary Flow Signal, Inc., as a controller. The company is a leader in the design, manufacture, and application of differential producer flow metering equipment and accessories used worldwide for measuring liquid, gas, and steam flow.

Perry C. Howard, A&S, of Kingston, R.I., and his wife, Mary LenihanLabossiere Howard ’75, are now both retired after a lifetime of working in many locations in the USA, the latest being New Jersey. Their new Kings-

NORA LEWIS

ton retirement home is in the town where they first met, the most lovely town they have ever known.

`78 Kenneth B. Booth, CELS, of Lincoln, R.I., was elected Rhode Island state director of the New England Water Works Association, the region’s largest organization of water works professionals.

`80 Jeffrey G. Folkins, CELS, of Springfield, Mass., is vice president of sales & marketing at Classic Coil in Bristol, Conn; he is responsible for worldwide sales. Classic Coil is the manufacturer of fine wire medical implanted coils for invasive surgery.

Patricia K. Keogh, A&S, of Bangor, Maine, writes: “I retired from Rhode Island College’s Child Welfare Institute as a clinical training specialist and moved to Maine in 2004. I work as a community relations specialist and teacher at Beal College, a junior college that was estabished in 1891.

It is a vital part of the fabric of central Maine. I stay in touch with friends I met at URI and still treasure the time I was a student there. The solid education I received enabled me to have a wonderful career through these 26 plus years. I am active in many volunteer activities and in the Episcopal Church here in Maine. I love theatre, entertaining, and most especially enjoy the State of Maine with my grandsons, who vow to teach me to kayak!”

`81 B. Michael Rauh, A&S, of Narragansett, R.I., is president of Chelsea Groton Bank.

`82

`93

Thomas G. Brennan, A&S, of Meridian, Idaho, writes: “My business, Tuu Sensational! Communications, has a new Web site: tuusensational.com.

We’re offering Web content and SEO services for agribusinesses, ranches, and farms in the Western states.”

Michael L. Hanna, CBA, of Wakefield, R.I., a CPA and principal of the Providence-based firm Sullivan & Co., was elected to the North America board of directors of CPA Associates International, Inc., a selective association of independent accounting firms. He has been with the firm for 28 years.

Christine M. Carr, HS&S, of Wakefield, R.I., is a Mom’s Choice Awards Gold Recipient in the Parenting Humor category for her book Mother Daze: Tales from the Imperfect Playground. The Mom’s Choice Awards are given to authors, inventors, companies, and parents for their efforts in creating quality family friendly media, products, and services.

`84 Daniel R. May, ENG, of McLean, Va, a rear admiral in the U.S. Coast Guard, is commander of the USCG Personnel Services Center in Arlington, Va.

`88 Robert J. Alvine, CBA, of Bridgeport, Conn., president and general manager of Premier Subaru and Premier Lotus in Branford, Conn., has been named a President’s Award Dealer by Subaru of New England.

Premier Subaru is a back-to-back winner of the Subaru of New England President’s Club Award provided to dealers with exceptional sales and client satisfaction. In addition, Robert was named to the board of directors of the Better Business Bureau of Connecticut.

Paul F. Fioravanti, HS&S, of Cranston, R.I., is chief operating officer with Maxton Technology/Bay State Design of Marlboro, Mass.

`94 Mary C. Sullivan, NUR, of West Kingston, R.I., was invited into the Fellowship of the American Academy of Nursing. This honor and celebration was held at the Point Judith Country Club on November 20, 2010.

`95 Denise M. Medeiros, M.L.S., of South Dartmouth, Mass., is director of the Wareham Free Library.

`98 Joshua L. Celeste, CELS, of Cranston, R.I., has been named a partner in the firm of Duffy & Sweeney, Ltd., Business Law & Litigation in Providence.

Michelle Errington Nicholson, HS&S, of Gardner, Mass., writes: “I am co-editor of a book that was to be released in December that is marketed to higher education prep programs and professionals. The title is Empowering Women in Higher Education and Student Affairs: Theory, Research, Narratives, and Practice from Feminist Perspectives. For more information, visit http://stylus. styluspub.com/Books/BookDetail. aspx?productID=205835.”

UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND 31

`01

`05

WEDDINGS

Gina Dei Simonelli, HS&S, of Wakefield, R.I., assistant director of Alumni Relations at URI, received the Rising Star award from the regional chapter of the Council of Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), District 1. The Rising Star award recognizes the accomplishments of new advancement professionals whose early success promises future leadership and achievement.

Raymond L. Watson, CELS, of Providence, R.I., chief of the Wauchaunat Band of the Narragansett Tribe, is executive director of the Mount Hope Neighborhood Association in Providence.

Nicholas P. Soscia ‘99 to Nicole S. Normand, on October 2, 2010.

`02 Kirk Amaral Snow, A&S, of Boston, Mass., had his sculpture, “Sometimes It’s Hard to Go On,” selected for a jurors’ prize in the 2010 edition of Boston Young Contemporaries. The exhibition also featured another of Kirk’s sculptures, “When Transition Becomes Stasis.” A review of the exhibition with an image of “Sometimes...” ran in a recent issue of The Boston Phoenix: see http://thephoenix.com/Boston/arts/105176-newdirections/?page=2#TOPCONTENT Richard J. Bowen, M.M.A., of Pocasset, Mass., writes: “I retired and only work summers now as captain on the Hyline Nantucket Ferry. Best regards to all Marine Affairs faculty.”

`07 Celita K. Vargas, ENG, of East Providence, R.I., is a civil and environmental engineer designing bridges for Commonwealth Engineers & Consultants.

Louis Maccarone ‘00 to Bethany Lussier, on October 10, 2010.

Courtney L. Ambrosino ‘01 to Kris Costa, on May 1, 2010.

Julie M. Iacono ‘02 to Andrew E. Minkoff, on August 29, 2010.

Thomas Muddiman ‘49 of Naples, Fla., on December 26, 2010.

Adele Shuster Zuckerman ‘49 of Longboat Key, Fla., on June 29, 2010.

William Hall ‘50 of Ferguson, Mo., on November 13, 2010.

Joy Barrows Nordquist ‘50 of North Scituate, R.I., on November 5, 2010.

Michael R. Pierson ‘02 to Sara J. Olink, on August 28, 2010.

Ethelind Sigloch Gibson ‘51 of Nacogdoches, Texas, on December 23, 2010.

David A. DeFusco ‘03 to Randi B. Volpe, on July 30, 2010.

Burton Hoffman ‘52 of Newport, R.I., on November 17, 2010.

Joshua Weisz-Smith, HS&S, of New Shoreham, Block Island, R.I., is in his second year teaching Spanish at the Block Island School. Teaching is not only a profession for Joshua, but also an opportunity to share his passion for Spanish language and culture.

Allison J. Greenberg ‘03 to Sean Donovan, on August 8, 2010.

Zenas Van Fleet ‘53 of Northborough, Mass., on December 6, 2010.

Susan C. Papino ‘06 to Andrew Krajewksi ‘05, on July 31, 2010.

Melvin Blasbalg ‘54 of Coventry, R.I., on November 16, 2010.

Kent T. Stepanishen ‘06 to Kristen L. Moody ‘08, on October 23, 2010.

Donald Johnson ‘54 of Cranston, R.I., on December 8, 2010.

`10

Daniel P. Silva ‘07 to Kathleen E. Hoague ‘07, on June 27, 2009.

Gordon Morrison ‘55 of Saunderstown, R.I., on November 13, 2010.

Michael D. Bessette ‘08 to Andrea E. Mackowitz, on June 5, 2010.

Caroline Helie ‘57 of Coventry, R.I., on December 21, 2010.

Kevin DiBiasio ‘08 to Melanie D’Acchioli, on July 24, 2010.

Harvey Kevorkian ‘57 of Bennington, Vt., on October 20, 2010.

BIRTHS

Frederick Lanphear ‘57 of Bothell, Wash., on September 9, 2010.

`08

Megan S. Lawrence, CELS, of Wappingers Falls, N.Y., has opened Simplicity at 1820 New Hackensack Road (Route 376) in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. Megan describes her store as “a new kind of consignment shop, a stylish boutique of fashionable and affordable clothing, accessories, and home goods including consigned and new items, fair-trade merchandise, and underground labels.”

Jason A. and Lynda J. Golditch ‘93, a son, Ryan Benjamin, on November 30, 2009.

Jay and Karen Purinton Humes ‘02, a son, Andrew Michael, on September 12, 2010.

THE UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND ALUMNI ASSOCIATION and the 2011 BIG CHILL WEEKEND COMMITTEE express their sincere appreciation for a successful event to the following: Honorary Chairs KATHY O’DONNELL-WHITE ’90, Senior Vice President, Director of Public Affairs, Citizens Financial Group, Inc. And JOHN J. PALUMBO ’76, President and Publisher, Rhode Island Monthly As well as the following businesses for their generous sponsorship: Amica Insurance Bank Newport Rhode Island Monthly

Bank of America Citizens Bank Washington Trust

IN MEMORIAM

Edward Trimble ‘59 of Narragansett, R.I., on November 7, 2010.

Carol Jacobson McGlinchey ‘60 of Wellesley, Mass., on November 27, 2010.

Louis Cappuccio ‘38 of Westerly, R.I., on November 26, 2010.

Carl Allen ‘61 of Manchester, Conn., on August 13, 2002.

Cora Phillips ‘41 of Seattle, Wash., on October 13, 2010.

David Schofield ‘61 of Kennebunk, Maine, on November 27, 2010.

Lester Friedman ‘42 of Warwick, R.I., on January 2, 2011.

Francis Sequino ‘61 of Warren, R.I., on November 4, 2010.

Richard Parnigoni ‘42 of Plantsville, Conn., on November 14, 2010.

Alvin Simpson ‘62 of Swansea, Mass., on October 5, 2010.

Edna McLain Dolland ‘43 of Galion, Ohio, on December 14, 2010.

Paul Zaroogian ‘64 of Geneva, N.Y., on October 28, 2010.

Morris Satloff ‘43 of Providence, R.I., on January 9, 2011.

John Scattergood ‘65 of New Hartford, Conn., on October 28, 2010.

Phyllis Cochran Miller ‘44 of Olean, N.Y., on December 15, 2010.

Martin Hartigan ‘66 of Lincoln, Calif., on November 21, 2010.

Yolanda Santulli Panciera ‘46 of Saunderstown, R.I., on December 27, 2010.

Russell Cotnoir ‘68 of East Winthrop, Maine, on October 24, 2010.

Elmer Congdon ‘47 of Wakefield, R.I., on February 28, 2010.

James Crossley ‘47 of Warwick, R.I., on December 29, 2010.

Justine Richardson ‘47 of Cranston, R.I., on January 5, 2011.

John Kapowich ‘49 of Sunnyvale, Calif., on September 29, 2010.

32 QUAD ANGLES SPRING 2011 | URI.EDU/QUADANGLES

Raymond Harrington ‘58 of Providence, R.I., on December 18, 2010.

Judith Boyle Flynn ‘68 of Norton, Mass., on October 7, 2010.

Joan Stedman ‘68 of Wakefield, R.I., on March 13, 2009.

James Wells ‘68 of Palm Bay, Fla., on December 21, 2010.

Thomas Haynes ‘70 of Greene, R.I., on October 28, 2008.

Katie Strauss ’09

Heather Pacheco ’98

Child Life Specialist

The Art of Teaching Science

In August 2010, after 32 hours of traveling, Katie Strauss walked into the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital on the outskirts of Cape Town, South Africa. A certified child life specialist, she was there to volunteer her skills for three months in the Pediatric Burn Unit. Child life specialists work alongside medical staff to create a positive environment for children and their families in the hospital. Through play and art, they help kids understand everything that is happening around them.

After completing the Human Development and Family Studies program at URI, Strauss was looking for a way to obtain additional experience before joining the work force. During her internship at a New Jersey hospital, she heard about the program in Cape Town and couldn’t stop thinking about it.

Working in South Africa was unlike anything she’d ever done: “For the first two weeks, it was intense. Everything I saw I had never seen before, and every experience was foreign to me.” The children coming into the Burn Unit displayed wounds caused by open cooking fires, falling pans of boiling water, or electrical shocks. Many of them came from impoverished neighborhoods.

In one-room houses constructed largely of tin sheeting, accidents were common.

Every morning Strauss worked with children in the Burn Unit as they underwent dressing changes: “It’s an extremely painful process and very scary for the children.” Strauss used aids like books, medical play kits, and breathing techniques to help them get through it.

“Throughout my time in South Africa, I realized what truly matters in life,” Struass said. “Happiness has nothing to do with material items; it is the memories you treasure, the experiences you have, and the people you have them with.”

Throughout her stay in South Africa, Strauss documented her experiences through her life-long hobby of photography. Her work, as well as her blog, can be seen at katiestrauss.com.

—Bethany Vaccaro ’06

Armed with a new degree in geology and geological oceanography from URI, Heather Pacheco set out on a three-month road trip across the country to see America’s natural wonders. She discovered the Grand Canyon, the hot springs of Wyoming, and the majestic Rocky Mountains. She also discovered that Americans had “a general lack of appreciation and understanding of the natural resources around them.” She decided to do something about that by becoming a science teacher.

Pacheco earned her master’s in education from the University of Massachusetts in Boston and began teaching earth sciences at Framingham (Mass.) High School. She strongly believes that science needs to be taught well because “we want to have a critically thinking community of citizens with a solid background in scientific concepts who can make well-informed decisions.”

In 2009, Pacheco received an Albert Einstein Distinguished Education Fellowship to work with the National Science Foundation in Virginia evaluating school science and technology programs for effective engagement with the K–12 science education community.

When the fellowship ended, Pacheco joined researchers from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute on a trans-Atlantic research expedition studying foraminifera fossils as a way to track climate change, an issue Pacheco believes is shaking Americans’ trust in the scientific community: “The American climate change ‘debate’ not only impacts the faith of Americans in the scientific community, but it also has negatively impacted the faith of Americans in their schools and teachers.”

Her goal is to bring new life to science education by focusing on quality interdisciplinary professional development for teachers. For Pacheco it is vital to have “a well educated and continually educated teacher workforce that sees students as whole people.” She wants science to empower teachers and students alike with the knowledge that “regardless of race, gender, socioeconomic status, or culture they can access information, form opinions, and have a voice in their own communities.”

Pacheco is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in science education at Arizona State University.

—Robin Deal

David Bill, M.M.A. ’97

Tied in Knots

When Capt. David Bill was a Boy Scout learning to tie knots, he never guessed that his new interest would someday take him to faraway places and lead to the creation of a unique pet toy company.

Bill, 51, a nautical science instructor at Tabor Academy in Marion, Mass., has combined his passion for knot tying with his love for animals to create Island Time Pet Toys, an exclusive line of all natural, nautical themed playthings made from cotton rope and twine.

“I’ve pretty much been a water rat since I was a kid,” says Bill, who grew up on Long Island Sound. “My mom tells me that I would crawl down to the water’s edge and eat sand as an infant.”

Bill credits URI’s Master of Marine Affairs program with giving him a solid foundation for lifetime learning and an interest in maritime writing: “The graduate Marine Affairs curriculum was second to none. I especially appreciate the mentorship that the faculty offered, in particular my faculty advisor Bruce Marti.”

After receiving his M.M.A., Bill founded Island Time Sailing School, named after the Caribbean notion of letting things flow a natural course. His sidekick at the time was a sea-going yellow Lab named Ceilidh who loved to play with pieces of line taken from boats that Bill sailed.

“I took a look at the pet toy market and quickly found that most of the pet toys available are made overseas, and none of them are made with any care or with natural, quality materials,” Bill explains. “I thought it would be cool to use traditional rope to create nautical style dog toys.”

NORA LEWIS; PHOTOS COURTESY OF KATIE STRAUSS AND HEATHER PACHECO

With encouragement from his daughter Tayler, Bill launched Island Time Pet Toys in 1999. The pet-loving entrepreneur has created five different nautical themed toys for dogs and two for cats, all made by hand. “It’s a cottage business; I’m someone who always likes to be productive,” he says.

For more information, visit islandtimepets.com. To read Captain Bill’s sea stories, visit boatsandlife.com.

—Brian Lowney

UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND 33

John Ferri ‘72 of West Warwick, R.I., on November 12, 2010.

Anthony Thomas ‘72 of Williamsburg, Va., on October 12, 2010.

Ernest Vetelino ‘73 of Westerly, R.I., on December 4, 2010.

Susan Markham Ball ‘76 of Schoharie, N.Y., on November 13, 2010.

Sharon McCarthy Introini ‘76 of Mansfield, Mass., on November 21, 2010.

Gail Giusti Brennan ‘90 of North Providence, R.I., on December 13, 2010.

James Donovan ‘90 of San Francisco, Calif., on October 27, 2010.

Michelle Cacchiotti Weller ‘91 of Cranston, R.I., on January 8, 2011.

Betty Gustafson Carlson ‘95 of Mystic, Conn., on December 8, 2010.

David Lucci ‘95 of Cranberry, Pa., on January 5, 2011.

Ronald Dubois ‘78 of Seattle, Wash., on September 14, 2010.

Marc Mandeville ‘95 of Wilmington, Del., on October 9, 2010.

Robert Murray ‘79 of Providence, R.I., on October 12, 2010.

Caley Larkin ‘09 of Alford, Mass., on October 17, 2010.

Betty Jensen Ludington ‘80 of Rye, N.H., on October 31, 2010.

Barry Mollo ‘09 of North Providence, R.I., on January 6, 2011.

John Caito ‘81 of East Greenwich, R.I., on November 29, 2010.

IN MEMORIAM FACULTY

Daniel Kilty ‘81 of Ivoryton, Conn., on December 22, 2010.

Leon F. Bouvier, 88, former professor of sociology and recipient of a URI Teacher of the Year Award, died on January 26, 2011, in Norfolk, Va. He was an internationally known demographer and former vice president of the Population Reference Bureau. He also served as demographic advisor to the Select Committee on Population, U.S. House of Representatives, and as demographic advisor to the Select Commission of Immigration and Refugee Policy. He wrote more than 60 articles and 18 books. At age 16, he began his first career as

Michael Horowitz ‘86 of Rumson, N.J., on October 23, 2010.

Richard Norton ‘86 of Englewood, Colo., on October 15, 2010.

Sushmito Ghosh ‘88 of Providence, R.I., on March 11, 2009.

Eleanor Hakanson Andrews ‘89 of Coventry, R.I., on October 21, 2010.

Mary Sinnamon Michelman ‘89 of Acton, Mass., on December 17, 2010.

Leon Francis and was a jazz musician for more than 20 years. He is survived by two sons, Ken Bouvier and Tom Bouvier ’69; two daughters, Lynne Graham and Linda Bouvier; eight grandchildren; and 14 greatgrandchildren. Memorial donations may be made to the Democratic National Party.

Katheryn Cabral, 56, of Warren, R.I., an instructor in the Department of Writing and Rhetoric, died in a car accident on Dec. 17, 2010. She had taught first-year writing at URI since 2008. In fall 2010, she was selected to participate in the University’s Grand Challenges initiative, which paired her writing course with an interdisciplinary course on poverty and hunger. She served on the executive board and leadership team of the Buzzards Bay Writing Project and on the National Writing Project’s director’s team. For many years, she was a teacher and expressive arts facilitator at the Center for Individualized Training and Education, specializing in students with severe autism. She had worked with expressive therapy for students with ADD, ADHD, and other developmental and behavioral issues at A Great Place to Learn in Swansea, Mass. Survivors include her father, Anthony, and two brothers, Anthony J. Cabral Jr. and David G. Cabral.

Rev. Edmund W. Fetter, 91, a former

Protestant chaplain at URI, died on December 11, 2010, at South County Hospital. A 1949 graduate of ColgateRochester Divinity School he moved to Kingston in 1953, serving the University community for 33 years before retiring. A veteran of World War II, he served in the U.S. Army. He was a member of Seniors Helping Others and Kingston Congregational Church.

Survivors include a son, Thomas B. Fetter; a daughter, Joan K. Fetter ’83; and three grandchildren.

John V. Long Jr., 68, professor emeritus of education, died in Englewood, Fla., on Nov. 2, 2010. He came to URI as a researcher in the Curriculum Research and Development Center, and for the next 31 years he was known as a leader in math education. He was chair of the Education Department and of the Faculty Senate. He is survived by his wife, Doria ’74; a daughter, Patricia L. Vivari ’87, M.L.S. ’92; a son, John V. Long; and five grandchildren.

Memorial donations may be made to the John Long Scholarship for Mathematics Education, URI Foundation, 79 Upper College Road, Kingston, RI 02881.

M. Dorothy Massey, 89, professor emerita of physical education, of North Kingstown, R.I., died on December 4, 2010. She served as chair of the Department of Women’s Physical Education for 25 years and

URI Alumni Association ­ Membership Application Form

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Exp.Date____________________ Signature________________________________________ Mail to: Membership Program, P.O. Box 1820, Kingston, Rl 02881-2011

34 QUAD ANGLES SPRING 2011 | URI.EDU/QUADANGLES

50 YEARS OF DISCOVERY. KEEPING AN EYE ON THE OCEAN.

GSO 50th Anniversary Celebrate with us June 24–26, 2011 Visit us at gso.uri.edu/gso_50 Join us for our anniversary weekend. Events include Science Saturday Open House with lab tours, exhibits, and kids programs; an Evening Celebration featuring a lobster dinner, live music, dancing, and fireworks; and GSO Alumni Reunion activities.

UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND 00 UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND 35 JERRY PREZIOSO; NORA LEWIS UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND 35

also directed women’s athletic and intramural programs. She authored numerous articles in professional journals and textbooks. She was a member of Pi Kappa Phi, Pi Lambda Theta, the American Academy of Physical Education on Kinesiology, and Chi Omega sorority. Memorial contributions may be made to the Dr. M. Dorothy Massey Student Scholarship Fund, URI Foundation, 79 Upper College Road, Kingston, RI 02881 or to the American Cancer Society Research.

Robert J. Sonstroem, 82, former professor of physical education and exercise science, died on January 21, 2011, in North Kingstown, R.I. An international authority on selfesteem in exercise and sports, he published primary research articles, contributed chapters for nine books and presented many papers at scientific meetings. He was the author of the novel Diamond Rewards. He is survived by his wife, Norma C. Sonstroem; two daughters, Lisa Ken-

nally ’86 and Kim Cook ’02; and three grandchildren. Memorial donations may be made to St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, 445 Elmwood Avenue, Providence, RI 02907 Richard W. Traxler, 82, professor emeritus of microbiology, of Wakefield, R.I., died on December 5, 2010. He served as chair of the Departments of Plant Pathology and Entomology and Food Science and Nutrition. An internationally recognized microbiologist, he was widely published in scientific journals. He was a member of American Society for Microbiology and the Society for Industrial Microbiology. He served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War and retired as a major after 23 years of reserve service. He is survived by his wife of 58 years, Carolyn Cain Traxler ’82; three daughters, Marla Farrow ’75, Suzanne Godin, and Carol Traxler; and two grandchildren.

Memorial donations may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association, 245 Waterman St., Suite 306, Providence, RI 02906.

CLASSnote

READ & WRITE CLASS NOTES ONLINE!

Ocean State Summer Writing Conference JUNE 23–25, 2011 If writing is your passion, don’t miss the annual Ocean State Summer Writing Conference, June 23–25, at the University of Rhode Island Kingston Campus.

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

THE UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND ALUMNI ASSOCIATION note to:

your life. Send your class Let us know what’s new in and ation, Alumni Center, ocithe mni Ass Class Acts Editor, URI Alu 20011 on, RI 02881-COMMITTEE KingstWEEKEND BIGd,CHILL lege Roa 73 Upper Col2011 nce ssacts@adva .uri.edu ail: cla 957, Emtheir sincere appreciation for a Fax: 401.874.5express

e at:to the following: ss note onlin event Enter your clasuccessful vices/classnotes ser u/e www.advance.uri.ed Honorary Chairs

___ Class ______

_____________________

Name_________________

KATHY O’DONNELL-WHITE ’90, _______ ______ _____________________ Address________________Senior Vice President, e ______ Zip _______ ____ Stat ___ _________of Director Public Affairs, City ________________ _________ Citizens Financial Group, Inc.________ ______ _____________________ Email Address

And n Check here if new address ____ _____________________ ______ JOHN J.___ PALUMBO ’76, Class note ______________ ____________________ ______ President Publisher, _________and _____________________ Rhode Island Monthly ___________ _____________________ ___

_____________________

_____ ___their As well as the businesses for ____________ ____________ ___following _____________________ generous sponsorship: __ _____________________ ____________

_____________________

________ Amica Insurance Bank___ of___ America _____________________ Bank Newport Citizens Bank ___________ _____________________ ______Monthly _________ _________Rhode Island Washington Trust

_____________________

____________________

_______________ _____________________

______________

_____________________

_____________________

ROBERT STONE

JENNIFER EGAN

TOMAZ SALAMUN

National Book Award-winning author of seven novels

Novelist, journalist, and short story writer

Slovenia’s greatest living poet and author of 37 books

CONFERENCE HIGHLIGHTS

Workshops in fiction, non-fiction, and poetry Master Classes Craft Seminars Publishing Seminars One-on-one Consultation and Manuscript Evaluation Networking Opportunities

uri.edu/summerwriting

36 QUAD ANGLES SPRING 2011 | URI.EDU/QUADANGLES

Marlon Mussington ’01

Responsive in the Classroom and in the Community

In 2001, Marlon Mussington won the Harvey Robert Turner Award for Outstanding Service to the URI Black Community. Since then, he has continued to assist minorities with their educational endeavors.

After graduation, Mussington worked as an academic coach for the National Football Foundation’s Play It Smart Program that is “designed to place coaches with student-athletes to help improve grades, assist with the college application process, and teach life skills.”

Dedicated to these ideals of bettering students’ lives, Mussington, a communications and psychology major, earned a teaching certificate for physical education and joined the faculty of the Paul Cuffee Charter School. Mussington instructs students who live in Providence’s diverse neighborhoods: “One of the

things that attracted me to Paul Cuffee was their focus on community. The school continues to work tirelessly in creating a community of compassion, respect, empathy, and understanding.”

This philosophy is reflected in the school’s Responsive Classroom, an instructional approach designed to foster respectful interaction: “It works well in my classes because it allows students to feel safe. It gives them a voice. Positive language is one of the keys to the success of my classes. Responsive Classroom is a part of that.”

Also contributing to Mussington’s success is his emphasis on developing “exciting activities that keep students engaged.” Mussington achieves this goal partly by teaching students Sport Stacking, a competition that involves quickly

stacking specialized plastic cups in specific sequences. The sport requires laser-sharp focus and expert hand-eye coordination, both of which his students excelled at during the Connecticut State Sport Stacking Championships held in December.

Three students set new Rhode Island state records for individual divisions.

Whether promoting the importance of community or the benefits of physical activity, Mussington is fulfilling his dream: “Working with teenagers through the National Football Foundation and working with children of all ages as director of Providence’s East Side YMCA contributed greatly to my decision to teach.”

—Maria V. Caliri ’86, M.B.A. ’92

Dan Faggella ’09, ’10

Larry L. Voelker ’52

Dan Faggella is a busy man. After completing URI’s kinesiology program in 2009, he returned to finish a second degree in psychology this past year.

Today, he juggles running his own martial arts academy, a motivational speaking career, a graduate program in positive psychology, and a book project focusing on technical development in combat sports.

During his time at URI, Faggella was involved in running the campus wrestling team (a club sport) and Brazilian jiu jitsu club. As part of a minor in business, Faggella completed an independent study project with Professor Alex Hazera, preparing a 30-page business proposal for his own gym.

Less than a year later, Faggella opened up the Omoplata Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Academy in Wakefield, R.I. Today, running classes there for varying ages and skill levels remains his primary focus (see mma-ri.com).

The following year, Faggella launched into another independent study project with sports psychologist John Sullivan, former head of counseling at URI. This time, his focus was on best practices for teaching goal setting effectively, particularly for athletes. “I came to the conclusion that if the world knew how to choke people better because I lived, it wasn’t enough,” he remembers. So with characteristic gusto, he launched himself into the motivational speaking arena.

Before long, he was speaking to hundreds of Rhode Island high school students about time and focus management. He was also recently featured as a speaker at a URI resident assistant training/student athlete networking event. “Right now, my presentations hone in on goal setting and skill acquisitions—how to get good at things,” he says.

Faggella is currently building on his independent study at URI in a graduate program at the University of Pennsylvania, where he is working toward a master’s in applied positive psychology. He is also working on a book that explores technical developments in sports through research and interviews with top athletes. Segments of the text appear on Faggella’s Web site scienceofskill.com.

Larry Voelker has participated in alpine ski racing since he was 15; at 82, he is still competitive: “In my freshman year I was Rhode Island State’s entire team, skiing under the sponsorship of Professor William Beck Sr. and competing against other New England colleges.” His best race then was a 9th place finish in the New England downhill championships.

A mechanical engineer with General Electric, Voelker joined the company’s Pittsfield, Mass., operation in 1959.

Winning the Sise Cup Slalom in North He resumed skiing, serving as ski Conway, N.H. in 1994. instructor at the Bousquet ski area on weekends for 17 years. He received his ski instructor certification via a weeklong examination at Wildcat Mountain, N.H., and became head coach of the Berkshire Junior Ski Team based at Bousquet.

Since retiring from General Electric in 1988, Voelker has compiled many top results while racing in the master’s. Last year he won the Eastern Regional Championship, a four-day competition held at Okemo Mountain, Vt. For the past 24 years, Voelker has been an active member of the U.S. Ski Association, the national organization that governs all master’s ski racing.

There are eight divisions of master’s racing; Voelker participates in the New England division. In late March racing quotas from each division participate in a week-long competition for the national title, this year it’s at Copper Mountain, Colo. Voelker, who has participated 18 times, will ”sit this one out.”

All four of his children grew up on skis and attended high school at ski racing academies in Vermont and New Hampshire: “Three of our children had high ratings for their respective college teams, and Heidi, our youngest, was a three-time Olympian for the U.S. who competed internationally for 12 years.

She is now ‘ambassador for skiing’ at Deer Valley ski area in Park City, Utah.”

Voelker restricts himself to selected master’s races. “I do race training twice a week at Bousquet with racing associates. Sometimes we retreat to Jiminy Peak in Hancock, Mass., for speed training. Then it’s off to the weekend races!”

Highly Motivated

Master Alpine Ski Racer

—Bethany Vaccaro ’06

NORA LEWIS; PHOTOS COURTESY OF DAN FAGGELLA AND LARRY VOELKER

—Vida-Wynne Griffin ’67, M.A. ’72

UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND 37

Is your elevator speech ready?

Let’s say you’re at a conference in a hotel lobby, and a potential employer is standing next to you. Or, you’re at the grocery store, and you run into a former colleague working in an industry you would like to join. Do you say something?

Absolutely. This is the perfect time for you to deliver your elevator speech—a 30-second prepared speech, so called because it should take no longer than an elevator ride to deliver it.

To develop your elevator speech, begin by writing a career-related paragraph of no more than six to eight sentences. In it you describe what you are doing now, what you intend to do in the future, and the path you are using to get there.

Keep in mind that an elevator speech should be specific—customized to the kind of career opportunity you are seeking. For example, you may be a call center professional interested in moving into sales, which would include sales support, client relations, and marketing. In your elevator speech, you would describe your current call center role; the new role you wish to fill; and the path you are following to get there. It could sound something like this:

Are you searching for a job, exploring a new career path— or writing your own elevator speech?

URI Alumni Career Services Advisors Karen Rubano and Marie Geary are here to help.

Karen Rubano Alumni Career Services 228 Roosevelt Hall 90 Lower College Road Kingston, RI 02881 p. 401.874.9404 f. 401.874.5525 e. krubano@uri.edu w. advance.uri.edu/alumni/careerservices/advisor.htm Karen Rubano

Marie Geary Alumni Career Services 228 Roosevelt Hall 90 Lower College Road Kingston, RI 02881 p. 401.874.9404 f. 401.874.5525 e. mrgeary@uri.edu w. advance.uri.edu/alumni/careerservices/advisor.htm Marie Geary

38 QUAD ANGLES SPRING 2011 | URI.EDU/QUADANGLES

“When handling my calls, I often reach out to my partners in sales and client relations to better understand a product or to gain a better sense of client expectations. I’m especially attracted to the client relations role because of the opportunities for personal interaction it offers that are so important to our clients. Recently, I’ve been talking to my client relations partners to determine if my high volume call center experience would be an asset in client relations.

I believe I have many transferable skills.”

Your goal is to engage your listener in a brief conversation that will provide you with valuable career insight and information—and once you complete your speech, you want feedback. Be prepared with several follow-up questions. Do you think my background corresponds to my intended role? What tips can you give me on my path toward this role? Can you think of anyone I could contact about my plans?

To develop an effective elevator speech, thoughtful preparation is essential—but it is time well spent.

Determine your transferable skills, draft your speech, and prepare your questions. And finally, practice your speech out loud. Then practice it again. You never know when you’ll be in a position to use it. You want to be able to easily retrieve it from your mental filing cabinet and present it with confidence.

Going up?

A Booster’s Guide To NCAA Rules & Regulations This publication was compiled to assist alumni and friends in complying with NCAA Rules and regulations governing the conduct of our Institution and its athletics programs.

Introduction The Atlantic 10 Conference, in conjunction with the Athletics Department at the University of Rhode Island, as members of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, are primarily responsible for insuring that its various constituencies (i.e. University staff and faculty, student-athletes, alumni and friends) abide by the NCAA rules and regulations. Under those rules, alumni and friends can be categorized as “representatives of the University’s athletic interests.”

This page provides a quick reference to the many NCAA rules which apply to “Athletic representatives.” Since it does not include all applicable situations, please call the University of Rhode Island’s Athletics Department if you have any questions before having any contact with a prospective or enrolled student-athlete.

We appreciate your interest and support, but remind you that an inappropriate contact or an inadvertent action on your part can jeopardize the eligibility of student-athletes and prospects and the compliance of the University of Rhode Island with NCAA and Atlantic 10 regulations.

The University of Rhode Island is proud to have the loyal support and continued interest in our athletic programs by our alumni and friends. As we strive for excellence, we must always seek the highest standard of ethical conduct. With your assistance and cooperation, we believe we can accomplish both goals.

Am I a Representative of Athletic Interests?

Yes, If you: Have ever been a member of the University’s “booster” organization or any of the sport specific groups under the Athletic Department; have ever made a donation to any of the Atlantic 10 member schools’ men’s or women’s athletic programs; have ever helped to arrange or have provided summer employment for enrolled studentathletes; have ever contacted (by letter, telephone or in person) a high school student, grades 9-12, for the purpose of encouraging the student to participate in the University of Rhode Island’s Athletics programs; have ever assisted in providing any benefit to enrolled studentathletes or their families; have ever been involved in any way with the University of Rhode Island’s Athletics programs.

The NCAA stipulates that once you have become an “athletic representative” you retain that identification forever, even if you no longer contribute to the athletic program.

Four Important Rules You Should Know Rule #1: Only coaches and Athletics Department staff members can be involved in the recruiting process. All “athletic representatives” who are not employed by the school are prohibited from contacting a prospect or members of the prospect’s family by telephone, letter, or in person on or off campus for the purpose of encouraging participation in the University of Rhode Island’s athletic programs.

Rule #2: University of Rhode Island representatives cannot provide an “extra benefit” or special arrangement to a prospect OR an enrolled student-athlete. Specific applications as they apply to the NCAA extra benefit rule to prospects and enrolled student-athletes, their relatives or friends state that you: May not give them cash or loans in any amount. May not sign or co-sign a note with an outside agency to arrange a loan. May not employ relatives or friends of a prospect as an inducement for the enrollment of the prospect.

May not give them gifts of any kind (e.g. birthday,

Christmas, Valentine’s Day) or free services (e.g. clothing, airline tickets, laundry, car repair, hair cuts, meals in restaurants). May not provide special discounts for goods or services. May not provide them hospitality in your home other than for special occasions (e.g. Thanksgiving, birthday). May not invite them to your summer home to go water skiing, sailing, etc. May not provide them transportation within or outside of the campus area (e.g., from campus to your home, from the airport to campus, to summer job, etc.). May not entertain or contact a prospect or prospect’s family on or off campus. May not provide rent free or reduced rent housing. May not provide a benefit connected with on or off campus housing (e.g. individual television sets or stereo equipment, specialized recreational facilities, etc.). May not provide guarantee of a bond. May not promise financial aid for postgraduate education. May not provide promise to a prospect of employment after college graduation.

Rule #3:PLEASE assist the coaching staff in the recruiting process by notifying them of any student you think would be a strong addition to the University of Rhode Island’s athletics program. The coach can then make the appropriate contact with the prospect.

Rule #4: As an athletic representative, you are not precluded from continuing friendships with families who have prospective or enrolled student-athletes (e.g., backyard barbecues, picnics). You simply cannot encourage a prospect’s participation in the University of Rhode Island’s athletic programs or provide benefits to the student-athlete that you were not providing before he or she became a prospect or enrolled student-athlete.

Who is a Prospective Student-Athlete?

A prospective student-athlete is a person who has begun classes for the ninth grade. However, it is possible for a younger student to be a prospect, so it is prudent to treat ALL athletes as prospects.

Can I be involved with High School and Community College Student-Athletes (Prospects) PLEASE feel free to attend high school and community college athletic events. You simply cannot have any contact with the prospective student-athletes or relatives. Should you find yourself seated next to parents of a prospect, DO NOT initiate conversation with the relatives.

If conversation is initiated with you, respond in a civil manner but DO NOT discuss the University of Rhode Island’s athletics program with them.

If they raise questions about the program, remind them that the NCAA prohibits you from discussing the program with them. Direct their questions to the University of Rhode Island’s Athletics Department.

CONTINUE established family relationships with friends and neighbors. Contacts with sons or daughters of these families certainly are permitted as long as they are not made for recruiting purposes and are not initiated by the University of Rhode Island’s coaching staff members. You are permitted to play “pickup” basketball or softball games, continue neighborhood picnics or backyard barbecues and engage in your normal activities with prospects and their parents who are family friends. Again, you simply cannot attempt to recruit the prospect.

PLEASE feel free to attend a public event (e.g. an awards banquet or dinner) at which prospects are in attendance. No attempt should be made to recruit the prospect.

PLEASE send to the University of Rhode Island’s coaching staff any information about prospects that you think would be of interest.

Your assistance in this manner is very helpful.

The coaching staff will then make contact with the prospect.

PLEASE feel free to offer assistance to members of the University of Rhode Island’s coaching staff who are recruiting in your community.

HOWEVER ... AVOID becoming directly or indirectly involved in making arrangements for

a prospect, the prospect’s family or friends to receive money or financial aid of any kind.

AVOID providing ANYTHING to or for a prospect, relatives or friends, without first checking with the Athletics Department administration.

AVOID making any contact with a prospect or the prospect’s family on or off campus. If a coach has a recruit at an athletic event, you should not approach the coach until the prospect and family have gone elsewhere. If the prospect approaches you off campus regarding the athletic program, explain that NCAA rules do not allow you to discuss the program. Suggest that the prospect contact the head coach of the sport for more information.

AVOID transporting, paying for or arranging for payment of transportation costs for a prospect, relatives or friends to visit campus or elsewhere.

While it is permissible for a friend or neighbor to transport a high school or community college student who is NOT an athlete to the campus, NCAA regulations prohibit that activity for a prospective student-athlete.

AVOID providing room and/or board, transportation of any kind or any other benefit to a recruited student-athlete during the summer prior to enrollment for fall classes at the University of Rhode Island. AVOID entertaining high school, prep school or community college COACHES at ANY location.

AVOID providing tickets or transportation for high school, prep school or community college COACHES at any location. Only the Athletics Department of the University of Rhode Island can provide complimentary admissions and only to home athletic events for those coaches.

AVOID entertaining or providing tickets at no or reduced cost to the University of Rhode Island’s home or away athletic or non athletic events for prospects, their relatives or friends.

Only the University of Rhode Island’s Athletics Department can provide complimentary admissions to prospects and only for HOME athletic events.

AVOID contacting an enrolled student-athlete at another institution for the purpose of encouraging transfer to the University of Rhode Island and for participation in the University of Rhode Island’s athletic programs.

AVOID paying for or offering to pay the registration fees for summer sports camps for a prospect.

AVOID contacting the prospect’s coach, principal or counselor for the purpose of evaluating the prospect. You are not permitted to pick up films or transcripts from the prospect’s educational institution.

AVOID inviting ONLY SELECTED junior or senior high school or community college prospective student-athletes to alumni events. Since the NCAA prohibits contact between prospects and alumni and “athletic representatives,” care must be taken to invite, for instance, all high school seniors who have received academic and athletic awards.

Can I be involved with Currently Enrolled Student-Athletes PLEASE feel free to invite a student-athlete to your home for a home cooked meal but only for a special occasion (e.g. Thanksgiving, birthday).

Remember, the student-athlete must provide his/her own transportation.

PLEASE feel free to invite a team for dinner or to meet with a group of alumni in a city where they are competing. The NCAA permits studentathletes AS A TEAM to receive special benefits not permitted as individuals. Arrangements for such events must be made in advance with the head coach or the Athletic Department.

HOWEVER ... AVOID providing a student-athlete or friend any benefit or special arrangement. The NCAA considers these as an “extra benefit” and they are specifically prohibited.

AVOID providing room and/or board or any type of transportation during the summer for a student athlete with eligibility remaining.

AVOID providing room, board or transportation costs incurred by friends or family of an enrolled student-athlete to visit campus or attend any away contest.

AVOID expending funds to entertain studentathletes, their friends or relatives. You are not even permitted to buy a soft drink or cup of coffee for them.

AVOID using the name or picture of an enrolled student-athlete to directly advertise, recommend or promote sales or use of a commercial product or service of any kind. The SALE of a picture of an enrolled student-athlete will jeopardize eligibility.

AVOID providing any payment of expense or loan of any automobile for a student-athlete to return home or to any other location for ANY reason.

AVOID providing awards or gifts to a studentathlete for his or her athletic performance. All awards must conform to NCAA regulations and must be approved by The University of Rhode Island and the Atlantic 10 Conference.

AVOID providing an honorarium to a studentathlete for a speaking engagement. Only necessary travel expenses can be given when speaking to educational or charitable groups.

All speaking engagements must be approved in advance by the University of Rhode Island Athletics Department.

AVOID allowing a student-athlete, his or her friends or relatives to use your telephone to make free long distance calls.

Please Help: If you have knowledge of improprieties, intentional or otherwise, please let the Compliance Office at the University of Rhode Island know immediately so that we can take the necessary corrective actions.

Whom Do I Contact?

If you have any questions about contact with a prospective or enrolled student-athlete, please direct these questions to one of the following: Ed Pasque Assistant Commissioner/Compliance Atlantic 10 Conference, 230 South Broad St., Suite 1700 Philadelphia, PA 19102 Phone: 215.545.6678, Fax: 215.545.3342 e-mail: EPasque@atlantic10.org Paul Kassabian Associate Director of Athletics, Compliance University of Rhode Island, Three Keaney Road, Suite One, Kingston, RI 02881 Phone: 401.874.2281, Fax: 401.874.2158 What can I do regarding Employment of Prospective and Enrolled Student Athletes?

PLEASE pay student-athletes employed by you only for work actually performed and at a rate commensurate with the going rate for similar services in the community and your own business.

PLEASE notify the head coaches of job possibilities for student-athletes.

HOWEVER ... AVOID employing or arranging for the employment of a prospective or enrolled student-athlete without checking first with the University of Rhode Island’s Athletics Department. The department is permitted to make arrangements for summer employment for prospects prior to enrollment as freshmen and to enrolled student-athletes during the summer and semester breaks. Stringent rules apply in these instances and written records must be kept regarding employment.

AVOID providing transportation for prospects or student-athletes in your employ unless transportation is provided for all other employees.

AVOID providing employment for studentathletes during the academic year without first contacting The University of Rhode Island’s Athletics Department. The NCAA has strict rules about the amount and source of outside funds during the academic year.

UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND 39

BACKPAGE

Focus

on nature Photography enthusiast Evan Pagano ’14 is a URI freshman from North Scituate, R.I. majoring in animal science.

His nature and wildlife photos were taken in and around Rhode Island with a Nikon D90.

One of Pagano’s photos, “Robin’s Roost,” was featured on URI President David Dooley and Rev. Lynn Baker-Dooley’s holiday greeting card in December, which is how QUAD ANGLES discovered him.

1 1 Sunshine Monarch Monarch caterpillars 2 Make Me a Nest Female goldfinch 3 Indigo Bunting Male indigo bunting 4 Sitting Proud Female cedar waxwing

More photos | flickr.com/photos/evanpagano

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40 QUAD ANGLES SPRING 2011 | URI.EDU/QUADANGLES

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University of Rhode Island Alumni Association

Annual Scholarship

GOLF TOURNAMENT Monday, June 6, 2011 Quidnessett Country Club 950 North Quidnessett Road North Kingstown, RI

YOUR SPONSORSHIP HELPS URI STUDENTS! Available Sponsorship Levels for 2011 • Presenting Sponsor: $4,000 for one complimentary foursome, deluxe sponsorship signage at lunch and dinner, two tee sponsorship signs, and special recognition in our program.

• Gold Sponsor: $2,500 for deluxe sponsorship signage at the dinner, one complimentary foursome, and special recognition in our program.

Register at advance.uri.edu/alumni/ golftournament Contact Kathy Gianquitti at the Alumni Association at 401.874.4853 or email kgianquitti@advance.uri.edu

It’s all about scholarships!

• Silver Sponsor: $1,500 for deluxe sponsorship signage at the luncheon and special recognition in our program.

• Bronze Sponsor: $1,000 for deluxe sponsorship signage at the raffle area and special recognition in our program.

• Beverage Sponsor: $500 for deluxe sponsorship signage at the beverage stops located at the 6th and 14th tee.

• Golf Cart Sponsor: $500 for a sponsorship sign on a golf cart.

• Tee Sign Sponsor: $250 for a sponsorship sign at one hole.

PHOTO BY NORA LEWIS

Alumni Center 73 Upper College Road Kingston, RI 02881 USA

Nonprofit Org US Postage Paid Permit No. 28 Burl., VT 05401

Alumni Association

Reconnect with Classmates Joel Cohen (left) and yes, Joel Cohen (right), members of the Class of 1960, reminisce at last spring’s 50th Reunion.

Class of 1961 50th Reunion May 21–22, 2011 • Continental breakfast with President David M. Dooley • Campus tour • Lunch at Spain of Narragansett • Dinner in Newport at the Marriott And, the 50th Reunion Class will lead the Commencement March on Sunday.

Golden Grad Weekend June 3–4, 2011

return to the kingston campus for a Weekend

A celebration for graduates who have marked their 50th Reunion.

• Friday night reception • Golden Grad Luncheon at the Dunes Club in Narragansett, includes a celebration of: Class of 1956: 55th Reunion Class of 1951: 60th Reunion Class of 1946: 65th Reunion Class of 1941: 70th Reunion If you have a disability and need an accommodation, please call 401.874.2242 at least three business days in advance. For TTY assistance, please call the Rhode Island Relay Service at 1.800.745.5555.

Photo by Nora Lewis

For more information, contact the Alumni Relations Office at 401.874.2242

advance.uri.edu/alumni/reunions