HIGHLIGHTS
Bellafiore
Named To Charter Schools Institute
Robert J. Bellafiore, B.A. '82, a senior aide to Gov. George E. Pataki who was instrumental in helping enact and implement the state's charter school law, has joined the Charter Schools Institute as executive director. Bellafiore is also an alumni representative on UAlbany's Intercollegiate Athletics Advisory Board. Bellafiore will be responsible for day-to-day operations of the Institute, which was formed by the SUNY Board of Trustees to administer its responsibilities under the Charter Schools Act of 1998. The law allows the State University Board of Trustees to authorize creation of 50 new charter schools.
The appointment was announced by CSI President and State University Vice Chancellor Scott W. Steffey. Bellafiore will serve as chief operating office of the institute, reporting directly to President Steffey.
Gary Jacobson, B.A. '82, Honored
Oct. 29
Gary Jacobson, B.A.
'82, will be honored Friday, Oct. 29, at 3 p.m. for his generous donation
to the University when Lecture Center #6 is formally dedicated and renamed
the “Gary M. Jacobson Lecture Center.”
Jacobson was one of the top
securities analysts on Wall Street for 15 years, specializing in consumer,
toy and gaming stocks. He has made a significant gift toward the library
campaign. Jacobson currently serves as national chair of the President's
Club. As an undergraduate, his major was in rhetoric and communications.
Since leaving his position as a managing director of Jefferies & Company
last year, Jacobson has been traveling and exploring other career options.
After the dedication
ceremony, there will be refreshments in the lecture center. All University
staff are invited to attend. Please R.S.V.P. to Maureen Schaefer
at 442-5161 by Friday, Oct. 22.
By Marissa Tuchband
David Griggs-Janower and the University Chamber Singers will host the annual Renaissance Christmas Madrigal Dinner at the Hudson Valley Community College Cultural Center in Troy on Friday, Dec. 3 and Saturday, Dec. 4 at 7 p.m. A full-course meal will be provided by Prestige Catering.
David Griggs-Janower, associate professor of music, has been hosting this event for the past 17 years. He has performed in 60 Madrigal dinners, some of which he did as a grad student.
“It's a really wonderful festival. It's a good combination of good food, bad jokes, and Christmas spirit. For a night we ask people to put themselves back in the Renaissance as much as they can. We wear costumes and decorate to get a little bit of a feeling for what it would have been like to have a Christmas dinner during the Renaissance,” Griggs-Janower said.
The University Chamber Singers is a select group of talented and dedicated students who come from a variety of majors and walks of life with one common goal in mind: to sing and entertain. The singers perform in concerts both on and off campus. They have gone on concert tours to Russia and Italy, and plan to perform in Ireland in the spring. In addition, the group has made three CD's. The latest one is My Gentle Harp: Choral Folksongs of Ireland. Members of the chamber singers recently shared their opinions about the annual Madrigal Christmas Renaissance dinner. Meredith Russell, a senior, said, “It's really exciting that there's an element of theater, interacting with the audience and playing a part.” A second student member, Nicole Bertrand, a senior, said, “It's really nice to get out of the traditional concert hall setting.”
This year the concert will feature The Procession of Singers through the Hall, The Hoisting of Sparkling Toast from the Wassail Bowl, The Procession of Litter Bearers with the Boar's Head, The Singing of Carols by the Choir and Assembled Guests, The Festive Repast of Sweet Meats and Other Delicacies, The Serenading of the Minstrels at Your Table, The Dancing of Pavans and Branles, The Procession of Servants with the Figgy Pudding, and The Singing of the Concert by the Lords and the Ladies.
The University Chamber Singers have been rehearsing since early September. Extra rehearsals will be held at the performance site. Students are required to learn the Renaissance dances and the scripts for the ceremonies as well as the music. They also have to get used to wearing their costumes.
Reservations for the dinner can be taken by mail only. Reservation requests may be addressed to: David Griggs-Janower, Music-PAC, University at Albany, 1400 Washington Ave., Albany, N.Y., 12222. Tables will be filled in the order received. Seating is limited and the best seats usually sell out by the beginning of November. Tickets cost $35 each and include both dinner and festivities. Each table holds up to eight people. The concert begins at 7 p.m., but doors open at 6:15. Additional information and order forms are available on the chamber singers' Web site, which is http://www.albany.edu/~singers/. For more information, call David Griggs-Janower at (518) 442-4167 or e-mail him at Janower@csc.albany.edu.
| Maurice Green, assistant professor in the School of Library and Information Science at the University of Washington, recently returned to the University at Albany to defend his doctoral dissertation in information science. In his work at UAlbany, Green specialized in information decision systems, and leadership and analysis. Green, the recipient of numerous awards, is shown with the chair of his dissertation committee, professor Lakshmi Mohan of the management science and information systems program in the School of Business. |