Black History Month events announced

UB will celebrate Black History Month with a reading of poetry penned by the African-American writer Paul Lawrence Dunbar; a bazaar featuring African crafts, culture and fashions, and a concert that blends the meaning of survival and desire for freedom as told through music from the African and Jewish cultures.

Ralph Moon, widely acclaimed for his portrayal of Dunbar, will bring the post-Reconstructionist writer to life through a reading of his poetry at 4 p.m. Feb. 23 in the Jeannette Martin Room, 567 Capen Hall, North Campus.

The program is free and open to the public, but seating is limited. Call 645-3072 for reservations.

From noon to 4 p.m. on Feb. 23 in the lobby of the Student Union on the North Campus, the SMA-sponsored eighth African Bazaar will feature African crafts, culture and fashion, as well as mini-performances by UB's Gospel Choir, Step Troupe and African Dance Troupe.

On Feb. 24, both Jewish and African cultures will blend music with messages of survival and freedom during a concert by the Jewels of the Diaspora. UB's African Dance Troupe will open the show at 8 p.m. in the Student Union Theatre on the North Campus.

Tickets are $2 for students and seniors, and $5 for general admission. Call 645-2353 for tickets or information.

Applicants for UUP scholarship sought

Members of United University Professions (UUP) who have children registered as full-time undergraduate students in a state-operated campus of SUNY may apply for the Eugene P. Link College Scholarship.

Awards are paid twice yearly, $650 per semester, with annual adjustments tied to tuition.

Applicants must have completed at least 16 credits at any branch of SUNY with a cumulative GPA of at least 3.75.

The deadline for applications is April 1.

For more information and an application, visit the UUP Web site at http://www.uupinfo.org/link.pdf.

Correction

Andrei M. Reinhorn was misidentified as chair of the Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering in the photo caption on the cover of last's week Reporter. Reinhorn is a professor in the department and a former chair. The current chair is Professor Michael C. Constantinou.

The Reporter regrets the error.

Kids’ books sought

Faculty and staff members who may have books at home that their children have outgrown are asked to donate them to “Hooked on Books,” a book drive being conducted by Phi Eta Sigma National Honor Society.

The freshman honor society is collecting books for children ages 5-10 to donate to an inner-city Buffalo school.

Collection cans are located at the main entrances to the Undergraduate and Lockwood libraries. Books will be accepted through March 1.

For further information, contact Preethi Govindaraj, Phi Eta Sigma secretary, at pg3@acsu.buffalo.edu or 645-9446.

Gillis to dance in CFA

The Center for the Arts will continue the 2000-01 KeyBank Dance Series with a performance by solo dance artist Margie Gillis at 8 p.m. Feb. 23 in the Mainstage Theatre in the CFA.

An internationally acclaimed artist, Gillis has been performing her solo dance concerts for two decades. As choreographer and performer of more than 80 solo dance works, she has earned rave reviews for her personal, emotional and dramatic portrayals of human hopes, fears, joys and anguish.

She was appointed to the Order of Canada for her “outstanding abilities as a solo performer and choreographer”—the first modern dancer to receive this award.

Of her approach to her work, Gillis says: “I dance from the inside out, then I work on the technical methods of body alignment and form. I try to strike a universal chord with my characterizations and I try, most of all, to dance with integrity and to use dance as a kind of catharsis to express joy, sorrow, uncertainty. The body has a knowledge all of its own and I try to use that knowledge in an intelligent manner, combining physicality and spirituality.”

Tickets for Gillis’ performance are $18, $15 and $9 for the general public and $7 for UB students. They are available at the Center for the Arts box office from noon to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and at all Ticketmaster locations. For more information, call 645-ARTS.

VITA sites offer tax assistance

Low-income students and retirees can receive assistance in filing their federal income-tax returns at the IRS’ Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) sites near the UB South Campus.

At these VITA sites, IRS-trained volunteers provide free assistance in preparing basic tax returns for those with limited or moderate income, non-English speakers, the elderly and the disabled. Tax returns prepared on computers at these sites can be filed electronically with the IRS.

VITA volunteers will prepare and e-file forms 1040, 1040A, 1040EZ and Schedules A and B. More complicated returns cannot be prepared at these sites.

Retirees should visit the VITA/TCE (Tax Counseling for the Elderly) site at 3242 Main St., offered through the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP); all others should go to the site at 109 Winspear Ave.

Participants should call ahead for an appointment. Those visiting the Winspear site should call 838-4033; the phone number for the Main Street site is 832-1010.

Although a VITA site currently is not located on the UB campus, Human Resources Services is looking into locating a site on campus next year, possibly with the assistance of the REV-UP program; various academic units, such as Department of Accounting and Law in the School of Management, the Law School or Student Affairs’ student volunteer program, said Roger McGill, interim assistant vice president of human resources services.

McGill noted several benefits to filing tax returns electronically:

• It’s free
• Refunds are received in half the time as when filing on paper
• Returns are accurate
• Acknowledgement of receipt of the return is provided

Taxpayers who have a modem, personal computer and tax preparation software can e-file their own returns. Further information on e-filing is available from the IRS at http://www.irs.ustreas.gov/prod/elec_svs/ets.html.

Auction to raise money for public-interest law fellowships

Theater and concert tickets, artwork, gift certificates, antiques and sports memorabilia will among the items to be featured at the Sixth Annual Benefit Auction on Feb. 23, sponsored by the Law School’s Buffalo Public Interest Law Program (BPILP).

The event, which will be held from 7-11 p.m. in the Connecticut Street Armory, 184 Connecticut St., Buffalo, will open with a silent auction at 7:30 p.m., followed by a live auction at 10 p.m. Parking will be available across the street at D’Youville College.

Admission tickets are $30 for non-students and $20 for students, and include live music, an open bar, hors d’oeuvres, coffee and dessert. They will be available at the door or may be purchased in advance by calling the BPILP at 645-6726.

Proceeds of the annual auction provide financial support for UB law students who work in unpaid public-interest areas, including domestic-violence, child-advocacy, elder, environmental, human-rights and poverty law.

BPILP is a non-profit, student fund-raising organization committed to making the legal system accessible to all, regardless of their gender, race, age, disability, sexual orientation or economic status.

Last year, BPILP raised more than $15,000 and sponsored 11 summer fellowships in the community and throughout the United States and abroad for UB law students.

Guitarist Johnson to appear

The Center for the Arts will present an evening with Grammy Award-winning guitar virtuoso Eric Johnson, appearing with Alien Love Child, plus The Derek Trucks Band, at 8 p.m. Feb. 26 in the Mainstage Theatre in the CFA, North Campus.

Johnson long has been a popular live attraction, even without much radio airplay. By the time he was 13, he was a working musician in the Austin, Texas, area, which led to session work for artists like Cat Stevens, Carol King and Christopher Cross. A 1984 appearance on “Austin City Limits” caught the attention of Prince, who instructed his parent label, Warner Bros. Records, to sign the young musician. Within months, Johnson released his debut solo album, “Tones.” His second release, “Ah Via Musicom,” contained the Grammy-winning instrumental “Cliffs of Dover,” which got some radio play and brought the guitarist to the public’s attention. In the mid-’90s, Musician Magazine named Johnson among the “100 Greatest Guitarists of the 20th Century.” In the late ’90s, he began playing with his side project, Alien Love Child, and released the recording “Live and Beyond” last year.

Also appearing on the bill will be blues/blues-rock guitarist Derek Trucks, nephew of longtime Allman Brothers drummer Butch Trucks. Derek Trucks displays a command of slide-guitar styles that run the gamut from blues to classic R&B and early rock & roll to classic jazz.

Tickets for Eric Johnson and Alien Love Child and The Derek Trucks Band are $17.50 for the general public and $15 for UB students. They are available at the Center for the Arts box from noon to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and at all Ticketmaster locations.

AIDS educator Fried to speak on survival

AIDS educator, author and motivational speaker Scott Fried, who contracted the HIV virus in 1987 when he was a 24-year-old actor, will present his personal story, “AIDS, Love and Staying Alive,” at 7 p.m. today in Pistachio’s in the Student Union on the North (Amherst) Campus.

Fried’s presentation will be free and open to the public.

Aimed primarily at students and young adults, the lecture is underwritten by the Wasserman Family Foundation through Hillel of Buffalo.

After breaking up with his girlfriend, Fried contracted HIV—the virus that causes AIDS—while exploring his sexual identity during a brief, but unsafe, relationship with another man.

He credits his survival to an HIV support group and now maintains a grueling speaking schedule, relying on anti-viral herbs and a healthy diet.

In 1992, he began lecturing to student audiences throughout the country, warning of the dangers of unsafe sex.

“Young people believe they are invincible and that they won’t get AIDS. But if they practice unsafe sex, they can and do,” Fried emphasizes.

Co-sponsors of Fried’s lecture are Kadimah School and the Sub Board I Inc. AIDS Coalition; the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual Alliance; Campus Ministries Association; Newman Centers; Lutheran and Episcopal Campus Ministries; Jewish Student Union, and the School of Nursing, all at UB.

For more information, call Hillel of Buffalo at 639-8361.

Alcohol Review Board plans “House Party”

The Alcohol Review Board will host its third annual “House Party” at 8 p.m. on Tuesday in the Center for the Arts, North Campus.

This year’s featured speaker is Don Ardell, a recognized pioneer in the field of wellness. The author of numerous books—including “14 Days to Wellness” and “The Book of Wellness: A Secular Approach to Spirituality, Meaning and Purpose”— Ardell will speak on wellness, including campus issues surrounding alcohol and drugs, at 8 p.m. in the Mainstage Theatre. Food, music and dancing in the CFA atrium will follow the presentation.

Sponsors for the event, which is free and open to the public, include the Alcohol Review Board, Office of Student Unions and Activities, the Center for the Arts, the Faculty Student Association, the Division of Athletics, University Police, the University Residence Halls and Apartments, Career Planning and Placement, Greek Life, the Student Association, and Student Health, Wellness and Counseling.