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Fiedler memorial postponed
The memorial service for Leslie Fiedler, SUNY Distinguished Professor and Samuel Clemens Chair in the Department of English in the College of Arts and Sciences, which had been scheduled for 2 p.m. March 30 in the Mainstage theater in the Center for the Arts, has been postponed.
Fiedler, one of America's foremost literary and cultural theorists of the last century, died Jan. 29 in his North Buffalo home after a long illness. He was 85.
The new date and time for the memorial service will be published in the Reporter when it becomes available.
Program helps students improve computer skills
The term "digital divide" is increasingly used by educators to describe the economically divisive effect that the Internet and associated technologies have had on U.S. society and the global community.
In order to close this divide and actually level the playing field for everyone, a number of educational and skills-training programs have evolved.
One of them is the Cisco Networking Academy Program, a public-private partnership involving Cisco Systems, educational institutions, NGOs and governments that teach students how to design, build and maintain computer networks.
It was developed to introduce local public-school students to the professional atmosphere of a conference, as well as to allow them the opportunity to expand their technical knowledge while networking with their peers.
Cisco Systems and UB's Center for Applied Technologies in Education (CATE), which has been a Cisco Regional Academy since 1999, presented their second annual Student Networkers' Conference on Tuesday in the Hyatt Regency Buffalo.
More than 100 students, teachers, administrators and Cisco Systems engineers participated in the event, which was sponsored in part by the Buffalo Public Schools and Buffalo Prep Tech, a career-path program linking secondary and post-secondary schools with business and industry to prepare today's students for tomorrow's careers.
The program began with a keynote address by John Kittrell, Northeast regional manager for Cisco. The keynote was followed by four technical breakout sessions conducted by Cisco engineers and other highly skilled presenters. Participants had the opportunity to attend all sessions, which addressed such topics as Internet security, hubs and routers, IP telephony and the ubiquity of Internet protocol.
A skills competition followed, led by Robert Arrington from Hutch Tech High School.
Student participants were from the Buffalo Public Schools, the Kenmore-Town of Tonawanda Union Free School District, Orleans Niagara BOCES and the Niagara Falls, Chautauqua Lake and Sweet Home School districts, and the University at Buffalo Educational Opportunity Center (EOC).
CATE originally supported five local networking academies, but now serves 14 that represent urban, suburban and rural school systems. In addition, the CATE Regional Academy supports local academies within Erie Community College and EOC. Today, the CATE region serves more than 500 students and is continuing to grow.
For additional information on the CATE Region or the Student Cisco Networker's Conference, visit the CATE Web site at http://cate.buffalo.edu/html/training.asp.
RIA study addresses best methods for alcoholism treatment
Some individuals with alcoholism seem to benefit more from residential care in their recovery process. Others do very well with outpatient office visits with a counselor or therapist. Definitive knowledge for predicting who does best in each of these two very different treatment settings, however, has eluded treatment providers.
UB researchers have received a $2.3 million grant from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism to study how and why different levels of care work for different people with alcohol problems.
Members of a research team led by Robert G. Rychtarik, a senior research scientist in UB's Research Institute on Addictions (RIA) and research associate professor of psychology and psychiatry, will build on their prior clinical research on optimum treatment settings for alcoholics by extending it into real-world community treatment settings.
The study is being conducted in collaboration with the Erie County Medical Center's (ECMC) Division of Chemical Dependency, Downtown Outpatient Clinic and Inpatient Rehabilitation Programs. Robert B. Whitney, UB clinical assistant professor of family medicine and psychiatry, and clinical director of ECMC's Division of Chemical Dependency, is a co-investigator on the project. Other co-investigators include RIA research scientist Neil B. McGillicuddy and Gerard J. Connors, director of RIA and professor of psychology.
"This study should offer alcoholism-treatment providers insight into the most efficient and effective client-placement criteria," Rychtarik says. "The results could have implications for level-of-care decisions made by treatment providers, clinical-care guidelines established by policymakers and the overall provision of more cost-effective alcoholism treatment."
Media law expert to present Mitchell Lecture
C. Edwin Baker, a well-known and widely published expert on media law, will be the keynote speaker at the UB Law School's annual Mitchell Lecture.
The lecture program, which is free and open to the public, will be held from 9 a.m. to noon on April 4 in Slee Concert Hall, North Campus.
Baker, author of the new book "Media, Markets and Democracy," will speak on "What Good is the Media? Shaping the Press for Democracy." His address will be followed by remarks by three distinguished commentators and a roundtable discussion.
"Media, Markets and Democracy" explores how different views of democracy lead to varying approaches to promoting freedom of the press. Baker develops a theory of "complex democracy" that would foster a media aimed at multiple, and sometimes conflicting, goals.
Baker, who is Nicholas F. Gallicchio Professor of Law at the University of Pennsylvania, teaches constitutional law and mass media law. He is the author of books on print advertising and on freedom of speech, as well as numerous articles in law journals and the popular media, including such outlets as The Nation, The Philadelphia Inquirer and The New York Times. He holds a law degree from Yale Law School and has worked as a staff attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union.
Commentators for the event will be Cheryl A. Leanza, deputy director of the Media Access Project, a public-interest law firm that works to promote open access and non-discrimination in telecommunications media; Nicholas Johnson, a visiting professor of law at the University of Iowa and former Federal Communications Commission member, and Marc Raboy, a communications professor at the University of Montreal whose newest book is "Global Media Policy in the New Millennium."
The James McCormick Mitchell Lecture was endowed in 1950 in honor of its namesake, an 1897 graduate of the UB Law School, and has been delivered annually since 1951.
For more information, contact Martha McCluskey, professor of law, at 645-2326 or mcclusk@buffalo.edu.
Liddle to speak at RIA seminar
Howard Liddle, director of the Center for Treatment Research on Adolescent Drug Abuse at the University of Miami Medical School, will speak at 10 a.m. April 4 in the first-floor seminar room of the Research Institute on Addictions, 1021 Main St., Buffalo, as part of RIA's Spring Seminar Series.
Liddle, a professor of epidemiology and public health and psychology at the University of Miami, will discuss "Family-Based Treatment for Adolescent Substance Abuse: Clinical Outcomes, Process Findings and Transportation Challenges."
The seminar is free of charge and open to the public.
A nationally recognized expert on adolescent substance abuse and delinquency, Liddle reviews grants and serves on expert panels addressing the problems of adolescents for numerous national institutes, including the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, the National Institute on Mental Health, the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment, the Annie E. Casey Foundation and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. His work has been recognized through awards from the American Psychological Association, the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, and the American Family Therapy Academy.
Liddle's research center at the University of Miami was the first National Institutes of Health-funded center focusing on adolescent drug abuse treatment. He earned his doctorate in education, counselor education and counseling psychology at Northern Illinois University.
The RIA seminar series, held each spring and fall, provides information about the study of alcohol, other drugs and related issues, and showcases topics of interest to researchers, clinicians, policymakers and the general public.
Students to present "A Chorus Line"
The Department of Theatre & Dance will present a student production of "A Chorus Line" April 3-6 and April 10-13 in the Drama Theatre in the Center for the Arts, North Campus.
The show will go on at 8 p.m. on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, and at 2 p.m. on Sundays. The production is sponsored by WBFO 88.7 FM, UB's National Public Radio affiliate.
"A Chorus Line" is a stunning musical-vérité about a chorus audition for a Broadway musical. It tells of the achingly poignant ambitions of professional Broadway gypsies to land a job in the show and is a powerful metaphor for all human aspiration. Recognized as a classic, it is a brilliantly complex fusion of dance, song and compellingly authentic drama.
"A Chorus Line" will be directed by, and original choreography adapted by, Lynne Kurdziel-Formato, with musical direction by Donald Jenczka. The production will feature a cast of UB Department of Theatre & Dance musical theatre majors.
Tickets for "A Chorus Line" are $12 for the general public and $5 for UB students and seniors. Tickets may be purchased at the CFA box office from noon to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, and at all Ticketmaster locations.
For general information call 645-ARTS.
CFA to present jazz phenom Cincotti
The Center for the Arts will present jazz phenomenon Peter Cincotti at 8 p.m. April 4 in the Mainstage theater in the CFA, North Campus.
The concert is co-sponsored by WBFO 88.7 FM, UB's National Public Radio affiliate.
A 19-year-old pianist and singer who's a sophomore at Columbia University, Cincotti is on the verge of an extraordinary recording career that could bring pure jazz to a whole new audience. His self-titled Concord Records debut was produced by the legendary Phil Ramone, who calls Cincotti "the freshest old soul to come along in ages."
Born and raised in Manhattan, Cincotti started tinkering with a toy piano at age three, then graduated to the real thing a year or so later. At the age of nine, he began composing, and in his mid-teens, took up singing. Over the next several years, he studied with such jazz piano masters as Ellis Marsalis and James Williams.
While still in school, Cincotta played in jazz clubs throughout Manhattan, starred in the off-Broadway hit "Our Sinatra," participated in the National Grammy Band, was honored in the John Lennon Songwriting Contest for his fiery composition "Big Bad Daddy," and was invited to perform at the White House. He also won a coveted award at the Montreux 2000 Jazz Festival in Switzerland for his piano rendition of Dizzy Gillespie's "A Night in Tunisia."
Tickets for Peter Cincotti are $22 for the general public and $18 for UB students. Tickets are available at the CFA box office from noon to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, and at all Ticketmaster locations.
For more information, call 645-ARTS.
Law review dinner to honor Bradford
Hilary P. Bradford, corporate counsel to the Fisher-Price Co. in East Aurora and of counsel for the Rochester-based law firm Underberg and Kessler, will be recognized for his distinguished service to the UB Law School and the Western New York community at the 14th annual Law Review Dinner.
The dinner will be held on March 28 in the Twentieth Century Club, 595 Delaware Ave., Buffalo. Cocktails will be at 6 p.m., followed by dinner at 7 p.m. The dinner is open to all UB Law School alumni who have served on the Buffalo Law Review editorial board.
"Hilary Bradford is among the most intellectually talented and accomplished attorneys to graduate from our law school," said Dean Nils Olsen. "He is also one of our most charitable alumni, and a truly gifted and thoughtful attorney. He well deserves this prestigious award."
Bradford graduated from the UB Law School in 1953 and is a former editor-in-chief of the Buffalo Law Review. He served as the confidential law assistant for the Justices of the Fourth Department Appellate Division from 1953-57, when Bradford joined the Buffalo law firm that became known as Cohen Swados Wright Hanifin and Bradford, where he concentrated his practice in commercial litigation and appellate work.
In 1995, Bradford endowed the Law School's Jacob D. Hyman Scholarship, which financially assists talented students from public universities and colleges in their pursuit of a legal education at UB.
He is a member of the Dean's Advisory Council, and is one of 10 alumni to serve on the steering committee of The Campaign for UB Law School, a leadership group that provides guidance in the planning and shaping of the Law School's $12 million campaign.
In addition to serving on several charitable trusts and foundations, Bradford is a member of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel and is a trustee of the Presbytery of Western New York.
PSS seeks panel members
The Professional Staff Senate is seeking new members and leaders for its Elections, Policy and Governance, Diversity and Mentoring committees.
Each committee plays a significant role in the university community, while also providing leadership and networking opportunities for its members.
The charges of the committees may be found on the PSS Web site at http://www.pss.buffalo.edu.
For further information, contact James Ramsey, vice chair of the PSS, at eopjlr@buffalo.edu or 645-3072.
Career fair held at UB
Human-services agencies throughout Western New York were represented at the 14th annual Human Services Career Fair, presented by the Niagara Frontier College Placement Association and UB Career Services.
The fair, held on March 6 in the Student Union, provided Western New York college students with the chance to meet with prospective employers in the human-services field and discuss opportunities for employment—from internships to summer and part-time jobs to full-time work.
Among the approximately 30 employers attending were the UB School of Social Work, People Inc, Americorps and the U.S. Peace Corps.