| October 18, 2006 | Vol 8. No. 4 |
Classes In Session, Power Fully Restored On Canisius Campus
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| The college’s facilities management team is hard at work cleaning up the Canisius campus following last week’s storm |
“Most students were able to stay with friends or returned home in the local area,” says Al Pilato, associate director of residence life. “The whole process went smoothly and the students really rose to the occasion.”
“Our biggest concern is the safety of our students,” said Ellen O. Conley, PhD,” vice president of student affairs, on the decision to cancel classes Friday through Tuesday. “Many of our commuter students travel from the heavily affected areas where travel bans were in effect and many traffic lights were non-functional.”
Clean up on campus by the college’s facilities management team is well underway. The process will likely take a few weeks, according to Edward P. Cogan, director of facilities management.
“At least fifty percent of the trees on campus sustained some sort of damage as result of the storm,” says Cogan. “But in terms of clean-up, I am confident that our facilities management team will get the job done quickly.”
On Monday, a crew of nearly 70 faculty, staff and students organized by the Office of Campus Ministry helped clean up debris at Benedict House on Main Street and The Lutheran Church Home on East Delavan. The volunteer efforts did not go unnoticed.
Luanne Tunmore, associate campus minister and Jill Conlon, associate vice president for enrollment management, take part in the post-storm clean up efforts in the neighborhood.
“What your group did in one day would probably have taken our staff three to four weeks to accomplish,” says Michael Barthel, administrator at the Lutheran Church Home. “We are truly blessed to have Canisius as our neighbor.”
Canisius was also fortunate to receive crisis assistance of its own from another local college.
“We have a joint emergency preparedness agreement with Niagara University,” says Cogan, who lent us approximately 100 cots (for the temporarily relocated students) and several generators for use at Agassiz Circle and the Koessler Athletic Center.”
According to Pilato, the Departments of Public Safety and Residence Life assisted 15-20 students who lost power in non-college owned neighborhood housing. Those students were temporarily placed in college-owned housing.
The Health Science Building, Koessler Athletic Center, Demerly Hall and the Center at Amherst also lost power for a length of time.
According to Gary Everett, director of public safety, several important safety issues still remain in the wake of the storm.
“The Buffalo Fire Department has informed us that all downed wires, no matter what type, should be assumed to be live and should NOT be touched,” says Everett.
He adds that some traffic lights in the area remain out and do not have officers directing traffic. Non-functional traffic lights should be treated as four-way stop signs. In addition, downed trees and piles of brush and trees in the neighborhood could block your line of vision while walking or driving. Please use caution.
Nelson to Retire as Vice President for Academic Affairs
After serving nearly a decade in the college's top academic post, Herbert J. Nelson, PhD, Canisius' vice president for academic affairs, will step down at the end of the 2006-2007 academic year. He will then retire from his faculty appointment in the college's Philosophy Department. A national search will be conducted to select Nelson's replacement. Appointed vice president for academic affairs in 1997, Nelson oversees the college's 215 full-time and several hundred adjunct faculty members; its School of Arts & Sciences, School of Education and Human Services and Wehle School of Business; Bouwhuis Library; Information Technology Center; Registrar's Office; and Office of Enrollment Management.
Under Nelson's leadership, the college has added new academic programs and introduced new signature learning opportunities for students; improved instructional and research facilities for both students and faculty; heightened its research and study related to the Jesuit Catholic tradition; and increased the size of the faculty and the student body.
"I am very grateful to Dr. Nelson for his academic leadership at Canisius College," said President Rev. Vincent M. Cooke, S.J. "Throughout his tenure, he has demonstrated an unparalleled commitment to enhancing Canisius' position as a quality educational institution, the benefits of which are evident in the college's faculty, students and graduates."
In his role as academic vice president, Nelson also served as the college's Mission and Identity coordinator, secretary to the Canisius College Board of Trustees Academics Committee and as a member of the Canisius Budget Committee.
Prior to his current position, Nelson was a professor of philosophy at Canisius College and former chair of the department. He is a graduate of the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, Italy, where he earned both bachelor's and licentiate degrees in philosophy. He also holds a doctorate in philosophy from the University at Buffalo.
Service Recognition Ceremony to Honor College Employees
Canisius College will recognize faculty, staff and administrators who have reached their five, 10 and 15 year service anniversaries at the sixth annual Service Recognition Ceremony on Friday, November 17 at 2:30 p.m. in the Montante Cultural Center. All employees are encouraged to attend the ceremony and celebrate with their colleagues who have reached these service milestones.
Canisius Open House Welcomes Prospective Students
Canisius College will welcome more than 600 prospective students and their parents during its fall 2006 open house. For the third year in a row, open house will be held in two sessions, Saturday, October 28 and Saturday, November 11. Registration begins at 9:30 a.m.
Faculty, administrators, students, alumni, and of course, Canisius President Rev. Vincent M. Cooke, S.J., will be on hand to greet prospective students. The program includes campus tours, academic presentations by faculty, and information involving financial aid, student life and admissions procedures.
Participants pick up personalized agendas when they check in at open house. The admission staff tailors each agenda according to preferences prospective students select when they pre-register. Prospective students still have the option to choose what sessions to attend that day.
For more information on fall 2006 open house, contact Rachel Voerg, assistant director of admissions, at Ext. 2201.
October Issue of Connections On-Line
The October issue of Connections, the on-line newsletter of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities (AJCU) is now available. The theme of this issue, which includes an article by John D. Occhipinti, professor of political science, is "Engaging Students in the Political Process." To read Connections, click here.