| May 16, 2007 | Vol 8. No. 12 |
Canisius Receives $1 Million Gift from Peter and Elizabeth Tower
Canisius College has received a $1 million gift from local philanthropists Peter and Elizabeth Tower, which will be used to establish the Peter Tower Endowed Professorship and the Peter and Elizabeth C. Tower Endowed Scholarship Fund.
The Peter Tower Professorship will be awarded to faculty members in the college’s Richard J. Wehle School of Business. The professorship, which comes with a stipend and funding for programming, will foster entrepreneurship, innovation and economic development in Western New York. Professorships will be awarded on the basis of competitive applications and will be for a term of up to three years.
“The Canisius community is extremely grateful to Peter and Liz Tower for their tremendous support and generosity,” said Rev. Vincent M. Cooke, S.J., college president. “The Peter Tower Professorship will provide our business faculty with the resources to not only create innovative programs but to create a legacy that will have a permanent impact on our community.”
“The Towers’ magnificent gift to the School of Business has garnered a great deal of excitement among the college’s business faculty,” said Antone F. Alber, PhD, dean of the Richard J. Wehle School of Business. “Several faculty members have already started the application process for the first professorship, which will be awarded to begin in fall 2007.”
For more information, click here.
Canisius Receives Challenge Grant from M&T Bank
Canisius College is the recipient of a $500,000 M&T challenge grant to be used towards the creation of the college’s interdisciplinary science center.
“We are delighted to receive this generous award from M&T Bank,” said Rev. Vincent M. Cooke, S.J., college president, “Grants from this highly respected institution are very competitive. By selecting the college for this award, M&T has recognized Canisius as a leader in the Buffalo community.”
“M&T and Canisius have shared a relationship in this community since 1924,” said Shelley C. Drake, president of The M&T Charitable Foundation. “We have grown together, and together, we have helped the community to grow. We believe this project will advance Canisius’ already outstanding undergraduate science program, as well as help Western New York’s life-sciences economy to develop.”
Payable over five years, the foundation will match, dollar-for-dollar, qualifying cash and pledges received by the college from the Western New York private sector, including alumni, friends, and Western New York foundations and corporations.
Funds will support the purchase, renovation and development of technology-enhanced classrooms and laboratories, including five Interdisciplinary Research Training Groups (IRTGs) in the areas of bioinformatics, cellular/molecular biology, analytical chemistry, neuroscience and quantitative science that will be housed in the college’s interdisciplinary science center.
For more information, click here.
Commencement 2007
Canisius College will confer 308 degrees during graduate commencement ceremonies tonight at 7 p.m. in college’s Koessler Athletic Center. Edward U. Kmiec, 13th bishop of the Diocese of Buffalo, will address the Canisius College Class of 2007 and receive an honorary degree.
Congratulations to the following Canisius employees, who will be among the graduates:
- Michael R. Carletta, director of compliance for athletics, master's degree in business administration;
- Ronald J. Haberer, associate controller, master's degree in business administration;
- James V. Jones, director, career center, master of science degree in school/agency counseling;
- Matthew E. Lozar, assistant director of athletic communications, master of science degree in sport administration;
- Kirsten L. Reppert, assistant director of annual fund, master of science degree in communication and leadership; and
- Mollie A. Strasser, senior assistant director admissions, master of science degree, college student personnel administration
Check out the next issue of the NetGazette, which goes on-line June 13, for photos of the event.
ROTC Commissioning
Lieutenant Colonel James H. Soos, chair of military science, will commission 14 seniors as second lieutenants in the U.S. Army during the 54th annual ROTC (Reserve Officers Training Corps) Commissioning Ceremony on Friday, May 18 at 2:00 p.m. in the Montante Cultural Center.
Summer Hours
Summer hours at the college go into effect on Monday, May 21. The workday will be 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., with one half-hour for lunch.
Memorial Day Holiday
The college will be closed, except for essential operating personnel, on Monday, May 28 in observance of Memorial Day.
Summer Classes Begin
Classes for the summer semester begin on Monday, May 21 for all divisions: undergraduate session one, graduate education three-week session, graduate education first five-week session and graduate business summer session one.
CANISIUS EVENTS
Chartwells Summer Picnic Schedule
It’s once again time to enjoy Chartwells' summer picnics. Food will be served in the Palisano Pavilion from 11:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. on Wednesdays. Both indoor and outdoor seating will be available. Picnics will be held on the following dates:
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Food will be grilled outdoors weather permitting. The Old Main Snack Bar will close at 10:30 a.m. on days when picnics are scheduled.
Summer Camps
Canisius offers a wide variety of summer camps for school-aged children. So no matter what your child’s interest, there’s something to fit the bill!
For sports camps, including soccer, basketball, swimming and diving and softball, click here.
For Young Writers' Camp (children grades 3-12), click here or contact the Western New York Writing Project at Ext. 3134.
For Summer Science Camp for middle school children, click here or contact Steven Szczepankewicz, PhD, assistant professor of chemistry/biochemistry at Ext. 2355.
Last Chance to Join Canisius’ Corporate Challenge Team
There are only two days left to register to run or walk with your Canisius co-workers in the 2007 JP Morgan Corporate Challenge on Thursday, June 7. Registration deadline is Friday, May 18. The fee for Canisius College faculty and staff is $20, non-employees cost $30. A tent party, with refreshments provided by Chartwells, begins at 5 p.m. in Delaware Park. You may attend the tent party only for a $5 fee. To register or for more information, contact Gary Lew, senior facilities operations manager, at Ext. 2255 or send an E-mail to lew@canisius.edu.
Canisius Cares Ride for Roswell Team
Canisius faculty and staff are invited to join the Canisius Cares team for the 2007 Ride for Roswell to benefit Roswell Park Cancer Institute on June 23. Riders can choose from four routes – 9, 20, 33, or 62.5 miles. (Team members do not have to ride the same route). For more information or to sign up, contact the Office of Alumni Relations at Ext. 2700 or visit the Web site here to register as a member of the Canisius Cares team.
Shoes for Shelter Update
Despite bad weather on race day, 1,181 pairs of shoes were collected for the St. Vincent de Paul Society at the Canisius College Shoes for Shelter 5K Run/Walk presented by Independent Health on Sunday, April 15. According to John Maddock, associate director of athletics for external affairs, that sets a new all-time record!
Canisius End-of-the-Semester Party
(l-r) J. David Valaik, PhD, professor emeritus of history, Joseph P. Lovering, Jr., professor emeritus of English and James J. McGoldrick, PhD, professor emeritus of modern languages.
Nearly 50 Canisius retirees, long-time faculty and staff, and friends of the college turned out at Ulrich’s Restaurant on Ellicott Street on Thursday, May 10 to celebrate the end of the spring semester with food, drink and good conversation. This is the fifth year that the Canisius event, affectionately known as “The Old-Timers’ Party,” has been held.
Click here to see more photos.
Bald for Bucks/Locks of Love
Sarah E. Signorino ’04, associate campus minister, smiles as she gets her head shaved during the Bald for Bucks Cut-a-Thon on May 1. Rev. Michael F. Tunney, S.J., professor of fine arts and director of studio art (not pictured), also went for the “Kojak” look. Hats off to both of them!
Twenty-seven Canisius faculty, staff and students participated in the Locks of Love/Bald for Bucks Cut-a-Thon on Tuesday, May 1 in the Penfold Commons. The event, sponsored by the Office of Campus Programming and Leadership Development, raised more than $2,300 for Roswell Park Cancer Institute. A Residence Hall Association (RHA) midnight breakfast on Wednesday, May 9 brought the total donation to more than $2,900. Bald for Bucks began at Lake Shore High School in honor of Canisius graduate Cathleen George ’90, who died of cancer in 2004.
Patricia C. Strobele, secretary for fine arts, gets her long locks cut by a cosmetology student from Leon Studio One in Williamsville. Strobele, who donated her hair to Locks of Love, says her hair will be long again in no time! Katie Martoche, assistant director of Campus Programming and Leadership Development, Chris Ring, building repairer for facilities management, Eva Mae Early from the Canisius College Bookstore and Kim Johnson from Chartwells were also among those who donated their hair to Locks of Love.
Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day
The Canisius campus had some extra “colleagues” at work on Thursday, April 26 for Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day. The Ms. Foundation for Women founded the Take Our Daughters to Work Day program 13 years ago to encourage girls and young women to reach their potential. The name was changed to Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day in April 2003 to broaden the discussion about the competing challenges of work and family.
Nine year-old Michaela Pirk assisted her grandmother, Susan Keller Sedia, secretary for the Department of Management and Marketing. Michaela is a student at Starpoint Elementary School.
The Department of Facilities Management got some extra helping hands. (l-r) Jim McNeill, building repairer, with his nine year-old son Adam who is a student at Meadow Elementary School; Jim Janisch, stationary engineer I with his ten year-old daughter Ashley, who attends A.J. Schimdt Elementary School in Lake Shore; and Jerry Metlock, building repairer, with his four year-old daughter Kaitlyn, a pre-K student at Mount St. Joseph Academy.
Canisius Community Day
Anne Marie Dobies, director of disability support services, puts a fresh coat of paint on a room at the Little Portion Friary on Main Street. Dobies’ father, the late Deacon John Gainey, was one of the founders of Little Portion Friary, which provides food, shelter and direction for the homeless. More than 150 members of the Canisius community took part in various volunteer projects throughout the area for Canisius Community Day on Saturday, April 21.
Nancy V. Wallace, PhD, associate professor of education, helped at the Early Childhood Center Public School #17 on West Delavan Avenue. As part of community day, Wallace coordinated a group of Canisius education students who removed debris left from the October storm, tended the gardens and did a general clean-up of the courtyard spaces.
CANISIUS KUDOS
Spring Honors Convocation
Several of the college’s faculty and administrators were recognized at Spring Honors Convocation Friday, April 27 in the Montante Cultural Center.
Rev. Vincent M. Cooke, S.J., college president, and Trevor L. Watt, PhD, professor of religious studies. Watt is the recipient of the 2007 Kenneth L. Koessler Distinguished Faculty Award. The prestigious award, presented annually, recognizes one faculty member for teaching excellence and outstanding contributions to the academic world.
Father Cooke presents Gary Everett, director of public safety, with the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Administrator Award. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Awards, presented annually in the categories of staff, administrator, faculty and student, recognize individuals at the college who have proven qualities that foster equality, fairness, human/civil rights and justice.
Charles R. Schmidtke, PhD, associate professor of gerontology (left), receives the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Faculty Award from Father Cooke. Not pictured: Brian C. Ricci ’07, who received the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Student Award.
Siener Promoted to Director of Academic Computing
Estelle M. Siener has been promoted to director of academic computing for information technology services (ITS), effective July 1. She succeeds Mark Castner, who will continue his roles as adjunct professor of physics and associate director of the Braun Seismograph Station.
Professors Recognized at MBA Cocktail Party
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| Edward J. Garrity, PhD |
Alan G. Weinstein, PhD |
Weinstein and Garrity accepted their awards at the department’s annual cocktail party on May 11.