Media Watch (May 16–23, 2005)

"Media Watch" is a round-up of recent stories in the media about the University of Hartford, as well as significant stories about other local and peer institutions and news about trends and issues in higher education.

Elizabeth Ivey, provost emerita and president of the Association for Women in Science, was quoted in hundreds of newspapers nationwide in an Associated Press article about Harvard President Lawrence Summers and his commitment of $50 million to initiatives for women faculty and scientists. Last winter, Summers suggested that innate differences between the sexes might explain why fewer women succeed in science and math careers. “Mostly I see it as catching up,” said Ivey. “Much of what they’re talking about has been done at other institutions for 30 or 40 years.” Ivey’s title was initially misidentified in the article, but was later corrected. She was also interviewed on WTIC-AM’s Ray Dunaway and Diane Smith Show. (Associated Press, May 17; WTIC-AM, May 17; Boston Globe, May 16; Chicago Sun-Times; San Diego Union Tribune, May 17)

The Special Olympics Connecticut 2005 Eastern Regional games were held at the University of Hartford, Watkinson School, and Weaver High School, on Saturday, May 21. About 1,200 Special Olympics athletes competed in aquatics, soccer, track and field, tennis, wheelchair, and adaptive sports. The Hartford Courant ran several color photographs of athletes competing at Weaver High School in its Sunday “Connecticut” section. (Hartford Courant, May 22; NBC 30; WFSB-TV 3)

The annual “New Horizons: A Jewish Cultural Experience” program will be held June 6–8, at the Springfield, Mass., Jewish Community Center. Richard Freund, director of the university’s Maurice Greenberg Center for Judaic Studies, will present “Secrets of the Cave of Letters: A Dead Sea Mystery” and Matthew Silver, 2004–05 visiting professor of Judaic Studies at the university, will present “Unilateral Withdrawal or Resumed Negotiations: Israel and the Peace Process After Arafat” and “Middle East Media: Can There Be Objective Media about Israel and the Middle East?” (The Republican, Springfield, Mass., May 21)

Appearances by alumni Patrick Sheehan and Tim Petrovic, in the Bank of America Colonial Golf Tournament in Fort Worth, Tex., received attention from hundreds of media outlets around the country, and was televised live. Petrovic was also included in a story about a tier of golfers who worked odd jobs in hopes of reaching the PGA Tour. Petrovic had numerous other jobs during his 14-year odyssey from turning professional in 1988 to finally making the PGA Tour in 2002. (Associated Press, May, 17, May 20, USA Today))

Steve Dabroski, a center fielder for Newburgh Free Academy who has been awarded a scholarship to enter the university in the fall, “has a great arm,” said Jeff Calcaterra, Hartford head baseball coach. “He has decent speed and can be a quality hitter for us as an outfielder. I also look for him to add stability to our pitching staff.” (Times Herald-Record, May 11)

Other News

A council of faculty, staff, students and administrators at Trinity College, which faces a $10 million deficit, is addressing ways to balance the school’s budget, including a pay freeze for faculty and other non-hourly employees. “It was very painful,” said college President James Jones Jr. “We have done this, and we have not terminated a single employee, which is mind-boggling.” (Associated Press, May 21; Newsday, May 21; Hartford Courant, May 21)

Early Reese, 54, a financial expert and a former high-ranking official with the U.S. Olympic Committee, has been named treasurer and vice president of finance at Trinity College. Reese takes the job just as the college is closing a $10 million budget deficit by reducing expenses and bolstering revenue sources, including fundraising. (Hartford Courant, May 17)

More than 7,000 students at 10 colleges and universities statewide received degrees on Sunday, May 22, the busiest graduation day of the season in Connecticut. A Hartford Courant story profiled commencement ceremonies at St. Joseph College, Trinity College, Eastern Connecticut State University, UConn Law School, Fairfield University, Connecticut College, Quinnipiac University, Western Connecticut State University and Three Rivers Community College. (Hartford Courant, May 23)

Yale University will mark the 100th anniversary of a graduation tradition, the playing of Pomp and Circumstance, at its 304th commencement on Monday, May 23. The standard was first performed at Yale in 1905. At Class Day on Sunday, May 22, Congressional Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton said she wants her fellow Yale alumni to be motivated to change the world. (Associated Press, May 23; Hartford Courant, May 23)

More than 1,800 Central Connecticut State University undergraduates received bachelor's degrees Saturday, May 21, a ceremony at the Hartford Civic Center. An estimated 8,000 friends and family members looked on from the arena seats. (Hartford Courant, May 22)

Forty-seven U.S. colleges and universities now have endowments of $1 billion or more, compared to 17 a decade ago, according to the National Association of College and University Business Officers. Harvard has $22 billion, nearly $10 billion more than Yale, in second place. (Associated Press, May 22; Hartford Courant, May 22)

Selective private colleges acknowledge that they sometimes take affluent teens over those from poor or middle-class families needing financial aid when deciding which students to admit from their waiting lists. The reason, college administrators say, is that financial aid budgets often have been tapped out by the time these admissions are decided in May and June. (Hartford Courant, May 21)