Winter Commencement Scheduled for
January 26

The University will celebrate its mid-year commencement on Sunday, January 26, 2003 at 1:00 p.m. in the Rec Center on campus. In the event of inclement weather, the ceremony will be held on January 27 at 7:00 p.m., also in the Rec Center. Leonard Harris, the University’s Distinguished Visiting Scholar, will present the commencement address.


Senior Send-Off Set for January 25

Graduating seniors, their families, faculty and staff are invited to attend the Senior Send-Off reception on Saturday, January 25 at 7:00 p.m. in the Machuga Student Center Ballroom. The event, held the evening prior to the University’s mid-year commencement, offers the campus community an opportunity to bid farewell to our graduates and welcome them to their new position as alumni.

Hosted by the Young Alumni Chapter of the University’s Alumni Association, the evening will include a light dinner, a champagne toast, and live entertainment. If you plan to attend, please call the Alumni Relations Office at x2175.



Vanguard Jazz Orchestra in Residence at University Nominated for Grammy Award

Vanguard Jazz Orchestra

The Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, in residence at the University, has been nominated for a 2003 Grammy Award in the large jazz ensemble category for its CD Can I Persuade You? The awards are given by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences and will be presented on February 23 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The Orchestra plays an active role in the University’s Jazz Studies Program as an artist–in-residence. The Cheng Library is the repository of the Thad Jones Archive, a collection of original pen and ink scores used by the Vanguard Orchestra for more than 30 years since they were written and arranged by the orchestra’s co-founder Thad Jones, who was also one of the founders of the University's Jazz Studies Program.

Library to Participate in Virtual Reference Service

University students, faculty and staff seeking answers to reference questions will soon have access to a new Internet resource: Q and A NJ, a live, interactive search site that offers a network of experienced New Jersey librarians to provide assistance 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The virtual reference service, which will be available later this month via a link on the home page of William Paterson’s David and Lorraine Cheng  Library, is staffed by professional librarians from more than 30 participating libraries statewide, including public and community college libraries. William Paterson reference librarians will staff the service for six hours each week. The cost to the user is free.

"This service will provide the University community with reference assistance around the clock," says Kathleen Malanga, assistant director for access and information services. "It also allows our librarians to contribute to the state pool of shared resources."
According to Malanga, most queries posed through the service will be answered online within 15 minutes. Both the questioner and the answering librarian can "chat" in real-time, as well as co-browse resources such as Web sites and databases. If the question requires lengthy research, the librarian will provide a start, and/or offer a referral.

Malanga points out that the Library already offers users the opportunity to ask a reference question via an e-mail link on the Library home page. "Members of the University community can and should continue to ask questions of our own reference librarians, particularly if the questions have to do with our collections or databases," she says. Answers are generally provided within 48 hours.

Q and A NJ also provides access to free live tutoring for students in 4th through 12th grade through an alliance with tutor.com. The service is administered by the South Jersey Regional Library Cooperative, a state tax-funded service of the New Jersey Library Network, and supported by Federal Library Services and Technology Act funds administered by the New Jersey State Library.

William Paterson University Jams With a New Series of the Jazz Room

Bassist and composer Harvie S

The Jazz Room at William Paterson University continues its 25th anniversary season with an outstanding spring series of six consecutive Sunday concerts beginning February 2. Concert time is 4:00 p.m. in the Shea Center for Performing Arts at William Paterson University in Wayne. A 3:00 p.m. informal discussion with the afternoon’s performers, "Sittin’ In," precedes the concert and is free to all Jazz Room ticketholders in Shea Center’s Recital Hall
Room 101. (More Information).

University President Arnold Speert (right) thanks Walter J. Hunziker for his donation.

The archive containing the personal papers of William Paterson, governor of New Jersey in 1790 and the University’s namesake, has received a copy of Laws of the State, written and compiled by Governor Paterson and published in 1800. Walter J. Hunziker Jr. donated the volume. The collection is housed in the David and Lorraine Cheng Library on campus. Hunziker is the grandson of Gustav A. Hunziker, for whom Hunziker Hall, one of the first academic buildings on campus, is named. The book is a compilation of all extant New Jersey laws including English statutes and acts adopted by the Legislature after the Revolutionary War, and includes the revised rules and practices of the state’s courts. The book represents the first volume of published laws for New Jersey.


Russ Berrie, Recent Donor to University, Dies

Russ Berrie

It was with great sadness that the University learned of the death of Russ Berrie, founder, chairman and CEO of Russ Berrie and Company, on December 25, 2002. Just three weeks earlier, Berrie joined William Paterson officials for a news conference in the building at 1600 Valley Road to announce his commitment to invest up to $5 million over five years to establish the Russ Berrie Institute for Professional Selling at the University.

"William Paterson is extremely honored to have partnered with Russ Berrie, one of the United States’ most successful businessmen and dedicated philanthropists," said Arnold Speert. University president. "It was Russ Berrie’s dream to advance and elevate the profession of sales through the establishment of the Russ Berrie Institute. We are confident that we will develop the Institute into a preeminent educational resource that would have made him proud."

Berrie, who was 69, founded Oakland-based Russ Berrie and Company, Inc. in 1963, and over the last 39 years built the $300 million company into one of the world’s premier lifestyle gift companies, selling stuffed animals, toys and other items. In addition to his business accomplishments, Berrie devoted endless energy and resources to numerous charitable causes. In addition to the University, beneficiaries of his philanthropy included the Naomi Berrie Diabetes Center at Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center, the Berrie Center for Humanistic Care at Englewood Hospital, the Sister Patricia Lynch Regional Care Center at The Russell and Angelica Berrie Medical Pavilion at Holy Name Hospital, and the Russell and Angelica Berrie Performing Arts Center at Ramapo College. In 1998, Berrie was named one of the 40 most generous Americans by Fortune Magazine. Most recently, he was honored with his wife, Angelica, as Humanitarians of the Year by the New York Chapter, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International.

Director’s Council Offers New Seminar Series for University Managers

Members of the University’s Director’s Council have an opportunity to reflect on their roles as managers in an academic environment through a new series of seminars that began in December.

The seminar series, "Empowering Higher Education Managers at William Paterson University," is designed to help members of the Director’s Council gain a greater understanding of the critical issues that face higher education institutions in the 21st century.

"We hope this seminar series will set the stage for how we think about being managers, which will lead to more effective leadership and service in departments across the campus," says Martin Williams, chair of the Director’s Council Steering Committee and a member of the Council’s Professional Development Committee, which initiated the series.

Robert Seal, executive assistant to the provost and vice president for academic affairs, presented the first seminar at the Council's regular December meeting, which focused on leadership within the higher education organizational structure. The next seminar, scheduled for January 29, will explore the concept of culture; subsequent presentations in March and May will focus on communication and decision making. The topics for the seminars were selected by the committee based on their reading of the book Building the Responsive Campus: Creating High Performance Colleges and Universities by William Tierney, the Wilbur-Kieffer Professor of Higher Education at the University of Southern California.

In addition to Williams, members of the Director’s Council Professional Development committee are: Jane Hutchison (chair), instruction and research technology; Anne Ciliberti, library; Ana Class-Rivera, Educational Opportunity Fund; Francisco Diaz, campus activities and student leadership; Nancy Norris-Bauer, field experiences; Jeanie Robertson, professional and organizational development; and John Sims, employment equity and diversity.




Unsinkable Women: Stories and Songs from the Titanic at William Paterson on February 1

Deborah Jean Templin

Spunk, spirit and song define the Jena Company’s live theatre production, Unsinkable Women: Stories and Songs from the Titanic. This original work, which features stage and screen actress Deborah Jean Templin, will be presented at William Paterson University in Wayne on Saturday, February 1 at
8:00 p.m.
(More Information).

Kevin Powell Opens William Paterson University African Heritage Month Observance

Kevin Powell, a poet, political activist and hip-hop historian, will present a lecture at William Paterson University as part of the institution’s observance of African Heritage Month during the month of February. Other events include a poetry slam featuring the actor MUMS, who plays "Poet" on the HBO series OZ, and several lectures and musical performances.
(More Information).

Battle Earns ECAC Player of the Week Award

William Paterson University junior forward Khayri Battle (Newark, NJ/Bayley-Ellard) was named the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference's Metro Region Player of the Week on Jan. 8, two days after he earned the same honor from the New Jersey Athletic Conference. He has been instrumental in the Pioneers' (11-2, 5-1 NJAC) recent 11-game winning streak.
(More Information)

Team Ranked 25th
by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper

	With much of their entire team returning, the Pioneers (26-13, 12-6 NJAC in 2002) have been ranked No. 25 in the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper’s preseason Division III poll. Last season, they defeated two teams currently ranked in the Top 5. (More Information)
Mark Kalish

A Look Ahead

After stringing together an 11-game winning streak through Jan. 11, the Men’s Basketball Team (11-2, 5-1 NJAC) continues its march toward the New Jersey Athletic Conference Tournament with a slate of challenging games. Led by versatile junior forward Khayri Battle (13.9 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 3.3 spg) and junior guard Brandon Constantine (10.5 ppg), they host backyard rival Montclair State University on Jan. 15 at 8 p.m. Other games of note include a road game against Rowan University on Jan. 22 and a big rematch against Ramapo College on Jan. 29 at 8:00 p.m. On Nov. 26, the Pioneers suffered their only NJAC setback against Ramapo …

Kat McPhail

With its veterans and newcomers having meshed together, the Women’s Basketball Team (5-8, 2-4 NJAC) has set its sights on moving over .500 and making a playoff push. However, the Pioneers must withstand home games against Montclair State on Jan. 15 at 8:00 p.m. and Rutgers-Camden on Jan. 18 at 4:00 p.m. A big road game against Rowan (Jan. 22, 6:00 p.m.) looms, as does a rematch against Ramapo (Jan. 29, 6:00 p.m.) at the Rec Center. Junior guard Kat McPhail (14.9 ppg, 4.0 rpg) has emerged as a consistent scorer and leader, senior guard Katie Morris (9.7 ppg, 63 steals) has continued her drive toward the Pioneer career steals record, and freshman guard Allison Mopsick (7.2 ppg) has emerged as one of the NJAC’s best rookies.

The Men’s and Women’s Swimming and Diving Teams resume action on Jan. 22 at Queens (NY) College after traveling to La Romana, Dominican Republic for its annual winter training trip. In addition to the meet against Queens, the Pioneers will look to reap the rewards of their training at Manhattanville College on Jan. 29. For the men (8-1), junior Steve Pappendick (freestyle sprints) and sophomores Tom Carson (freestyle/individual medley) and Billy Schreyer (freestyle/backstroke) have buoyed a team that has won seven straight meets. Junior Jaferleen Perez-Arias (freestyle sprints/butterfly), who was named the NJAC Women’s Swimmer of the Week on Dec. 16, and freshman senior Mandy Foley (freestyle distance) have been key contributors as the women (9-2, 1-1 NJAC) have won eight consecutive contests.