The city of Scranton is celebrating Interdependence Day this year on Thursday, September 10. Launched in Philadelphia in 2003, Interdependence Day was created in reaction to the events of September 11, 2001 and is meant to be a time to reflect on how all peoples of the world are connected.
Several interdependence events will be held throughout the city and Northeastern Pennsylvania this week. On Thursday, Kevin Klose, dean of the Philip Merrill College of Journalism at the University of Maryland, will give the keynote address entitled “We the iPhone People: A Revolutionary Interdependence” at 5:30pm at the William J. Nealon Federal Building. While this event is by invitation only, University of Scranton community members are welcome to attend “All You Have to Do is Listen,” a talk by NPR commentator Rob Kapilow, planned for Wednesday, September 16 at 7:30pm in the Houlihan McLean Center.
Many thanks to Sondra Myers, co-founder of Interdependence Day, Senior Fellow for International, Civic and Cultural Projects at the University of Scranton, and director of the Weinberg Memorial Library’s Schemel Forum, for coordinating this year’s Interdependence Day events.
P.S. Interested in learning more about interdependence? Browse the Weinberg Memorial Library’s catalog and check out one of our books.
Update: The University’s Associate Provost for civic engagement and University mission, Dr. Steven Jones, wrote a column on interdependence for the 9/11/2009 Scranton Times Tribune.
Today is First Friday! First Friday art walks are held on the first Friday of every month at galleries and businesses around Downtown Scranton. Get the First Friday map for September at http://firstfridayscranton.com
La Festa Italiana, an annual end-of-summer Italian festival that’s held on Courthouse Square, Scranton. Hours are Saturday and Sunday, 12 noon to 11 p.m.; Sunday, 12 noon to 9 p.m. Featuring delicious Italian food! The University of Scranton Jazz Band will be playing on Saturday from 9:30 to 11:00pm, and there will be fireworks on Sunday at 10:00pm. For a complete schedule of events, go to http://www.lafestaitaliana.org/index.htm
Shuttle transportation will be provided between La Festa and the Steamtown National Historic Site (300 Cliff St.) for Rail Fest, a 1940s themed celebration with Union Pacific “Big Boy” locomotive tours, railway post-office presentations, steam-powered rail excursions to Moscow, trolley rides, behind-the-scenes tours, big-band performances, rail photography and art exhibits, model-train displays and old-time radio comedy sketches by the Dietrich Theater Radio Players., Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information call340-5200 or visit http://nps.gov/stea
Labor Day Weekend Carnival, with amusement rides, food vendors and games. Wachovia Arena parking lot, 255 Highland Park Blvd., Wilkes-Barre Township. Tonight at 6; Saturday through Labor Day, beginning at 2 p.m. Information at http://sandsamusementspa.com
The Weinberg Memorial Library and the Center for Teaching & Learning Excellence (CTLE) are proud to announce a new faculty and staff advancement series, Technology on Your Own Terms. The series will introduce University faculty and staff to emerging technologies in a hands-on environment, in order to encourage innovation in the workplace and in the classroom.
Technology on Your Own Terms will begin this Fall with four sessions:
Tweet Your Words Tuesday, September 15 from 12pm – 1pm (WML 306)
You’ve heard about Twitter on the news – now find out what it’s really like. In this workshop, you’ll create a Twitter account and post your first tweet. You’ll also learn how to follow other tweeters and find useful information in the Twitterverse. (Taught by Kristen Yarmey-Tylutki, Library)
Curl Up with a Kindle Thursday, October 1 from 12pm – 1pm (WML 306)
Learn how to use an entirely new class of device -a convenient, portable reading device with the ability to wirelessly download books, blogs, magazines, and newspapers. The device is the Amazon Kindle. During this workshop, you will learn how to use many of the Kindle’s features including digital highlights and notes. (Taught by Aileen McHale, CTLE)
Really Simple Steps for Managing the Web: An Introduction to RSS Tuesday, October 13 from 12pm – 1pm (WML 306)
This workshop will explain how RSS feeds and RSS readers can help you manage the abundance of information available on the web. You’ll create a Google Reader account and will learn to import, organize, search, and share up-to-date content from your favorite websites. (Taught by Kristen Yarmey-Tylutki, Library)
Stay Alert! Keeping Your Research Up-to-Date
Thursday, October 29, from 11:30am – 12:30pm (WML 306)
Do you spend an inordinate amount of time keeping your research up-to-date? During this workshop you will learn how to set up e-mail alerts and use RSS feeds to gather scholarly information. (Taught by Bonnie Oldham, Library)
Sessions will be taught in Weinberg Memorial Library Room 306. All faculty and staff members are welcome, but seats are limited, so please register for sessions you plan to attend (select Special Event).
The Second Annual University for a Day
Saturday, September 12, 2009
8:45 a.m. to 5:15 p.m.
Start the new season thinking! We invite you to join us for a day of listening to, reflecting on and talking about some ideas and people that have changed our world. Take part in this feast for the mind at The Schemel Forum’s second annual University for the Day.
Full Schedule:
8:45am – 9:30am Registration
9:30am – 10:45am Toni Morrison’s A Mercy: A Paradigm and a Cautionary Tale of Interdependence in a New World (presented by Stephen Whittaker, Professor of English and Theater)
11:00am – 12:15pm Rosalind Franklin: Another Twist in the DNA Double Helix (presented by Janice Voltzow, Professor of Biology)
12:30pm – 1:30pm Buffet Luncheon
1:45pm – 3:00pm The Best Way to Rob a Bank is to Run it: White Collar Crime and the Global Financial Crisis (presented by David Friedrichs, Professor of Sociology and Criminal Justice)
3:15pm – 4:30pm Globalization: For Better and Worse (presented by Goodwin Cooke, Professor of International Studies at Syracuse University)
4:30pm – 5:15pm Reception
All this plus morning coffee, lunch and a closing wine reception in very good company for a very low price! Free to current Schemel Forum Members. $25.00 Schemel Forum Non-Members. Reservations are required, so please register by contacting Kym Balthazar Fetsko, Schemel Forum Events Coordinator, at 570-941-7816 or fetskok2 (at) scranton (dot) edu. Also be sure to check out the full Schemel Forum fall schedule!
University for a Day is made possible through the generous support of the Neighborhood Development Trust Fund and the Scranton Area Foundation.
The Weinberg Memorial Library’s Schemel Forum has just released its Fall 2009 schedule, and as usual, there are several great opportunities for University and local community members to learn, think, share, and discuss. This year, offerings include three evening courses, five luncheon seminars, and the second annual University for a Day.
One of the Forum’s highlights will be a lunch seminar on “U.S. Foreign Policy: Ten Months into the Obama Era,” presented by Scranton alum Harvey Sicherman of the Foreign Policy Research Institute. (Side note: we couldn’t resist looking Dr. Sicherman up in the 1966 Windhover. Not only was he a Dean’s List and Honors student, he also worked on the Aquinas and the Royals’ Historical Society’s semi-annual publication of Retrospect.)
We’re also looking forward to Atty. Morey Myers’ evening course on “Church & State or Church v. State?,” since his series last fall on the AmericanPresidency was so engaging.
For more information or to register for Schemel Forum events, contact Kym Fetsko at 570-941-7816 or fetskok2 [at] scranton [dot] edu.
Thanks to all who attended the “Do You Speak Web 2.0?” session here at the Library today. We had a great time – there were a lot of tough questions about the ins and outs of Web 2.0 that hopefully will lead into even more good conversations in the future.
If you missed the session or would like a refresher, you can see the slides below. You can also see pictures from the event on our flickr page!
There are only 10 spots left for Democracy’s Challenge: Reclaiming the Public’s Role, the latest event in our Schemel Forum series. The session will be a discussion moderated by Steven Jones, Ph.D., the University of Scranton’s Associate Provost for Civic Engagement and Academic Mission.
The discussion will be held Monday, June 15th at 5pm. It’s free to all participants, but since the number of participants is limited, reservations are required.
To register, contact our Schemel Forum Events Coordinator, Kym Fetsko, at 570-941-7816 or fetskok2 (at) scranton (dot) edu.
The University of Scranton Weinberg Memorial Library’s annual Book and Plant Sale, held over the weekend, was a big success! The sale raised over $6,500 for the Friends of the Library, more than last year’s sale. We enjoyed great weather and a constant stream of shoppers all weekend long.
Thanks so much to the Friends of the Library, all of our staff and faculty who helped out at the sale, and, of course, all of our book buyers for your support.
P.S. Check out more photos from the book sale on our Flickr page!
The University of Scranton and the City of Scranton are celebrating Earth Day with a week full of events, from a sustainable tour of downtown Scranton to an Earth Day Fair to hikes and mountain bike rides. If you have a quiet moment in the midst of all the green activity, be sure to check out some of the Weinberg Memorial Library’s newest books on sustainability and environmental issues:
Robert Kuttner, founding co-editor of The American Prospect and Senior Fellow at DEMOS, a New York-based think tank, came to campus today to speak at the Schemel Forum luncheon.
Robert Kuttner speaking at the DeNaples Center
Kuttner, author of Obama’s Challenge: America’s Economic Crisis and the Power of a Transformational Presidency, criticized President Obama’s approach to economic stimulus, saying that current policy was equivalent to “reinflating the bubble.” He advocated that Obama listen to dissenting voices, including FDIC chair Sheila Bair and Economic Recovery Advisory Board chairman Paul Volker. Kuttner’s talk was well attended, and there were excellent discussion questions from the audience.
Sondra Myers, Senior Fellow of the University, with Robert Kuttner at the book signing
The city of Scranton is celebrating Interdependence Day this year on Thursday, September 10. Launched in Philadelphia in 2003, Interdependence Day was created in reaction to the events of September 11, 2001 and is meant to be a time to reflect on how all peoples of the world are connected.
