News

Six named Family Research Scholars

Six faculty members have been named Family Research Scholars for the 2013-14 academic year by the Center for Research on Families (CRF).
 
Elizabeth Harvey, Psychology, Agnès Lacreuse, Psychology, Joya Misra, Sociology and Public Policy, Jonathan Rosa, Anthropology, Gwyneth Rost, Communication Disorders, and Lisa Troy, Nutrition, were chosen on the basis of their promising work in family-related research.

The Family Research Scholars Program provides selected faculty with the time, technical expertise, peer mentorship and national expert consultation to prepare a large grant proposal for

5 teams vying in Innovation Challenge on April 17

Five teams of student entrepreneurs will pitch their business plans to a panel of expert judges at the eighth annual Innovation Challenge on Wednesday, April 17. The teams will be competing for $50,000 in prize money at the event held in the Amherst Room, 10th floor, Campus Center, starting at 3:30 p.m. The competition is free and open to the public.
           
Ideas that will be featured include solar space-heating window units, a mobile application that shows discount coupons for retail stores, advanced videoconferencing software, new medical technology software and crowd source

Chem-E-Car competition planned as part of AIChE regional student conference

The campus chapter of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers will host the group’s Northeast Regional Student Conference April 13-14.

The event features the regional Chem-E-Car competition, where students design, build and run model vehicles powered and controlled solely by chemical reactions, a Jeopardy-style quiz for student teams, a keynote speaker and networking workshops.

The conference takes place at various locations on campus including the Integrated Sciences Building.

The keynote speaker is Michael Sarli, a lecturer in the chemical engineering department, who will speak Sunday,

Libraries honored by ALA for Sustainability Fund campaign

The Libraries have won the Gale Cengage Learning Financial Development Award, presented annually by the American Library Association to a library organization that exhibits meritorious achievement in creating new means of funding for a public or academic library. 
 
The Libraries developed the Sustainability Fund to engage philanthropic support from faculty, students, alumni and friends who recognize the value of the rapidly growing field of sustainability studies. One of the award jurors noted that “The initiative is a strategic fundraising program serving as a model for other libraries.”
 

O’Brien’s poem published in The New Yorker

“Crustaceans,” a poem by English professor Peggy O’Brien, appeared in the April 8 issue of The New Yorker.
 
O’Brien is the author of two collections of poems, “Sudden Thaw” and “Frog Spotting.” She is also the editor of the “Wake Forest Book of Irish Women’s Poetry” and a book about Seamus Heaney and other Irish poets called “Writing Lough Derg.”
 
 
 

Obituary: Irving Howards, professor emeritus of Political Science

Irving Howards, 87, of Amherst, professor emeritus of Political Science, died April 8.
 
Born in Milwaukee, he was a graduate of the University of Wisconsin, where he received his B.A., M.A. and Ph.D.
 
He joined the Political Science faculty in 1965 and served as director of the Bureau of Government Research, assistant to the chancellor and president and coordinator of Public Affairs.

Festival of Madness and Mayhem continues with 'Merchant of Venice'

The Festival of Madness and Mayhem continues performances of Shakespeare's "The Merchant of Venice," directed by Dori Robinson, in the Black Box Theater at the Renaissance Center, 650 East Pleasant St.

Performance times are April 18, 20, 25 and 27 at 7 p.m. and April 21 at 2 p.m.

Admission is $7 adults and $5 for students. Call 577-3600 to reserve seats. Pay for seats at the time of the show, cash only.

The festival is co-sponsored by Renaissance Center and UMass Hillel and is made possible in part by a grant from the UMass Arts Council.
 
For information, contact the center at

Amherst scholar leads Five College Renaissance Seminar

Stephanie Elsky, postdoctoral fellow and visiting assistant professor in the department of law, jurisprudence and social thought at Amherst College, will discuss "Custom, Periodization, and Poetic Performance in Sidney's Old Arcadia" on Thursday, April 11 at 4:30 p.m. in the Reading Room of the Renaissance Center, 650 East Pleasant St.

Light refreshments will follow the talk.

For information, contact the center at renaissance@english.umass.edu or 577-3600.

Curator speaks on new acquisitions at Renaissance Center

The Renaissance Center's curator, David Katz, will discuss recent donations to the center and display various rare books from the collection on Wednesday, April 17 at 4 p.m.

The talk is free and open to the public and light refreshments are served after the discussion. The talk takes place in the Reading Room of the Renaissance Center at 650 East Pleasant St.

For information, contact the center at renaissance@english.umass.edu or 577-3600.

'The Witch of Edmonton' is focus of Renaissance seminar

Erika Lin, assistant professor of English at George Mason University, will deliver a talk on “Erotic Horseplay and Demonic Desires: Festive Performance in The Witch of Edmonton” on Wednesday, April 17 at 4:30 p.m. in the Reading Room of the Renaissance Center, 650 East Pleasant St. 

The event is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will follow.

For information, contact the center at renaissance@english.umass.edu or 577-3600.

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