Author to speak on racial issues
David Lamb, writer, lawyer and public speaker, poses the question, "Do Platanos Go Wit' Collard Greens?" in a talk from 7 to 9 p.m. April 22 at the University YMCA. The talk, and Lamb's book by the same name, examine racial issues and the dynamics between the African-American community and Latino cultures based on his experiences growing up in a New York public housing district in Queens. Lamb, now 31, says most of the young people he knew there are "either dead or in jail." Lamb is an alumnus of Hunter College, the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University and New York University School of Law. Lamb's visit is sponsored by the African-American Cultural Center, the Afro-American Studies and Research Program, La Casa Cultural Latina, the Counseling Center, SORF and the University YMCA.
YMCA luncheon on April 26
Celebrating 124 years of community service and social action, the University YMCA will hold a recognition luncheon at noon April 26 in Latzer Hall. Program highlights include the installation of newly elected board members. The program also will feature a keynote speaker and an awards presentation for outstanding leadership and distinguished volunteer service. Tickets for the event are $8 and available at the YMCA front desk. Anyone is welcome to attend. For more information, call 337-1500.
University Primary taking applications
University Primary School is accepting applications for its 1997 Summer Program. The program is open to children who will be 3 years old by July 1 and children ages 4 to 6. The summer program is divided into two four-week sessions, from June 16 to July 11, and July 14 to Aug. 8. The tuition for each session is $200 with an additional $3 fee for insurance. Classes will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis. Applications can be obtained at either University Primary School locations, the Children's Research Center or Colonel Wolfe School, both in Champaign. For more information, call the University Primary School secretary at 333-3996, mornings, or 333-4892, from 2 to 4:30 p.m.
International awards recipients honored
Student recipients of international awards for the 1997-98 academic year will be honored with a reception from 4 to 6 p.m. April 25 in 101 International Studies Building. The fifth annual reception honors more than 150 undergraduate and graduate students who will receive fellowships and grants to pursue international study and research during the upcoming year. Included among the awards are the winners of Churchill, Marshall and Fulbright scholarships as well as many others. The reception is sponsored by International Programs and Studies and the Midwest Universities Consortium for International Activities.
SUAA to hold spring meeting April 20
The UIUC chapter of the State Universities Annuitants Association will hold its spring meeting April 20 at the Illini Union. Refreshments will be served at 1:30 p.m. in the South Lounge, and the business meeting will begin at 2 p.m. in Illini Room C. James Hacking, executive director of the State Universities Retirement System (SURS), will profile the present status of the retirement system, which now is a $6 billion public pension fund representing 125,000 active and retired members. Current UI faculty and staff members who are within five years of retirement are eligible for membership in the association. All retirees, spouses and survivors of retirees are invited to attend the meeting. For more information, contact Marjorie Tingley, 355-1251.
Volunteers needed to teach English
The Intensive English Institute is looking for volunteers with good conversational English skills to help with the Convo Table program. Convo Table is a program designed to help international students develop their English proficiency and learn American customs in an informal atmosphere. Teachers and students meet from 3 to 5 p.m. Wednesdays at the Bread Company, 706 S. Goodwin St., Urbana. For more information about becoming a volunteer instructor, contact Shawn Meredith at smeredit@students.uiuc.edu or call 333-6598.
Stress-buster bash April 26
Students and faculty and staff members are invited to release some tension and blow off some steam at a party from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. April 26 at Terrace Fields, corner of First Street and Peabody Drive. Games, activities, races and prizes will be part of the festivities. Attractions will include tug-of-war games, a Velcro obstacle course, bouncy boxing, bungee run races and a dunk tank. The free festivities, which are open to the public, are sponsored by the Division of Campus Recreation, Illini Union Board, Division of Intercollegiate Athletics, McKinley Health Center and Residence Hall Association. For more information, send e-mail to jhalls@mhc.uiuc.edu or call 333-2714.
INDIA 50 celebration continues
The second series of INDIA 50 lectures, celebrating 50 years of Indian independence, will begin with a presentation by Bruce Berndt, professor of mathematics. His talk, "Ramanujan: The Mathematical Legacy of India," is at 7:30 p.m. April 28 in 2240 Digital Computer Laboratory. A second talk, "Science in India Since '47: Success or Failure?," by M.A. Pai, professor of electrical and computer engineering, will follow the discussion. All events are sponsored by the Program in South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies.
Campus environment feedback wanted
In an effort to preserve areas on campus from new construction or maintenance activities, the Operation and Maintenance grounds department would like feedback from students and faculty and staff members to determine favorite campus sites. These sites could be highly regarded trees or entire areas, such as the Quad, which add significantly to the campus and are worthy of special protection. Suggestions can be sent to William Hoffman, O&M, 1701 S. Oak, MC-821 or to wahoffma@illinois.edu. Submissions should describe the site clearly and explain why it is an asset to the campus and worthy of protection. The deadline for suggestions is April 30.
Staff shared benefits drive announced
The 1997 Shared Benefits donor drive for civil service staff employees will be April 21 through June 15. The program offers a sick-leave pool for employees who have exhausted leave benefits but are unable to work because of a personal catastrophic illness or injury. Since the program was initiated in 1994, 37 civil service staff employees have received assistance through the program. To be eligible to request sick leave from the program, employees must have donated to the pool. Any employee can donate to the Shared Benefits pool if the employee has at least 11 benefit days accumulated. Donation forms were distributed earlier this month. To request another copy of the form, contact Sue McCreery at 333-2144. The donation period for shared benefits for academic staff members will be announced in the fall.
Levis annual meeting to be April 30
The annual meeting of the Levis Faculty Center Sponsors Inc. Board of Directors will be April 30 at 9:30 a.m. in 404 Levis Faculty Center. New members and officers will be elected. The meeting is open to all faculty and staff members. For further information, call Kathleen Pecknold at 244-4457.
Annual Humanities Lecture to be April 22
Herbert Knust, professor of comparative literature, will deliver the 1997 Humanities Lecture. The talk, "Big Fish Eat Little Fish: A Lesson From Different Angles," will be at 8 p.m. April 22 on the third floor of Levis Faculty Center. Knust is an internationally recognized authority on 20th-century German and comparative literature and has written and co-written more than 10 books and has been mentioned in 50 articles exploring themes and issues within German literature. He has been at the UI for 30 years and was a former head of the Germanic languages and literature program. The speech is an annual event sponsored by the Liberal Arts and Sciences Humanities Council. The event was established in 1977 as a way of recognizing outstanding achievement at the UI and to allow colleagues and students to hear a a major address reflecting lifelong study.
Math lecture series continues April 22
As part of the Mathematics in Science and Society lecture series, the department of mathematics will present a talk by Eric Jakobsson, professor of physiology. His talk, "A Random Walk Though the Biomolecular Landscape Towards a Statistical Mechanics of Molecular Biology," will begin at 4 p.m. April 22 in 314 Altgeld Hall. The lecture focuses on the study of biological membranes. Refreshments will precede the talk at 3:15 p.m. in 321 Altgeld Hall. For more information, contact Dan Grayson at dan@math.uiuc.edu.
Volunteers needed for Boneyard cleanup
The Boneyard Creek will benefit by a communitywide cleanup project this spring.
Organized by the Champaign Men's Team, volunteers are needed for the cleanup efforts, which will focus on removing litter and debris that has accumulated on and around the banks of the creek. Registration and signature of a liability waiver are required to participate. To register, contact Scott Wyatt at 351-8032 or e-mail s-wyatt1@illinois.edu.
Volunteers are needed from 8:15 a.m. to 1 p.m. April 19 at Scott Park, corner of Second Street and Springfield Avenue, Champaign. Participants should wear work clothes and hard-soled shoes and bring a sack lunch. Cleanup tools will be provided, and MTD transportation also will be available to volunteers. Anyone 11 years old or older may participate. A rain date has been scheduled for April 26.
Nominations sought for SAC
The Staff Advisory Council is seeking nominations for a representative from the EEO group 04 (clerical/secretarial) and EEO group 05 (technical and paraprofessional) to serve a four-year term beginning July 1. The council acts as an advisory board and meets regularly with the director of the Personnel Services Office. To be considered as a candidate for the post, pick up a petition in 136 Personnel Services by April 21. The deadline for returning petitions is April 29. Ballots will be mailed to staff members by May 13; winners will be announced May 22. For more information, contact Lonnie Clark, 333-4395.
Women's Club to hold spring luncheon
The UI Women's Club spring luncheon will be from noon to 2 p.m. April 29 at the Champaign Country Club. Ed Scharlau, president of Busey Bank, will speak on "Investing in Our Future." Reservations are due by April 21 and can be made by sending a check for $10.50 to Donna Kuhlman, 2608 Appleside Road, Champaign, Ill, 61821. Guests are welcome.
Labor 'teach-in' is April 26
Union members, academics, and friends of organized labor will meet at the UI on April 26 for a labor "teach-in," "Mining the Past to Meet the Future." The daylong event will emphasize "frank discussions of and practical solutions for the challenges facing working men and women," said James Barrett, professor of history and one of the event's organizers.
"As workers contend with multinational corporations and anti-union tactics, there is a crucial need to share experiences, compare strategies, and develop flexible, effective approaches," Barrett said.
Registration begins at 8:30 a.m. at the Institute of Labor and Industrial Relations building. Panel discussions begin at 9:30 a.m. and continue throughout the day. Keynote speaker is Cecil Roberts, president of the United Mine Workers of America. Sponsors of the event are the UI Institute for Labor and Industrial Relations, the UI Union of Professional Employees, the Decatur Building and Construction Trades Council, the UI Graduate Employees' Organization, Roofers' Union Local 92 of Decatur, the UI Labor Studies Group, the Community Coalition of Decatur and the UI Coalition of Trades and Labor Organizations.
The event is free and open to the public, but advance registration is encouraged. Participants may register at the UI Labor Teach-in Web site, http://www.students.uiuc.edu/~f-higbie/teach_in.html, or call 333-0980.
Food experts to discuss world hunger
The future of world food and agriculture will be the topic of a series of lectures this month. Alex F. McCalla, director of the World Bank Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources and a leader in the World Bank's efforts to revitalize overseas farming, will kick off the series April 17, at 4 p.m. in the auditorium of the Environmental and Agricultural Sciences Building. McCalla will discuss food policy in his talk, "Why Reasonable Experts Disagree." Then, at 8 p.m. in 112 Gregory Hall, he will talk about "Prospects for Food Security in the 21st Century."
On Earth Day, April 22, Lester Brown, president of the Worldwatch Institute, will speak on "The Effect of Rising Affluence in China on World Agriculture" at 4 p.m. in 103 Mumford Hall. Brown's second lecture, "Tough Choices: The Changing World Food Prospect," will begin at 8 p.m. in Lincoln Hall auditorium. Brown has been an activist about agricultural and environmental issues since 1964 when he became an adviser to Secretary of Agriculture Orville Freeman on foreign agricultural policy.
Dennis Avery, director of the Center for Global Food Issues, will speak April 29. His talk, "Why China Won't Take All Our Food," will be at 4 p.m. in 103 Mumford Hall. His second lecture, "Saving the Planet With Plastics and Pesticides," will begin at 8 p.m. in Lincoln Hall auditorium. Avery is a critic of those who oppose the use of pesticides in farming.
The series of lectures is part of the new Illinois World Food and Sustainable Agriculture Program, established by the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences.
Kachru to give Jubilee Lecture May 1
Braj Kachru, director of the Center for Advanced Study and professor of linguistics, will deliver the Jubilee Lecture at 4 p.m. May 1 on the third floor of the Levis Faculty Center. The talk, "Caliban's Creative Chaos," is the final lecture in the 75th Anniversary Jubilee Lecture series. In observance of the 75th anniversary of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, a program of Jubilee Anniversary Professorships was established to identify and honor selected LAS faculty members for their outstanding contributions to teaching and research. Kachru is one of the foremost scholars in the field of world Englishes. Kachru joined the UI faculty in 1963 and has been a professor of linguistics since 1970. Currently he holds joint appointments in the College of Education, the Program in Comparative Literature and the Division of English as an International Language. He was named Jubilee Professor of Liberal Arts and Sciences in 1992.
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