With hundreds of student organizations at the University of 91³Ô¹Ï that offer service opportunities, it is no great challenge for students to find ways to become involved in the community. For local middle school students, however, service projects to better their own schools and neighborhoods are not as plentiful. Enter Lead-ND, a student organization that works with local youth to teach them the importance of service in their own backyards.

Lead-ND, a network of student volunteers at 91³Ô¹Ï, recently participated in community service projects with middle school students throughout the city of South Bend.

The student-run organization aims to place traditionally under-resourced youth in a positive environment where they will be encouraged to evaluate community needs and implement change through service projects.

Fifty South Bend middle school students and 30 91³Ô¹Ï students contributed to National Youth Service Day last month, beginning with a pep rally at Legends and then participation in a variety of projects throughout the city, including painting a mural at the West Side Democratic Club, serving meals at the Center for the Homeless, making cards and fleece blankets for pediatric patients at Memorial Hospital, and picking up trash at Potawatomi Park and the Nuner Elementary School playground.

“We share the responsibility of the community with these students,â€� said 91³Ô¹Ï senior John Wanek, president of Lead-ND. “Our goal is to empower them to make change within their community because a lot of times they are cast aside as being too young to help. We believe in these students, the program and the betterment of the community.â€�

This year, the group also has attended 91³Ô¹Ï women’s basketball games, taken a tour of the football stadium, visited a nursing home and area food banks, and participated in painting and clean-up projects at Jefferson Intermediate School.

More information about Lead-ND is available on the Web at .

Contact: John Wanek, Lead-ND president, jwanek@nd.edu

“The Road to Fondwa,â€� a documentary film that chronicles the stories of Haitian citizens and their engagement with the country’s quest for development, will be screened April 16 at the University of 91³Ô¹Ï.

The film, which was directed by Justin Brandon, a 2004 91³Ô¹Ï graduate and South Bend native, will be shown at 6 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. in the Montgomery Theater of 91³Ô¹Ï’s LaFortune Student Center. The event is free and open to the public.

The screening celebrates the culmination of a two-year journey undertaken by two 2005 91³Ô¹Ï graduates, Dan Scnorr and Brian McElroy, who set out to create a film that captures the struggles and joys of rural Haiti. Schnorr and McElroy were inspired to create the film while living as volunteers at the University of Fondwa in Haiti for a year following their graduation. Brandon became involved in the project as a cameraman and shot the film in Haiti for five weeks the following summer.

Screenings at 91³Ô¹Ï and Saint Mary’s College will kick off the film’s national university and festival screening tour.

“We are thrilled to be returning to South Bend to screen ‘The Road to Fondwa,’� said Brandon. “This project would never have been possible without the incredible support of the entire South Bend community, and we are looking forward to launching our university and film festival tour at the place where it all began.�

The presentation of “The Road to Fondwaâ€� is sponsored by 91³Ô¹Ï’s Haiti Working Group, Mendoza College of Business, College of Science and 17 other departments.
For more information, to view the film trailer or to purchase a DVD, visit the official “Road to Fondwa� Web site at http://fondwa.org.

Contact: Katie Smith, “Road to Fondwa� screening coordinator, Katie.Smith.nd@gmail.com

Kathleen Sprows Cummings, assistant professor of American studies and associate director of the Cushwa Center for the Study of American Catholicism at the University of 91³Ô¹Ï, is the author of “New Women of the Old Faith,â€� an examination of female roles in the Catholic church in the Progressive Era, recently released by the University of North Carolina Press.

In the book, Cummings places Catholic women at the forefront of two defining developments of the Progressive Era: the emergence of the “New Woman� and Catholics’ struggle to define their places in American culture.

Cummings highlights four women: Chicago-based journalist Margaret Buchanan Sullivan; Sister Julia McGroarty, S.N.D., founder of Trinity College; Philadelphia educator Sister Assisium McEvoy, S.S.J.; and Katherine Eleanor Conway, a Boston editor, public figure and anti-suffragist. Each story emphasizes that women who were faithful members of a patriarchal church were capable of trailblazing work on behalf of women, but regarded themselves as marginalized Catholics.

Although many opportunities were presented to women in the 20th century as a result of the battle for equality, Cummings’ subjects said they pursued goals not as “New Women� but as daughters of the “Old Faith.� Cummings presents a strong argument for the need to devote more attention to religious identity as a factor in interpreting women’s lives and building their character.

Cummings’ research and teaching interests center on the study of American religion, with a particular focus in the history of gender and Catholicism. She is a regular contributor to Commonweal, America and American Catholic Studies.

The University of 91³Ô¹Ï will host “The Church in Asia,â€� a symposium to explore the past, present and future of Catholicism in Asia on March 31 (Tuesday) in the University’s Hesburgh Center for International Studies.

The symposium, the first in a series of three, will feature presentations by scholars who will focus on the Church in Japan, China and South Korea.

The event will open at 9 a.m. in the auditorium with a lecture titled “The Church in Japan: An Intercultural Narrative� by Kevin Doak, professor and chair of the Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures at Georgetown University.

Other scheduled talks are:

• “The Remarkable History of the Catholic Church in Korea: From Its Founding in 1784 to the Present Day,â€� 10:45 a.m., Don Baker, associate professor of Korean history and religion, University of British Columbia
• “China’s Catholics: Adaptation, Struggle and Hope,â€� 2 p.m., Richard Madsen, professor of sociology at the University of California, San Diego

The symposium will conclude with a roundtable discussion moderated by Robert Gimello, a faculty member in 91³Ô¹Ï’s Departments of Theology and East Asian Languages and Cultures.

“The Church in Asia, Part Iâ€� is co-sponsored by 91³Ô¹Ï’s Center for Asian Studies, Kellogg Institute for International Studies, Institute for Scholarship in the Liberal Arts and Department of Theology.

More information is available on the Web at
http://kellogg.nd.edu.

Contact: Howard Goldblatt, director of the Center for Asian Studies, Howard.Goldblatt.1@nd.edu

The University of 91³Ô¹Ï’s Department of Film, Television and Theatre (FTT) will present Thornton Wilder’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play “Our Townâ€� from March 31 to April 5 in the Decio Mainstage Theatre of the University’s DeBartolo Performing Arts Center.

Admission is $15 for the general public; $12 for faculty, staff and seniors; and $10 for students. Ticket information is available at the performing arts center box office or by calling 574-631-2800 or at http://performingarts.nd.edu on the Web.

Directed by FTT assistant professor Jay Paul Skelton, “Our Town,� set in Grover’s Corners, N.H., transforms the simple events of everyday existence into universal truths. As it follows the lives, loves and heartbreaks of its large cast, “Our Town� celebrates the humanity in us all.

Additional information is available at on the Web.

Two University of 91³Ô¹Ï seniors placed second and third in the 16th annual Student Design Competition sponsored by the International Housewares Association (IHA).

Second place and $1,800 was awarded to Kat Cummins, an industrial and graphic design major from Wayzata, Minn., for her design of “spice,� and third place and $1,200 went to Kaitlyn Benoit, an industrial design major from Aurora, Ill., for “slice and scoop.�

The design competition’s annual challenge to students is to redesign a current housewares product to meet future needs or to create a concept for a new product.

Cummins’ “spice� system opens with a press of the finger and includes a half-teaspoon measure, making the cooking process much easier for people with arthritis who may have difficulty opening traditional spice containers. Cubic containers can be stacked in various configurations and snapped together to stay in place.

Benoit developed the “slice and scoop� to aid the blind and visually impaired when cutting. The cutting guard instructs the user as to the correct hand placement for safe cutting while guiding the path of the knife and guarding the hand from possible injury.

Winning projects were selected for their innovation, understanding of production and marketing principles, and quality of entry materials. This year, 205 entries were judged and winners were selected by a jury that included designers from IHA member companies, design consultants and two educators.

“The IHA’s Student Design Competition is invaluable to the industry,� said Bill Lazaroff, who has been responsible for thousands of new product introductions for Lifetime Brands. “With this contest, the industry helps to unveil some of the most creative minds in our industrial design schools while providing the students and their ideas tremendous exposure.�

91³Ô¹Ï and the Cleveland Institute of Art each captured two of the six highest prizes, with Purdue University and Arizona State University students winning the other two top prizes. IHA granted the four schools a total of $2,500 to support their design programs and will award all-expense paid trips to the first-, second- and third-place winners to the International Home and Housewares Show this month in Chicago.

The University of 91³Ô¹Ï Chamber Players will host a concert Wednesday (March 4) to support the South Bend Community School Corporation in an effort to raise money to provide local young musicians with new instruments.

The concert will begin at 7:30 p.m. in the Leighton Concert Hall of 91³Ô¹Ï’s DeBartolo Performing Arts Center. Tickets are $10 for the general public, $8 for faculty and staff, $5 for seniors and $3 for all students. All proceeds of the concert will be donated to purchase musical instruments for South Bend public schools.

To reserve or order tickets, call the DeBartolo Performing Arts Center box office at 574-631-2800 or visit http://performingarts.nd.edu on the Web.

The concert will celebrate the 200th anniversary of the birth of composer and child prodigy Felix Mendelssohn and will feature 91³Ô¹Ï music faculty members Karen Buranskas, cello; Carolyn Plummer, violin; and John Blacklow, piano. The program will include works by Mozart, Shostakovich and Mendelssohn.

We love music, we love teaching music, and public school programs are the way students start out,� Buranskas said. “I started my career in public schools. I never would have been a musician had I not had that opportunity.�

“It is an outstanding community contribution by 91³Ô¹Ï’s Music Department to be concerned with the students in our fine arts program,â€� said Candace Butler, program coordinator for Clay High School, South Bend’s visual and performing arts magnet school. “Many of our students coming through the program cannot afford their own instruments. Putting good instruments in the hands of beginners is a good way to prompt a lasting interest.â€�

The 91³Ô¹Ï Chamber Players was formed in 2003 with a mission to perform great chamber works for the 91³Ô¹Ï and South Bend communities. With the assistance of guest artists, the Chamber Players have included a wide range of chamber compositions by composers of the Classical, Romantic and 20th century in their concerts.

Contact: Noelle Elliott, Department of Music, 574-631-2325, nelliot2@nd.edu

The Gender Relations Center (GRC) at the University of 91³Ô¹Ï has created the Violence Prevention Initiative (VPI) to provide educational and preventative programs that will galvanize students to work toward stopping violence.

The goals for the VPI are to raise awareness about violence in the local community, increase understanding about global violence, promote the healing of survivors of violence, raise funds for local non-profit agencies invested in violence prevention and service to survivors and serve as a flagship for violence prevention at other Catholic colleges and universities.

The VPI’s most prominent component will be Sexual Assault Awareness Week (SAAW) from Feb. 22 to March 1, which will include the following events:

• Feb. 22 to March 1:“Giving a Voiceâ€�poster campaign, featuring GRC peer educators
• Feb. 23: 91³Ô¹Ï Take Back The Night, which includes a prayer service at 7 p.m. in the Log Chapel, march and Speak Out bonfire at 8 p.m. at Holy Cross Hill
• Feb. 24 to 26: Resource tables in North and South dining halls and LaFortune Student Center from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
• Feb. 25: Committee on Sexual Assault Prevention (CSAP) student forum at 7 p.m. in the Reckers Hospitality Room
• Feb. 27:“A Time to Healâ€�dinner with speakers from 5 to 7:30 p.m. at Legends; RSVP by Feb. 23 to grc@nd.edu or 574-631-9340
• March 1: SAAW Sunday, featuring petitions, ribbons and prayer cards at campus Masses

SAAW is co-sponsored by the GRC, CSAP, student government, Men Against Violence, Feminist Voice, SOS of Madison Center and Identity Project of 91³Ô¹Ï.

The VPI will sponsor a writing workshop March 21, an experiential learning retreat March 28, South Bend Take Back the Night April 23 and a festival on South Quad April 24.

_ Contact: Elizabeth Moriarty, Gender Relations Center, 574-631-9340,_ " emoriar3@nd.edu ":mailto:emoriar3@nd.edu __

TopicID: 31567

91³Ô¹Ï Review, a leading literary magazine produced by the University of 91³Ô¹Ï’s Creative Writing Program, has released an anthology of poetry and fiction from the publication’s first 10 years in print.

“91³Ô¹Ï Review: The First Ten Years,â€�published by 91³Ô¹Ï Press, includes work by well-known authors, as well as new and emerging writers.Poets Seamus Heaney, Paul Muldoon and Czeslaw Milosz and fiction writers Marilyn Krysl, Arturo Vivante, Frances Sherwood, R.D. Skillings and Richard Elman are featured, along with several winners of the Ernest Sandeen Prize in Poetry and the Richard Sullivan Prize in Short Fiction, both administered by the Creative Writing Program.

The anthology is composed of a collection of poems and stories that challenge, surprise, comfort, discomfort and delight readers through a wide range of styles and aesthetic orientations.

“The First Ten Yearsâ€�was edited with an introduction by John Matthias, professor emeritus of English at 91³Ô¹Ï, and William O’Rourke, professor of English at the University.

The 91³Ô¹Ï Review is an independent, non-commercial magazine of contemporary American and international fiction, poetry, criticism and art.Poetry and fiction from the publication have appeared in"Best American Short Stories,""Best American Poetry,"the"Pushcart Prize"volumes and Harper’s Magazine, among other publications.

A component of 91³Ô¹Ï’s Department of English, the Creative Writing Program is a two-year master of fine arts program centered on workshops in poetry and fiction and offers courses in literature, translation, literary publishing and thesis preparation.The highly selective program admits just 10 writers each year.

More information about"The First Ten Years"is available on the Web at .

TopicID: 31548

The University of 91³Ô¹Ï’s Department of Film, Television and Theatre (FTT) will present Yiannis Lymtsioulis’"Guernica" from Feb. 24 to 28 (Tuesday to Saturday) at 7:30 p.m., and March 1 (Sunday) at 2:30 p.m., in the Philbin Studio Theatre of the University’s DeBartolo Performing Arts Center.

Admission is $15 for the general public; $12 for faculty, staff and seniors; and $10 for students.Ticket information is available at the performing arts center box office or by calling 574-631-2800 or at on the Web.

Directed by FTT Professor Anton Juan,"Guernica"is inspired by the true story of a tragedy that took place in 1997 when an Albanian ship carrying refugees suspiciously sunk off the Italian coast.Lymtsioulis explores the frustrated ambitions of three unquiet souls desperately floating amidst a watery medium of detritus.In the dark world lying somewhere between life and death, these psychic survivors contemplate the residues of their lost existence and mourn dreams that will go unrealized. Lyrical, yet direct,"Guernica"paints a surrealist portrait of the lamentable unrest faced by those who die wrongly at the hands of others.

Additional information is available at on the Web.

_ Contact: Christine Sopczynski, FTT, 574-631-0457,_ " csopczyn@nd.edu ":mailto:csopczyn@nd.edu

TopicID: 31366

The University of 91³Ô¹Ï will present a film series titled"Films and Faith"from Feb. 6 to 8 (Friday to Sunday) in the Browning Cinema of the University’s DeBartolo Performing Arts Center.

The series features films by contemporary Catholic filmmakers from Mexico and is sponsored by the performing arts center, 91³Ô¹Ï’s Department of Theology, Department of Film, Television, and Theatre; and Institute for Latino Studies.

Admission ranges from $3 to $6 and tickets are available in advance at the center box office or by calling 574-631-2800 or visiting on the Web.

Featured films are:
Feb. 6, 6:30 p.m. ñ"Children of Men"(2006) by Alfonso Cuaron
Feb. 6, 9:30 p.m . ñ"Pan’s Labyrinth"(2006) by Guillermo Del Toro
Feb. 7, 6:30 p.m. and Feb. 8, 3 p.m. ñ"Silent Light"(2008) by Carlos Reygadas
Feb. 7, 9:30 p.m. ñ"Babel"(2006) by Alejandro Gonz·lez IÒ·rritu

More information about all films is available by visiting the DeBartolo Center Web site.

_ Contact: Christine Sopczynski, outreach specialist, FTT, 574-631-0457,_ " csopczyn@nd.edu ":mailto:csopczyn@nd.edu

p.

TopicID: 31327

The most recent volume in the University of 91³Ô¹Ï’s Devers series in Dante studies has been placed on Choice Magazine’s highly regarded list of Outstanding Academic Titles for 2008.This is the third time the series has been honored by Choice.

“The Ancient Flame: Dante and the Poets,â€�the ninth volume in the series, was authored by Winthrop Wetherbee of Cornell University, and edited by Christian Moevs, associate professor of Romance languages and literatures and fellow of 91³Ô¹Ï’s Medieval Institute, and Theodore Cachey, professor of Romance languages and literatures.

The selective Choice list reviews approximately 7,000 works each calendar year and places 10 percent on its Outstanding Academic Title list, which"brings with it the extraordinary recognition of the academic library community."

The Devers Program in Dante Studies at 91³Ô¹Ï promotes teaching and research about Dante across the College of Arts and Letters curriculum along with its sponsorship of the Devers Series in Dante Studies, which is published by the 91³Ô¹Ï Press.

_ Contact: Theodore Cachey,_ " tcachey@nd.edu ":mailto:tcachey@nd.edu , or Christian Moevs, " Christian.Moevs.1@nd.edu ":mailto:Christian.Moevs.1@nd.edu

TopicID: 31266

John Wilkinson, professor of literature and creative writing at the University of 91³Ô¹Ï, has published a new book,“Down to Earth,â€�released this fall by Salt Publishing, an international award-winning publisher of poetry, fiction and literary criticism.

Through one single thematically-interrelated poem, Wilkinson addresses the disturbing state of the American Midwest and paints a bleak picture of the 21st century due to an epic of migration, the now ubiquitous borders, and the current energy crisis.The flows of capital, consumer products, waste, labor and body parts are the focus of what has been called"Wilkinson’s darkest work to date,"according to Salt Publishing.

Salt’s description of the book also states:“Like every book by John Wilkinson, ‘Down to Earth’ knows no limit to poetry’s ambition, dodging every border post, down every highway, like the ocelot running through its narratives, and struggling to create a sheltering place in often pitiless landscapes.�

A British poet who has followed careers in both mental health and English literature, Wilkinson was named a Fulbright Distinguished Scholar at the Nathan S. Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research in 2003 and a Carl and Lily Pforzheimer Fellow at the National Humanities Center in 2007.That same year, Wilkinson released his book of essays,“The Lyric Touch: Essays on the Poetry of Excess.�His current research interests include New York School poets and associated visual artists, 20th century and contemporary British poetry and theories and politics of risk.

_ Contact: Marie Blakey, director of communications, College of Arts and Letters, 574-631-1405,_ " m.blakey@nd.edu ":mailto:m.blakey@nd.edu

TopicID: 31246

The University of 91³Ô¹Ï will present its 20th annual Student Film Festival from Jan. 22 to 24 (Thursday to Saturday) at 6:30 and 9:30 p.m. each evening in the Browning Cinema of the DeBartolo Center for the Performing Arts.

Admission is $6 for the general public, $5 for faculty and staff and $3 for students.Tickets are available by calling 574-631-2800 or visiting on the Web.

The approximately 110-minute presentation will exhibit 14 short films made as class projects during the past year by students studying the art of filmmaking in advanced, intermediate and introductory film and video production courses taught in the Department of Film, Television and Theatre (FTT).All films are shot on location, most in the South Bend area, and feature the acting talents of local residents, as well as 91³Ô¹Ï students and faculty.

This year’s featured films include:

• “Dana,â€�the story of a Native American student at 91³Ô¹Ï who struggles adjusting to college life away from her Navajo reservation, by Benford Begay and Macarena Ivanissevich;
• “The Deily Work,â€�which documents the spiritual rituals of an Opus Dei member, from the Windmoor House in South Bend to the Vatican in Rome, by Eric Sales and Julian Owyong;
• “Deaners,â€�by Brittany Lash and Jenni Fong, suggests that Fairmount, Ind., is the perfect place to live for a James Dean fan;
• “Our Lady’s Bouncers,â€�a real depiction of the difficulty 91³Ô¹Ï students encounter when trying to drive their cars on campus, by Danielle Sclafani, Christina Marzo and Katie Dare;
• “Believe in You,â€�a music video by the John Conroy Band, by Mark Weber and Ian Cooney;
• “Blocked,â€�a stylish illustration of the relationship between a writer and a romantic interest, by Ryan Geldermann and Mark Lyons;
• “The Birthday Wish,â€�which addresses two interlocking themes: birthdays and wishes, by Daniel Clark and Elise Yahner;
• “7 Minutes in Hell,â€�by Kate Leszkowicz and Terrail Lambert, confirms that harmless fun can quickly turn into trouble;
• “Javier Ramos 6/18,â€�a film for everyone who has ever felt trapped on a seemingly endless phone call, by Matthew Degnan;
• “Cirrhosis with Coda,â€�an experiment in film poetry in which a female tells of her past in verse and concludes,“I am just an indentured servant to madmen,â€�by Ashley Ahn Williams and Benford Begay;
• “Prologue,â€�a numbing story about a teenage boy who reconstructs the events of the night his best friend was raped, by Joe Piarulli and Dan Milan;
• “Reveries of Desire,â€�which follows a paper pusher’s efforts to save the girl-next-desk from his evil boss, by John Meehan, Becky Katricak and Rob Doone;
• “The Dinner Guest,â€�an elegant period piece about a close knit family that prepares for the arrival of their mother’s suitor, by Joe Gleason;
• “Confessions,â€�by Krissy Estrada and Luke Tabit, which illustrates that confessions are meant to be private.
  More information about the event is available on the Web at .

_ Contact: Ted Mandell, FTT, 574-631-6953,_ " tmandell@nd.edu ":mailto:tmandell@nd.edu

TopicID: 31106

The University of 91³Ô¹Ï’s Gender Relations Center will present a panel discussion,“Pornucopia: Living in a Pornified Culture,â€�at 7 p.m. Thursday (Jan. 22) in the auditorium of the Hesburgh Center for International Studies. The event is free and open to the public.

The presentation will include an overview of the history of pornography in America and an examination of the moral and legal responses to obscenity and pornography. The panel also will provide information on the moral tools and resources available for individuals to help build a society that honors the dignity of each member as one of God’s creations.

Panelists, whose expertise in gender relations, sexuality, law, ethics and religion will provide a variety of perspectives regarding the $92 billion pornography industry, are Gail Bederman, associate professor of history, 91³Ô¹Ï; Rick Garnett, professor of law, 91³Ô¹Ï; Christina Traina, visiting associate professor of gender studies, 91³Ô¹Ï; Rev. Nate Wills, C.S.C., associate pastor, St. Joseph Catholic Church, South Bend; and Brian Vassel, master of divinity student, 91³Ô¹Ï.

The program also is sponsored by 91³Ô¹Ï’s Gender Studies Program, Center for Ethics and Culture, Department of Physical Education and Wellness Instruction, Department of Philosophy, Office of Campus Ministry, and the Identity Project of 91³Ô¹Ï.

_ Contact: Elizabeth Moriarty, assistant director, Gender Relations Center,_ " emoriar3@nd.edu ":mailto:emoriar3@nd.edu ; or Patrick Tighe, student assistant, Gender Relations Center, " ptighe@nd.edu ":mailto:ptighe@nd.edu __

TopicID: 31107