1. Participants sought for St. Bonaventure fundraiser to be held prior to talk by Rwandan Holocaust survivor
2. Former prof to kick off Honors lecture series
3. SBU to host Native American Celebration
4. St. Bonaventure to mark 25th year as participant in Semester in Spain program
5. SBU Jazz Band to swing Nov. 19
6. Newsmakers for Fall 2008
7. Friday Forum

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Participants sought for St. Bonaventure fundraiser to be held prior to talk by Rwandan Holocaust survivor

Participants are being sought for a unique fundraiser preceding next week’s visit to St. Bonaventure University by Rwandan Holocaust survivor Immaculée Ilibagiza.

Ilibagiza, who escaped the 1994 genocide by hiding in a 3-by-4 bathroom with seven other women for 91 days, will deliver a keynote address at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 20, at the Reilly Center Arena. Her inspirational book, “Left to Tell: Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust,” was this year’s All Bonaventure Reads selection for the freshman class.

For three days prior to her visit, eight-member teams will spend 10 minutes each in a replica of the closet-sized room so as to gain a better appreciation of Ilibagiza’s ordeal and to raise money for her foundation to aid Rwandan orphans.

From 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Wednesday, eight-member teams will spend 10 minutes each in the replica bathroom, which will be set up in the Reilly Center lobby. Volunteers are being sought from campus and surrounding communities to fill the 91 scheduled time slots. Each team is asked to raise a minimum of $10 in donations.

“We need to get all 91 sessions filled in order to complete our goal and to raise a substantial amount of money for Immaculee’s charitable foundation in Rwanda,” said Stephanie Herzig, a graduate assistant in St. Bonaventure’s First Year Experience program.

Want to participate?

Teams of eight members each are being recruited for the fundraiser. Ninety-one time slots, one for each day the author hid, need to be filled. For available time slots and details, go to www.sbu.edu/lefttotell.

Dr. Carol Fischer, professor of accounting and a charter member of the All Bonaventure Reads committee, has reserved two time slots. She will share one with some of her freshmen students, the other with fellow members of the First-Year Experience council.

“While I expect to be uncomfortable, both physically and emotionally, during my two scheduled 10-minute slots, I am in awe of Immaculee and the other women who spent 91 days in such uncomfortable conditions, listening to the atrocities just outside the window,” said Fischer. “I am humbled by the small sacrifice that I will make in memory of her horrific experience. Immaculee’s capacity to forgive and her continued dedication to the people of Rwanda inspired me to support this fundraiser.”

Rob Hurlburt, associate director of facilities for maintenance at St. Bonaventure, oversaw construction of the replica bathroom. Hurlburt read Ilibagiza’s book last summer, but it wasn’t until he stood in the replica that he truly appreciated her story.

“The reality of seeing this is very humbling,” he said. “We talk about the difficulties and worries that we have, and then you envision someone going through this experience.”

The three-day fundraiser runs Monday through Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The 10-minute time slots begin on the hour and at 15-minute intervals thereafter, allowing for five minutes between sessions.

Teams that wish to volunteer are asked to contact Herzig at herzigsa@sbu.edu, or to leave a message on her phone: (716) 375-2084. To view the schedule of available times, go to www.sbu.edu/lefttotell.

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Former prof to kick off Honors lecture series

A former St. Bonaventure University professor returns to campus this month to inaugurate a new Honors Program lecture series.

At 7 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 24, in the Rigas Family Theater at the Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts, the Honors Program will be hosting a lecture by Dr. Susan Abraham titled “Intellectual Charity: Pedagogies of Hope and Transformation.” In it, Abraham will describe her vision of the “theology of teaching, reading, and studying.” The lecture is free and open to the public.

Abraham is an assistant professor of women’s studies and ministry at Harvard Divinity School and a former assistant professor of theology at St. Bonaventure University. She specializes in Roman Catholic studies, feminist theory and theology and postcolonial theory.

Abraham has extensive teaching experience and has authored various peer-reviewed articles, book reviews, research and presentations worldwide. Abraham is a member of the national work group on Constructive Theology, the Steering Committee on Theology and Religious Reflection AAR, and the CTSA Admissions committee.

Dr. Mark Huddle, director of the Honors Program, said Abraham is “one of the smartest people I’ve known in my 15 years of academia,” which made her an excellent choice for the first Honors Program-sponsored lecture.

The Honors Program is comprised of some of the best students that St. Bonaventure has, and the program has “a responsibility to enhance intellect on campus,” said Huddle. He hopes the lecture will show how the “Franciscan vision of the University can be applied to the real world.”

Abraham received her bachelor’s degree in 1984 in English and her master’s degree in 1986 in English from the University of Mumbai, India. In 1995, she earned an additional master’s degree in theology from Catholic Theological Union, followed by her doctorate in theology from Harvard University in 2003.

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SBU to host Native American Celebration

St. Bonaventure will recognize Native American Heritage Month by hosting the university’s first Native American Heritage Celebration Nov. 10-21.

The celebration, sponsored in major part by the Diversity Action Committee, is free and open to students, faculty and local community members.

The two-week long celebration includes lectures and discussions with guest speakers who will focus on different aspects of Native American culture. The celebration comes to a close with a performance by the Seneca Youth Dancers and tours of the Native American exhibit at the Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts.

Angela Jones, university vice provost for enrollment and student academic services, came up with the idea for the celebration as a way to reach out to the local Seneca Nation tribe and promote ongoing relations within the community.

“The celebration is a means to educate and inform students about the wide array of Native American culture, particularly the Seneca Nation,” said Jones. “Our hope is that students come away with a better understanding and appreciation for Native Americans.”

The celebration is also sponsored by the Damietta Center, provost’s office, president’s office, Clare College, student affairs and enrollment and student academic services. Anyone who plans on attending the Native American Heritage Celebration should RSVP to ajones@sbu.edu by Nov. 10.

Listed below is the schedule of events:

First Annual Native American Heritage CelebrationNov. 10-21, 2008

Monday, Nov. 10

3:30 p.m. – Movie and Discussion, “The Black Robe,” Walsh Science Center Auditorium; moderator: Guy Jones

Wed., Nov. 12

Native Foods and Music in the Hickey Dining Hall, lunch hours

Thurs., Nov. 13

12:30 p.m. – Lunch Lecture* – “The Impact of Christianity on Native Culture,” Guy Jones (Hunkpapa/Lakota), Founder and Director of the Miami Valley Council for Native Americans; Doyle Dining Room

*Please RSVP by Nov. 10 to agjones@sbu.edu if you plan to attend

Sat., Nov. 15

4-5:30 p.m. – Lecture and Music, “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Recovery: The Healing Power of Humor in First Nations and Native American Art,” Allan Ryan, New Sun Chair in Aboriginal Art and Culture at Carleton University, Ottawa; Walsh Auditorium

Mon., Nov. 17

3:30 p.m. – Movie and Discussion, “Smoke Signals,” Walsh Auditorium; moderator: David Dubreuil

Tues., Nov. 18

12:30 p.m. – Lunch Lecture*, “The Kinzua Dam and the Seneca Nation,” Adrian John, Faithkeepers School of the Seneca Nation; Doyle Dining Room

*Please RSVP by Nov. 10 to agjones@sbu.edu if you plan to attend

Thurs., Nov. 20

3:30 p.m. – Movie and discussion, “500 Nations,” Walsh Auditorium; moderators: Guy Jones and David Dubreuil

Fri., Nov. 21

Closing Celebrations

3 p.m. – Seneca Youth Dancers Exhibition, Quick Center for the Arts

4 p.m. – Movie and Discussion, “In The Land of War Canoes” (An Edward Curtis Film), Quick Center; moderator: Kitty Dubreuil

5 p.m. – Reception and tour of Native American Exhibit, Quick Center

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St. Bonaventure to mark 25th year as participant in Semester in Spain program

To understand why the Semester in Spain program has flourished at St. Bonaventure University for 25 years, talk to program participants, said Alice Sayegh, director of International Studies at St. Bonaventure.

“My time in Seville was the greatest time of my life,” said Kari Tarnowski, a St. Bonaventure senior and modern languages major who plans to attend law school next year. “I met some of the most interesting people from throughout the United States and the world.”

Eileen Snyder Finn, a 1995 St. Bonaventure graduate who teaches Spanish at Allegany-Limestone Central School, said her experience in Spain “became the cornerstone of my teaching career. The semester abroad provided more experiences and opportunities than imaginable.”

Olean native Jane Watson Joy graduated from Quincy University in Quincy, Ill., and attended the Semester in Spain program through St. Bonaventure in 1994. “It was truly the highlight of my college career,” she said. “I can remember thinking to myself that all college students who have the opportunity to study abroad should take advantage of it.”

Students from more than 400 U.S. colleges and universities have participated in the Semester in Spain program since its founding in 1979 as a joint initiative between Broward Community College (now Broward College) in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and the International College of Seville. The program is offered through the College Consortium for International Studies (CCIS). St. Bonaventure joined the CCIS in 1984 and became a key cosponsor of the Semester in Spain program, enabling University of Seville courses to be approved by a four-year partner institution.

Next year marks a significant double anniversary, said Sayegh: the 30th anniversary of the Seville program itself and the 25th anniversary of St. Bonaventure’s partnership in it.

“I’m proud that the university has attained this level of longevity with an overseas academic program,” said Sayegh. “Many programs are not grounded institutionally to allow them to flourish for three decades.”

St. Bonaventure has been the portal through which many students in the U.S. have entered the program. “Not only students from St. Bonaventure and Broward have enjoyed the excitement of studying in the south of Spain, but students from Cornell, Vanderbilt, Catholic University of America, the California and Massachusetts state systems, Colgate and others have participated in the Semester in Spain through St. Bonaventure,” said Sayegh.

The program has evolved over the years to accommodate changing interests and demands. A summer program was added in 1999, and an Arabic Studies summer session was added in 2008. Additionally, over the past five years, the University of Seville has opened up French, German, Italian and Arabic courses to parallel the Spanish program.

Semester in Spain is a total immersion experience, said Sayegh. “Spending four months studying and living in a culture such as that of Seville, in the heart of Andalusia, is like no other experience in Spain,” she said. Andalusia has a history rich in Arab and Jewish influences and places students at an “incredible cultural crossroad,” said Sayegh, adding the program’s courses have evolved to immerse students in the region’s history, art, architecture, music and language.

Seville remains an intimate city, despite its population of nearly 1 million people, offering students the perfect “city as classroom” experience, said Sayegh.

Maggie Canavan Wilkosz, a 1999 St. Bonaventure graduate, said she’s transported back to Seville whenever she opens the photo album of her semester there in the fall of 1997. “There are times I catch a smell in the wind and it takes me back to walking along the Guadalquivir River, or through El Parque Maria Luisa.”

She said the experience shaped who she is today.

“As a 20-year-old on the verge of a great adventure, the last thing on my mind was how my semester in Seville was going to affect my self-confidence, my network of friends and my future career choices,” said Wilkosz. “When I look back at that trip, however, I see how much it affected each. I returned from Seville with a self-confidence and awareness I am not sure I would ever have reached had I not gone on this adventure.”

To learn more about the International Studies program at St. Bonaventure go to www.sbu.edu.

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SBU Jazz Band to swing Nov. 19

The St. Bonaventure University Jazz Band, directed by professor of music Dr. Les Sabina, will perform Wednesday, Nov. 19.

Free and open to the public, the concert is from 7:30-9 p.m. in the Rigas Family Theater at The Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts.

The band will be playing original jazz pieces written by variety of composers, including Mike Dana, Doug Beach and Sabina.

The SBU Jazz Band is made up of the following St. Bonaventure students: Alvin Kim (alto sax); Katie Reusch and Ashley Waterman (tenor sax); Janet Gunderson (baritone sax); Alex Cole, Donald Frank (trumpet); Jorge Johnson (trombone); Peter Caya and Adam Summers (bass); and Steve Sanfilippo and Ethan Whipple (drums).

Jan Rhody of the Olean High School music department will play piano as a special guest of the band.

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Newsmakers for Fall 2008

Robert M. Donius, vice president for University Ministries, offered an evening presentation titled “Paul and the Body of Christ” at Annunciation Parish in Elma, N.Y., on Oct. 27, 2008. This was the opening session of a four-part series on Paul for three parishes. Pope Benedict XVI announced a special jubilee year dedicated to St. Paul, saying the church needs modern Christians who will imitate the apostle's missionary energy and spirit of sacrifice. The pope said the Pauline year will run from June 28, 2008, to June 29, 2009, to mark the approximately 2,000th anniversary of the saint's birth.

Trevor Thompson, director of the Warming House and adjunct professor, edited Build With Living Stones: Facilitator’s Guide, available via free download. This facilitator’s guide accompanies Build With Living Stones (BWLS), an adult educational resource for an exploration of the Franciscan encounter with contemporary society. Volunteer facilitators make the program available to increasing numbers of people who want to integrate Franciscan values into their personal lives and public roles. This guide offers a wide range of suggestions on teaching methods, audio-visual aids, tools for evaluation of programs, summaries of units, highlighted main points of units, further suggestions for reflection, and additional bibliographical resources for each unit. This guide will ease users’ anxiety about facilitating this resource with a group and, consequently, will make possible deeper and richer reflection into Franciscan mission and life today.

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Friday Forum

Date: Friday, Nov. 14
Speaker: Adam Brown
Time: Lunch starts at noon, Forum goes from 12:35 to 1:30 p.m., including Q&A
Place: University Club - Above Hickey
Topic: Sex, Health and St. Bonaventure University
Cost: $3 (pay upstairs)

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