Strengthening communities: As director of the Knight Program in Community Building, Charles Bohl leads neighborhood revitalization efforts.

Knight Program in Community Building revitalizing communities
With more and more of the nation’s communities facing problems of suburban sprawl and economic decline, the School of Architecture’s Knight Program in Community Building is providing assistance that helps townships realize their dreams of revitalization. Established five years ago, the program assists neighborhoods in rethinking and improving the way they are structured by conducting intensive one-week design and planning sessions, called charrettes, where ideas and smart-growth strategies are proposed.

A team of 12 Knight fellows—mid-career professionals in community building professions such as architecture, planning, community development, engineering, and journalism—collaborates with community stakeholders and School of Architecture faculty and graduate students on a vision for a neighborhood’s revitalization.

“Charrettes cut to the chase,” says Charles Bohl, director of the Knight Program and a research associate professor of architecture. “They get everyone at the table at the same time, focus on very specific, pragmatic, place-based policy and design strategies that respond to the market, and communicate ideas through a visual language that the public can understand.”

To learn more about the program, visit http://www.arc.miami.edu/knight and read the in-depth story in next month’s Veritas.

Faculty workshop on academic assessment next week
All faculty are invited to attend a workshop with Richard Light, Walter H. Gale Professor of Education at Harvard University, from 3 to 5 p.m. on Tuesday, February 21, titled “The Role of Academic Assessment in Teaching, Research, and Student Learning.” His 45-minute presentation will be followed by a question-and-answer session. This event is sponsored by the Office of the Provost and the Faculty Senate and is part of the systematic assessment project at the University in preparation for SACS re-accreditation. The workshop will be held in the third-floor dining room of the James W. McLamore Executive Center, Jenkins School of Business Administration Annex on the Coral Gables campus.

Please RSVP by Thursday, February 16 to the Senate office via e-mail at facsen@miami.edu or by calling 305-284-3721.

President Shalala hosts Faculty Senate meeting on medical campus
There will be a Faculty Senate meeting on Wednesday, February 15 at 3:30 p.m. in the Mailman Center, eighth-floor auditorium, on the medical campus. This meeting is hosted by University President Donna E. Shalala and has no set agenda. All faculty members are welcome to attend. Visit the Senate Web page http://www.miami.edu/FacultySenate for more information.

All that jazz: Music performed by UM's Concert Jazz Band will be featured at Jazz on the Green, February 26.

Save the date, February 26, for Jazz on
the Green
Bring your blankets, picnic lunches, and lawn chairs, and enjoy a laid-back afternoon at the Jazz on the Green Community Concert on Sunday, February 26 at 3 p.m. along Lake Osceola on the Coral Gables campus. Saxophone great Andy Middleton will perform with the University’s Grammy-nominated Concert Jazz Band under the direction of Dante Luciani. The band, composed of Frost School of Music students, has been the recipient of numerous awards, recorded several CDs, and toured around the world since its inception more than 30 years ago. The concert is free and open to the public. Concessions will be available at the University’s Rathskeller restaurant. Furry friends on leashes are also welcome. For more information, call 305-284-5671 or e-mail umneighbors@miami.edu.

Green and Serene "We’ve got a lot to learn, but one thing we know is almost any activity is better than no activity. Maybe walking in a Japanese garden could help." Carl Eisdorfer, director of the University of Miami Center on Aging, commenting on horticultural therapy—a treatment approach built on the idea that people’s mental as well as physical wellbeing can be improved through contact with nature—being a part of a treatment plan for senior citizens suffering from depression. Sun-Sentinel (February 5) A Sea of Opportunity "Miami is a cape in the ocean that is a point of intersection for many continents. It’s a tremendous strategic position." Pascal J. Goldschmidt, who was recently named the new senior vice president for medical affairs and dean of the Miller School of Medicine, commenting on Miami’s advantageous location and his goals for the Miller School. The Miami Herald (February 4) Safety Matters "At that age, they think they’re invincible. We’ve learned that because of brain development, they also tend to be more open to taking risks. They’re impulsive, and of course, there’s the cool factor, too." Judy Schaechter, assistant professor of adolescent medicine in the Miller School’s Department of Pediatrics, on the low percentage rates of safety belt usage among young male drivers. The Miami Herald (February 4)

Calling all ’Cane Golfers!
The UM Alumni Association invites the entire University community to participate in the Eighth Annual Miami Golf Classic on Friday, March 10 at Miccosukee Golf and Country Club, 6401 Kendale Lakes Drive, Miami. Registration begins at 11 a.m., with a shotgun start at 12:30 p.m. The round of golf will be played best-ball format — plus the day will include a raffle, prizes, silent and live auctions, dinner, and an awards reception. All proceeds support scholarship funds for University of Miami students from South Florida. To reserve your spot, complete and return the registration form at http://www.miami.edu/alumni/events/pdf/golf_miami.pdf. For more information, contact tournament chair Tom Balcom, at 305-670-0545 or tombalcom@foldesfm.com.

A Second Chance: Men’s Basketball Employee Night Part II
For those University of Miami employees who were unable to take advantage of the first Employee Night, the University has authorized a second Men’s Basketball Employee Night. Employee Night Part II, when the Hurricanes will take on the Virginia Tech Hokies, will be held on Wednesday, February 22 at 7 p.m. in the BankUnited Center. Employees will receive one complimentary ticket to the game. Additional tickets for family members are available for purchase for only $1. (Limit of 5 tickets)

Please call 305-284-2263 for further information about Employee Day tickets, or stop by the sales tables at the medical, Coral Gables campus, and Rosenstiel campuses or the Hecht Athletic Center Box Office to pick up your tickets.

Forms must be filled out in advance. Please click here to print your copy.

Representatives will be on hand on the following dates and times. Remember to bring your 'Cane Card. No photocopies of 'Cane Cards will be accepted as a substitute for the original.

Coral Gables campus: Tuesday and Thursday, February 14 and 16, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., outside the Whitten University Center breezeway

Medical campus: Monday, and Wednesday, February 13, and 15, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., outside Au Bon Pain.

Rosenstiel campus: Monday, February 13, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., outside the cafeteria.

February 15 to 26 Electra and How I Learned to Drive. The Department of Theatre Arts presents two plays in alternating performances: Electra and How I Learned to Drive from February 15 to 26. At the center of the two plays are two young women grappling with the horror of their own family’s embrace. A two-for-one offer is available for these productions: purchase a ticket for one play and see the other play for free. Tickets are $16 for weeknights and matinees; Friday and Saturday nights are $18. Discount admission for seniors, UM faculty, staff, and alumni is $14 for weeknights and matinees; $16 for Friday and Saturday nights. Student admission is $6 on weeknights and matinees and $8 for Friday and Saturday nights.

Show dates for How I Learned to Drive are February 15, 17, 23, and 25 at 8 p.m.; February 18 and 26 at 2 p.m. Electra: February 16, 18, 22, and 24 at 8 p.m.; February 19 and 25 at 2 p.m. For more information, contact the box office Monday through Friday from 12 to 5 p.m. at 305-284-3355, or visit www.miami.edu/ring.

Friday, February 17 David Maslanka’s Mass: An East Coast Premiere. The Frost School of Music presents David Maslanka’s Mass at 8 p.m., which was originally scheduled during Festival Miami but postponed due to Hurricane Wilma. The concert, to be held at the Maurice Gusman Concert Hall on the Coral Gables campus, will feature the University of Miami Wind Ensemble, conducted by Gary Green, the University of Miami Choral Union, conducted by Jo-Michael Scheibe and Donald Oglesby, and the Miami Children's Choir, conducted by Timothy A. Sharp. Soprano Janice Chandler and baritone Jeffrey Morrissey will be featured guest soloists. Tickets are $25 adults, $20 seniors, and $10 students. All seats are reserved. For tickets and more information, visit http://www.festivalmiami.com and the Frost School of Music Web site at http://www.music.miami.edu, or call 305-284-4940.

Sunday, February 19 Choral Concert: Bells and Bülow. The Frost School of Music’s Frost Chamber Singers and Frost Men’s Chorale, Maelstrom, will present Bells and Bülow at 8 p.m. in Gusman Concert Hall on the Coral Gables campus. The concert will open with the Maelstrom Men’s Chorale performing a variety of styles of music, and the evening will continue with David Friddle conducting the Frost Chamber Singers in Hans von Bülow’s settings of five poems by the 19th-century writer Richard Pohl, and one of Franz Liszt's neglected choral masterpieces. Admission is free, but seating is limited. For more information, contact the Choral Studies Office at 305-284-4162, via email at rmckinnon@miami.edu, or on the web at http://www.music.miami.edu/choralstudies/.

(New) Monday, February 20 through Friday, February 24 "de aqui… y de alla"– "from here… and there." This art exhibit, presented by the Institute for Cuban and Cuban-American Studies, features the work of Sergio Rodriguez, vice president of real estate, campus planning, and construction. The exhibit will feature a variety of images of Florida and Cuba, including drawings, paintings, silk screens, and assorted mixed media images. Exhibition hours are from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in Casa Bacardi/Olga-Carlos Saladrigas Hall, 1531 Brescia Avenue. Admission is free. A reception will be held on Tuesday, February 21, from 6:30 to 9 p.m. at Casa Bacardi. The reception is also free but guests must R.S.V.P. at 305-284-CUBA (2822).

Saturday, February 25 Casting Crowns. The Grammy-winning Christian group Casting Crowns will perform at the BankUnited Center on Saturday, February 25, at 7:30 p.m. The group won the 2006 Grammy Award for Best Pop/Contemporary Gospel Album for their release Lifesong. Tickets are on sale now, priced from $15 to $39 plus applicable fees, and are available at the BankUnited Center box office, all Ticketmaster outlets, charge by phone at 305-358-5885, or online at http://www.ticketmaster.com. Group discounts are available for purchasing ten or more tickets. Call 305-284-8165 for group sales information. For additional event information, visit http://www.BankUnitedCenter.com.

(New) Tuesday, March 7 How to Create a Ritual Art Object. Take part in this unique workshop in which participants will create their own work of ritual art with the guidance of Tobi Kahn, whose work has been shown in more than 40 solo exhibitions and more than 60 museums worldwide. The workshop is scheduled from 9 to 10:30 a.m. at The Sue and Leonard Miller Center for Contemporary Judaic Studies, 105 Merrick, on the Coral Gables campus. This workshop is free. No experience necessary. Materials will be provided. Seating is limited. The event is presented by the Jewish Museum of Florida. R.S.V.P. by Friday, March 3, by calling The George Feldenkreis Program in Judaic Studies at 305-284-8180 or via e-mail at aberezin@miami.edu.

(New) Various Dates Frost School of Music Spring Concerts. The Frost School’s Spring Concert series features a variety of performances. Highlights include Music at Twilight on Wednesday, February 15, at 5 p.m., at Clarke Recital Hall, featuring 21st century music performed by Frost School of Music ensembles, directed by Dennis Kam. Other concerts are scheduled. For a complete listing of the school’s 150 recitals and concerts, visit www.music.miami.edu or call 305-284-2438.

(New) Monday, February 13 Spanish Women Writers Lecture Series. The Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures, co-sponsored by the Office of the Minister of Education of Spain, will present a lecture series of Spanish Women Writers beginning at 4:30 p.m. with Marina Mayoral and Fanny Rubio. The lecture will take place in Merrick 210-01, the department’s new conference room. For additional information, contact Aaron Merideth at 305-284-5585 or via e-mail at a.merideth@miami.edu.

Monday, February 13 XanEdu. The Instructional Advancement Center is hosting a Lunch and Learn session to acquaint faculty with the XanEdu coursepack system, from 12:30 to 1:20 p.m. at Whitten University Center, Room 226 A/B. The presentation is free. Lunch will be served. Seating is limited. For registration and information, go to www.snurl.com/xanedu or call the Instructional Advancement Center at 305-284-2008.

Tuesday, February 14 Excellence in Teaching presentation. Joy Beverly, College of Arts and Sciences, Mathematics, will present “Pursuing Academic and Social Integration through Highlighting Individuality” from 12:30 to 1:20 p.m. at Whitten University Center, Room 226 A/B. The presentation, part of the Faculty Lunch and Learn series, is free. Lunch will be served. Seating is limited. For registration and information, go to http://www.snurl.com/individuality or call the Instructional Advancement Center at 305-284-2008.

Wednesday, February 15 "The Experience of Authority in Seventeenth-Century New England." The History Department and the American Studies Program present a lecture by Professor David D. Hall of Harvard University on this topic. It will be held from 3:30 to 5 p.m. in the third-floor conference room of the Otto G. Richter Library.

Wednesday, February 15 "U.S. Policy for a Changing Latin America." This panel discussion, hosted by the UM Center for Hemispheric Policy from 5 to 6:30 p.m. at the Hyatt Regency Coral Gables, will include: Donna Hrinak, senior director of Kissinger McLarty Associates in Washington, D.C. and former U.S. Ambassador to Brazil, Bolivia, Dominican Republic, and Venezuela; Brian Latell, senior research associate at the University’s Institute for Cuban and Cuban-American Studies; Luis Lauredo of Hunton & Williams International, LLC, and former U.S. permanent representative to the Organization of American States and national coordinator for the Summit of the Americas; and Manuel Rocha, managing partner of the Globis Group, LLC, and former U.S. ambassador to Bolivia. Register by email to bhafemeister@miami.edu, by fax at 305-284-9871, or by phone at 305-284-3708. A registration fee of $30 should be mailed to Center for Hemispheric Policy; P.O. Box 248297; Coral Gables, FL 33124-6535. Students and academics are free with a valid ID. For more information, visit http://www.miami.edu/chp.

Wednesday, February 15 "Florida Modern: Sensibility or Style." Professor Jan Hochstim will lecture on this topic at 6 p.m. in the Jorge M. Perez Architecture Center, Glasgow Hall. Among his many projects are the Grace Church of Kendall, Pier House Hotel in Key West, and the University of Miami Baseball Stadium, and he is the author of Florida Modern: Residential Architecture 1945-1970.

Wednesday, February 15 Sponsored Programs Special Seminar Series. Norman H. Altman, vice provost for research, will discuss “Conflict of Interest in Research,” from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. in the seventh-floor conference room of the Lois POPE Life Center. Staff are required to complete the on-line course, Sponsored Programs Administration 101, offered through NetLearning, prior to attending these special seminars. To register for the seminar, go to http://netlearning.miami.edu. For more information, contact Maria Valero-Martinez at mvalero@med.miami.edu.

(New) Thursday, February 16 Sponsored Programs Special Seminar Series. Norman H. Altman, vice provost for research, will discuss “Conflict of Interest in Research,” at 12 p.m. in the fifth-floor conference room of the Flipse Building on the Coral Gables campus. Staff are required to complete the on-line course, Sponsored Programs Administration 101, offered through NetLearning, prior to attending these special seminars. To register for the seminar, go to http://netlearning.miami.edu. For more information, contact Maria Valero-Martinez at mvalero@med.miami.edu.

Thursday, February 16 "Vague, So Untrue." The Department of Philosophy presents Theodore Sider, professor of philosophy at Rutgers University and author of Four-Dimensionalism: An Ontology of Persistence and Time, who will present a lecture on this topic from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. in the Physics Library conference room, third floor. A reception will follow. For more information, call 305-284-4757.

Friday, February 17 "Ontological Realism." The Department of Philosophy presents Theodore Sider, professor of philosophy at Rutgers University, who will present a lecture on this topic from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. in the Learning Center, room 192. A reception will follow. For more information, call 305-284-4757.

Friday, February 17 Law School Symposium. A panel of nationally renowned legal scholars will discuss the topic of race and democracy at 2 p.m., in Room E352 of the law school. The panel will use the text of UM law school professor D. Marvin Jones’s recent work, Race, Sex, and Suspicion: The Myth of the Black Male, as a backdrop for analysis, dialogue, and debate. The book focuses on the tension between the formal equality black men possess and their social and economic isolation. The event is free and open to the public. For more information, contact the law school at 305-284-4764.

Saturday, February 18 University of Miami Law Review Annual Symposium 2006. This symposium will examine "The Schiavo Case: Interdisciplinary Perspectives" from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the School of Law. It is worth nine Continuing Legal Education credits, including 5.5 ethics credits. The registration fee is $95. For a brochure and more information, visit http://www.law.miami.edu/cle or call 305-284-6276 to register.

Saturday, February 18 University of Miami Law Review Annual Symposium 2006. This symposium will examine "The Schiavo Case: Interdisciplinary Perspectives" from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the School of Law. It is worth 9 Continuing Legal Education credits, including 5.5 ethics credits. The registration fee is $95, but is free for UM students and faculty and includes breakfast and lunch. For a brochure and more information, visit http://currentstudents.law.miami.edu/law-review/symposia.html or call 305-284-6276 to register.

Monday and Tuesday, February 20 and 21 Neuroscience Lectures. Martha Constantine-Paton, professor of biology at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and investigator of the McGovern Institute for Brain Research, will speak on Monday, February 20 at 10 a.m. on “Activity-Dependent Patterning of Visual Maps in the Brain” in room 536 of the Flipse Building. Later that day, from 5:30 to 7 p.m., there will be a wine and cheese reception with her in the Cox Science Center lobby. On Tuesday, February 21 at 9 a.m. she will speak on “Eye Opening Drives Synaptogenesis and Rewiring in the Visual Pathway” in the seventh-floor auditorium of the Lois Pope LIFE Center at the medical campus.

Monday and Tuesday, February 20 and 21 Developmental Genetics Lectures. H. Robert Horvitz, professor of biology at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and a 2002 Nobel Laureate (Physiology or Medicine) will speak on Monday, February 20 at 4:30 p.m. on “Genetic Control of Programmed Cell Death in C. elegans” in room 145 at the Cox Science Center. That same day, from 5:30 to 7 p.m., there will be a wine and cheese reception with him in the Cox Science Center lobby. He will speak on the medical campus on Tuesday, February 21 at 12 p.m. in the fourth-floor auditorium of the Rosenstiel Medical Science Building on the same topic.

(New) Wednesday, February 22 Tribal Arts Society Lecture. Gary Urton, Dumbarton Oaks Professor of Pre-Columbian Studies in the Department of Anthropology at Harvard University, will discuss "Decoding the Inca Khipus." The 7:30 p.m. lecture at the Lowe Art Museum is free to members of the Tribal Arts Society and students with ID; $10 for others. For more information, contact Linda Chapin at 305-284-4246 or l.chapin@miami.edu.

(New) Wednesday, February 22 "Implications of Latin America’s Move to the Left." This panel discussion, from 8 to 10 a.m. at the Hyatt Regency Coral Gables, is hosted by the Center for Hemispheric Policy. It will feature Javier Corrales, associate professor in the Department of Political Science at Amherst College; Peter DeShazo, director of the Americas Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C.; Stephen Johnson, senior policy analyst for the Americas Program; Joy Olson, director of The Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA) in Washington, D.C.; and Joseph Tulchin, senior fellow of the Latin American Program at the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Scholars. Cost is $30; faculty and students free with a valid ID. RSVP to center@exchange.sba.miami.edu or call 305-284-9001. Please visit http://www.miami.edu/chp.

(New) Thursday, February 23 Women's and Gender Studies Speaker Series. George Chauncey, professor of history at the University of Chicago, will speak at 3:30 p.m. on "From Sodomy Laws to Marriage Amendments: Sexual Identity/Politics since 1900." The lecture will be held in the third-floor conference room of the Otto G. Richter Library.

Saturday, February 25th "Family Workshop: Understanding and Accepting Bipolar Disorder." This workshop is aimed at helping family members and partners of individuals with bipolar disorder gain a better understanding of the causes of the condition. It will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the second floor of the Department of Psychology in the Fred C. and Helen Donn Flipse Building. This workshop is free of charge. For more information, call Stephanie McMurrich at 305-284-1587 or e-mail smcmurrich@miami.edu.

(New) Monday, February 27 "Patriots, Poets & Pranksters: An Intimate Journey through the Nation’s Rare Book Collection." The Friends of the Libraries will present Mark Dimunation, chief of the Rare Book and Special Collections Division, Library of Congress, for this lecture at 6 p.m. in the Biltmore Hotel’s Granada Ballroom. A reception will precede the presentation. For reservations, e-mail Carlos Goycochea at cgoycochea@miami.edu or call 305-284-4026 by February 20. For more information, visit http://www.library.miami.edu/FriendsofLibrary/index.htm.

(New) Friday, March 3 "The New Public Interest in American Law: Emerging Public/Private Partnerships Symposium." This School of Law event, held in conjunction with the ABA Award for Innovation and Excellence in Teaching Professionalism, will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in the Alma Jennings Student Lounge of the law school. The course offers five general CLE credits. For more information or to R.S.V.P., contact Jessi Tamayo at 305-284-8564.

(New) Friday, March 3, 15th Annual Neuroscience Research Day. This event assembles poster presentations of neuroscience-related research from all of the University of Miami campuses. Awards will be given for the top posters. This year's session will be held from 3 to 5 p.m. in front of the Mailman Center at the Miller School of Medicine. Admission is free. Snacks and refreshments will be provided. For more information or to submit a poster title for your research, contact the Neuroscience Program office at neurosci@med.miami.edu or 305-243-3368.