School News

SAIC Students Encourage Literacy in Chicago's Schools

BookMarks is a collaborative project initiated by a group of five Arts Administration graduate students to promote literacy, cultural awareness, and creativity in Chicago Public Schools through the creation of artists' books.

In the first phase of the project (which occured throughout the month of March), SAIC graduate students and alumni from the Art Education, Historic Preservation, Painting and Drawing, Printmedia, Sculpture, Visual Communications, and Writing programs visited Blaine Elementary School in Lakeview and Galileo Scholastic Academy on the West Side twice a week. They taught the students how to create their own personal artists' books by answering the questions "What is the culture of my classroom?" and "What do I contribute to it?"

In the next phase (the first two weeks of April), volunteers from the non-profit group BookPALS (Performing Artists for Literacy in Schools) will read the books created at Blaine to the Galileo students and vice versa. This will be the initial cultural exchange between the schools.

The project will culminate in a one-night exhibition on May 1 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Chicago Children's Museum on Navy Pier. Approximately 70 of the students' books will be on display, providing the students with the opportunity to meet and "exchange" with their peers at the partner school, as well as celebrate their accomplishments. Admission is free as part of the museum's "Kraft Free Family Night."

F's Big News

F Newsmagazine received the prestigious Gold Crown Award from the Columbia Scholastic Press Association (Columbia University School of Journalism) for its 2001-2002 academic year.

Over 1550 newspapers entered the contest, including some of the largest and best-funded college newspapers in the country, from universities with prestigious journalism schools. F News was one of six college newspapers which received the Gold Crown, while sixteen others received the Silver Crown. F News had received the Silver Crown in the past, but never the Gold Crown. F News shares honors with the Daily Northwestern and the Indiana Daily Student.

In addition to the Columbia award, F News also received several awards from the Illinois Collegiate Press Association. These include second place for general excellence and awards for individual feature stories, designers, and a photo essay.

Sculpture Students Rake in Rewards

Olen Hsu (MFA, 2003) received a Dedalus Foundation Master of Fine Arts Fellowship for this academic year. The Dedalus Foundation, founded by the artist Robert Motherwell, fosters public understanding of modern art and modernism by facilitating and supporting scholarly research, education, publications, exhibitions, and museum collections in this field. This is an extremely competitive, prestigious, and substantial award.

Rena Leinberger (MFA, 2002) received $5000 in support for post-graduate work from the Joan Mitchell Grant for Sculptors. The Joan Mitchell Foundation, established in 1993, is a not-for-profit corporation that provides grants, stipends, and scholarships for painters and sculptors. (Leinberger has also been selected for a 12x12 show at the MCA in June.)

Dominice Gilbert (BFA, 2003) was this year's recipient of the "Shaping the Future" award sponsored by REMET. She received a $1500 grant to create her proposed sculpture project in cast metal. She will present her finished sculpture along with last year's recipient, Brandon Richards, at the final awards ceremony in late April 2003.

Renee Robles (BFA, 2003) received a one year residency to develop his work at Crabtree Farm in Lake Bluff, IL.

Prepare for the Professional Art World

Career Development and the Cooperative Education Program are sponsoring Career Caf�, an annual SAIC event, and have invited a group of organizations involved in a range of art-related activities and businesses. Itoons (animation), the Hyde Park Art Center (curatorial), VSA Partners (graphic design), VOA Associates (architecture), Gallery 37 (teaching), Public Allies (community building), and Buzz Company (staffing) are a few of the many organizations who will be there. This informal event, a unique opportunity for students to meet potential Co-op employers and job contacts or to get ideas for pursuing an artistic practice, is from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. on April 15 in the Michigan building ballroom. Students are encouraged to bring their r�sum�s and portfolios. Please call Career Development at (312) 899-5103 or Co-op at (312) 629-9160 with questions.

2002 Chairman's Award Recipients

The Chairman's Award is each SAIC employee's opportunity to nominate staff and co-workers who have displayed outstanding effort and achievement over the course of a year. A Chairman's Award selection committee made up of staff volunteers review the nominations. This year's recipients are: Full Time Faculty, Helen Maria Nugent, First Year Programs; Museum - Exempt, Sarah Guernsey, Publications; Museum - Non Exempt, Lynette Maphies, Modern and Contemporary Art; Administrative Affairs - Exempt, Kenneth Menclewiez, Production Services; Administrative Affairs - Non-Exempt, Billy Brown, Physical Plant; Protection Services - Non-Exempt, Milton Wright; Development - All, Lisa Key, Foundation and Corporate Relations; SAIC - Exempt, Patrick James, Financial Aid; SAIC - Non-Exempt, Henry Unger, Operations; Part-Time Faculty, Anita Weblon, Liberal Arts; Special Project Staff, Jennifer Paoletti, European Painting; Part-Time Staff, Jessica Tindall, Film Center. Congratulations to all the award recipients.