As you all know, it was a somber week for Curry College as we said goodbye to a Curry legend, Professor Joseph L. Schneider. The memorial service held on May 15 in the ARC was truly a tribute to Joe as an inspiring and passionate teacher, an extraordinary father to his son George, a caring and devoted friend and mentor to many.

As Dean Fedo shared in an email to the faculty and staff, "Joe came to Curry in 1968 and both nurtured and challenged his students over the years to engage life’s most critical questions through the works of the great writers, from Shakespeare through Joyce and Yeats, and more recently through such American novelists as Joseph Heller and Toni Morrison. In between, he was the author of numerous scholarly papers and presentations, the recipient of two Fulbright Exchange Awards (first in South Korea and then Hungary), and had twice been named a National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Fellow (at Yale and at Harvard)." Most recently, he was working on a novel he’d always wanted to write. This past semester, he read excerpts from his work at two faculty readings.

The collective outpouring of support and reflection on Joe’s life has been a comfort to his friends and family and underscores what a remarkable man he was. Our college will not be the same without him.

On behalf of the entire Curry community, congratulations to Dr. Magueye Seck on earning the U.S. Fulbright Scholarship Grant to study and teach in Senegal, West Africa for the coming academic year. To quote many members of the faculty who shared their excitement, “this is quite an honor for Curry College.”

Each year, approximately 800 U.S. scholars receive Fulbright grants to teach and conduct research in foreign countries. It is a highly competitive selection process. Magueye will be one of two Fulbright scholars in Senegal at the University Gaston Berger.

Magueye’s work will focus on social policy as it relates to domestic violence. Though the actual courses he will be teaching are similar to those he has taught at Curry, the context in which they will be taught will be quite different. The criminal justice system and the laws we have in this country to protect women are not a reality in Africa. Often, domestic crimes are not investigated. He explains, “In this country, it took the effort of battered women’s organizations and other organizations to lobby courts, judges, political leaders and police to pass laws to make domestic abuse a felony, not a misdemeanor. The contribution I would like to make is for students and faculty to attend my classes to learn how to investigate domestic violence and influence the political and cultural resources to implement these laws.”

Though we will miss Magueye’s daily presence on campus, his son Moussa will represent the Seck family when he enters as a member of the freshman class this September.

Earlier this month faculty, staff and friends gathered to honor Marlene Lundvall and wish her well in her retirement after 40 years of teaching at Curry College.

As Dean Fedo so eloquently said at Marlene’s retirement party, “For many years Marlene’s presence has quietly graced this campus; she has steadfastly nurtured Curry students to be better than many ever imagined they could be; she has mentored her Departmental colleagues, and offered counsel, wisdom and consolation to the rest of us; and finally she has given of herself unstintingly to Curry without once ever tooting her own horn! And all the while, incredibly, she was producing those magnificent, intriguing, idiosyncratic and truly marvelous artistic creations. She has continued to help us see that life without art is at best only half-a-life; but that life with art is beauty, is order, is illumination and insight, is passion and love.”

Marlene, we all wish you the best and look forward your visits and to seeing more of your beautiful creations.

A big kudos to Dr. Sue Pennini for officially completing her doctoral program at Lesley University, earning a PhD in educational studies. Sue started the program in 1989 and finished her coursework in 1994. With a busy family life and hectic work schedule, she took a hiatus from the program for a few years. Once her youngest daughter, Jacqui, started at Curry, Sue was back to the books working on her dissertation: a case study on mentoring college students with learning disabilities.

Sue is accustomed to working every available evening, weekend, or free hour here or there to reach this point. Now that is it complete, she is eagerly looking forward to a summer free from studying!

Congratulations Sue. You are a great example to everyone that with persistence and determination, it can be done!

Congratulations to Marion Lowe '06 on becoming a Curry College graduate! Marion, a teacher in the CECC, received a BA in Psychology. "It was a long trip, but I finally made it!" Marion has three grown children, works full-time, cares for twin granddaughters, and actively volunteers at her church. A busy woman, Marion said, "I was able to finish because I had a passion for what I was studying. I knew what I wanted and I was determined." Marion also thanks Erica Pierce, CECC director, for her encouragement along the way.

Congratulations as well to Madalena Andrade, Gear Up Coordinator, who graduated with a Master in Education and to Joshua Lewis, Help Desk Technician, who graduated with a degree in Communication.

Who else among us also has a Curry Degree?
We thought it would be interesting to see just how many Curry employees are also Curry graduates. You might be surprised to learn how many of your fellow co-workers were once Curry students. View the list on the right.

Thankfully, the rain ended and this past Saturday the Curry Early Childhood Center (CECC) staff and parents participated in a playground work day. Director Erica Pierce explains, “We are in the process of turning our playground into an outdoor classroom using guidelines developed by the National Wildlife Federation. All of the plantings we have chosen are ones that will attract birds and butterflies.”

On Saturday volunteers planted trees, constructed garden boxes for the children to plant gardens, and erected bird houses that the children built. In the fall, they will continue the plantings with more shrubs and perennials.

The center currently serves over 60 children, ages three months to five years.

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