As all of us know, David Fedo, our beloved Dean, will be leaving us soon. June 8 is his last day. Pictured here receiving his Honorary Doctorate at our 2007 Commencement, he was also awarded the "Person of the Year" Award by our students, and had the 2007 Yearbook dedicated to him. He was honored with a special video presentation at the Honorary Degree Dinner the evening before Commencement. A goodbye celebration was held in the ARC subsequent to a special tribute from the Theater Department.

What more can we say? Just that we will all greatly miss his presence on this campus. And that we hope he will send us updates from his new life in Singapore. If he does, you can be sure they will appear in Cruisin' Curry!

We watched them process into the tent and we heard their names called as they crossed the stage to receive a diploma with their name on it. How does it all happen? With a lot of team work and planning! The Commencement Committee starts meeting monthly in October and weekly, at least, in the weeks leading up to the big day.

From coordinating the many vendors involved (tent, lighting, sound, golf carts, vans, trolleys, etc.) to lining up 700+ graduates, to crowd control and traffic flow, it takes a huge amount of collaborative effort to make it all come together.

"The day is all about the pomp and circumstance for our students and their families. If our guests don't see what is going on behind the scenes, we've all done our job," says veteran Commencement Committee member John Tramandozzi.

With an estimated 4000+ guests at this year's Commencement, everything came together, despite the weather, to make for a wonderful day for our students and their families.

"The best part is seeing the students process in. It makes all the effort worthwhile to see the excitement on their faces and realize how much this day means to them and their families," says Allison Coutts, chair of the Commencement Committee. "At that point, our job shifts into customer service mode to make sure that everyone is where they should be, that guests can find what they need, and that everyone has an enjoyable experience."

"When the last name is called, I breathe a huge sigh of relief," says Allison. And so does the rest of the Curry faculty and staff who work so hard to create a wonderful, memorable event for our students and their families.

Special thanks to all the members of the Commencement Committee:

Amy M. Bianchi
Steve Belaief
Julie R. Colket
Maryellen Colliton
Allison M. Coutts
David A. Fedo
Frances L. Gately
Todd D. Goldrick
Christian Gordon
Brain C. Greeley
Angela Gugliotta
Joan M. Kroha
June Koukol
Roberta A. Leary
Keith Meal
Robert G. O'Connell
Susan W. Pennini
Kenneth K. Quigley, Jr.
Steven Regan
Judith P. Stoessel
Richard F. Sullivan
Kyle M. Sumner
John E. Tramondozzi
Rosemarie Valentino

Congratulations to these staff members who graduated from Curry this past Sunday:

Jason Altavesta, Buildings and Grounds
Christina Caulfield, Institutional Advancement
Brian DeMayo, Public Safety
Alex Kokoros, Public Safety
Gregory Forrest, Technology Center
Randy Lloyd, Public Safety

In the spirit of alumnus Edward Gault's vision, the Human Rights Award was presented this year during Awards Night to Communications major and Honors Scholars student, sophomore John Abdulla. Through a generous philanthropic gift to the College, Edward Gault, class of 1985, established the Human Rights Award to recognize individuals, from within or from outside the College, for their exceptional effort in promoting social justice for the poor, homeless, sick, imprisoned, marginalized and oppressed.

The Spiritual Life Committee, made up of Michelle Sarmenta, Les Muray, Russ Pregeant, Leslie Becker and Alan Revering, solicited and reviewed many nominations before selecting John as the 2007 recipient.

John is the founder and president of Curry's newest student club with an estimated 40 student members. ONE Curry is a subset of the nationwide ONE Campaign "to make poverty history." The stated mission of ONE Curry is to raise awareness among the Curry community though education on issues of global poverty, AIDS and human inequality. This semester the club hosted four members of the Lost Boys of Sudan and film viewings and discussions about the Lost Boys of the Sudan, the children soldiers of Uganda, and the Rwandan Genocide. Fall 2007 semester will begin with one family's story about AIDS.

In addition to educating our community, ONE Curry is also committed to taking action. They have raised $2,500 toward their $5,000 goal to directly benefit Bor, an impoverished village in the Sudan with no access to clean water. The money raised will be used to build a new well in the community that is home to ONE Curry member, Peter Nhiany. If you wish to contribute, send a check payable to ONE Curry to the Office of Institutional Advancement.

Past recipients of the Human Rights Awards (with year awarded if known) include:

Magueye Seck
Derrick Jackson
Dante Germanotta
Project Share
Dessima Williams(2000)
Michael Randall and John Hoff (2002)
Marvin and Betty Mandell (2003)
Patty Kean (2004)
Diane Goss and Jane Adelizzi (2005)
Jared Kant (student award, 2005)
Ann Levin (2006)

Last month, Curry's own Erica Pierce, Curry Early Childhood Center Director, was honored at the annual Milton Early Childhood Alliance (MECA) banquet and presented with the MECA Professional Recognition Award.

The Milton Early Childhood Alliance is a community- wide group that supports families of young children, and expands access to affordable, high quality early childhood care and education. The Recognition Award is given to individuals who work daily to provide the best opportunities for the young children and families of Milton.

Erica received numerous enthusiastic nominations for this award from CECC co-workers, Curry College faculty and staff and CECC parents. In presenting the award to Erica, MECA Director Ada Rosmarin honored Erica, "for your leadership in building an outstanding early childhood program in the town of Milton, for your warmth and support for children and their families, and for your professional guidance, support and leadership of your devoted staff." She refers to Erica as "a treasure for the town of Milton and the Curry College community."

Congratulations Erica on this well earned recognition!

John Hancock Insurance offers long-term care insurance to the staff and faculty of Curry College. Most of us would prefer not to think of the day when we may not be able to care for ourselves independently, however, as life expectancy increases, the chances are greater that there will come a day when you or a loved one may need long-term care or assistance.

With John Hancock's long-term care insurance, you can ensure that when you need long-term care, you'll be better able to pay for it and help protect your retirement dreams. This type of insurance will pay for some or all of your long-term care including services to help with activities of daily living, home health care, respite care, hospice care, adult day care, care in a nursing home, and care in an assisted living facility.

For more information or to arrange to speak with Curry's representative from John Hancock, contact Donna Gagne in Human Resources.