This Signature Experience will also serve as the backbone to

our new General Education Program.

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The William J. Maxwell College of Arts and Sciences is on the move. With a dynamic faculty and a hard working staff we are poised to introduce several new initiatives designed to enhance our students’ educational experience both in and out of the classroom. For many of these initiatives we needn’t look any farther than in our own backyard. NJCU is strategically located in the heart of an urban hub with more to do and see and experience than anywhere else in the world. Our plan is to bring those opportunities to our students and to encourage our students to go to them.

As the Dean of the College, I feel strongly that all students who graduate from this institution must experience the treasures of Jersey City and its neighboring cities in Hudson County and across the river to New York City. To this end, we are creating a NJCU Signature Experience that will permeate the many nooks and crannies of the NJCU student’s education.

The Signature Experience will highlight NJCU’s mission to be a premier urban university. We are designing an “Academic Passport” to be given to every new student. This document will serve as a connection to many of the surrounding museums, performance venue, historical sites and more. Faculty will be able take advantage of the passport to encourage students to visit these places and incorporate these experiences into their course work.

Message froM the Dean

NEW JERSEY CITY UNIVERSITY1

spring 2011

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Books Illustrated

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new partnershipsEllis IslandThe College of Arts and Sciences has extended its relationship with Ellis Island, building on already existing opportunities which have existed for our students. In addition to internship opportunities, Ellis Island and NJCU received a grant titled Navigating Difference:

Transatlantic Dialogues on Immigration, A Museums & Community Collaborations Abroad (MCCA) award. Sociology professor, Max Herman has been working on this project which engages his students in unique opportunities. We are also developing courses which would spend some class time on Ellis Island as part of the learning experience. The possibilities extend to all disciplines of study and are limitless. This partnership will benefit both NJCU and Ellis Island.

Loews Jersey TheaterThe historic Lowe’s Theater in Jersey City is a historical treasure which many people have worked tirelessly to preserve and restore. Recent meetings with the directors of the Friends of Loews are Colin Egan and Patti Giordan have lead to the brainstorming of many ideas that would offer our students wonderful opportunities to experience this theater. With few theaters of this era remaining in the country, our students have a special and rare opportunity not afforded to most students. There are also many plans developing to help support the continuing efforts to restore this magnificent treasure

Society of IllustratorsNew Jersey City University has been accepted as an educational member with the Society of Illustrators located in New York City. This membership suggests a formal and official partnership with the Society, offering a variety of membership privileges. One such opportunity will be the availability of our students forming a student chapter representing the Society; allowing students to organize events and activities that further their education and will assist them in developing professional practices. Being part of this chapter will offer opportunities to become more actively involved in the both NJCU and the professional illustration communities. It will offer the occasion to meet and interact with established professionals and allow for greater exposure of their artwork.

Additionally, this membership allows NJCU to host our annual Portfolio Review for graduating seniors at the Society of Illustrators. Volunteers from the NYC graphic arts professional community come together with our students at the Society and critique student work and offer career advice to both new and recent graduates who are preparing to enter the field of graphic art. This invaluable experience allows our students to hear from seasoned professionals and offers them the ability to present their work in a professional setting. This spring will be our third such review.

Peer Review is published biannually by

the New Jersey City University Office of the Dean,

William J. Maxwell College of Arts & Sciences

Professor Jim BroderickEditor

Ella Rue (M.A. ‘05, M.F.A.)Designer

On November 22, 2010 the Office of the Dean unvieled student artwork from Filipe Amadore `11, Lauren Clemente `11, Kelly Cuenca`10, Tim Fitzgerald `11, and Taylor Sterling `10.

Members of the University Cabinet and top donor George Karnoutsos, and others were on hand to view the student work.

Please feel free to stop by and see the work of these talented student artists.

Student Salon

The

This Signature Experience will also serve as the backbone to our new General Education Program. Currently under construction, faculty across the three colleges is working to create a new leaner Gen-Ed program which will feature metro engagement as its defining characteristic.We have the support of the Jersey City Mayor, Jerramiah Healy, for the creation of our NJCU signature experience. He has offered resources from his office to help connect NJCU students to the sites and events throughout the city.I would like to thank Mayor Healy, President Hernandez, Vice President Bruno, my counterparts in the other colleges and the faculty and staff of the College of Arts and Sciences for their commitment to our students.

“General Ed” illustration by Stephanie Herrera `11

illustration by Taylor Sterling `10

Prof. Ken Yamaguchi, Chemistry Department, is serving on a Department of Defense (DoD) committee to assess DoD research and educational programs for Historically Black Colleges (HBCU) and Minority-Serving Institutions.

Prof. Ethan Bumas, English Department, has had his fiction, non-fiction, and criticism recently published in Southwest Review, Crab Orchard Review, Center, Pleiades, and Prof. Tan Lin’s (also of the English Department) extravaganza.

Prof. Andrew Schwartz, Music, Dance, and Theatre Department, was featured in an article in the Newark Star-Ledger discussing the School of Rock programs in New Jersey.

Prof. Edvige Giunta, English Department, and her sister Claudia, a lawyer in New York, were the first women to receive the Vir Singulari Virtute Award by the Kiwanis Club of their hometown of Gela as citizens who had distinguished themselves. Prof. Giunta was recognized for her contribution to the recognition of Italian American literature, with specific regard to the work of women writers.

Prof. Dennis Dittrich, Art Department, and current president of the Society of Illustrators, was recognized at the 2010 Air Force Art Program Presentation at the National Museum of United States Air Force in Dayton Ohio, on October 22, 2010. The presentation celebrated 60 years of contributing aviation art to the Air Force.

Profs. José Rodeiro and Raúl Villareal, Art Department, exhibited at Qbava Gallery in Union City as part of a group show entitled Pura Cuba: Una Sola Isla. “Una Sola Isla” (“One Island Only”) represents the third Pura Cuba Metropolitan-area art exhibition (since 2009) toexplore contemporary Cuban and Cuban-American cultural themes, as well as diverse socio-artistic and aesthetic issues.

Prof. Debbie Bennett, Mathematics Department, and Prof. Audrey Fisch, English Department, along with Profs. Brian Hurwitz and Tracy Ammerman (Special Education) participated in the Monarch Center’s initiative on “Preparing Teacher Candidates to Work Collaboratively.” The Monarch Center, the National Outreach and Technical Assistance Center on Discretionary Awards for Minority Institutions, is funded through the US Department of Education’s Office of Special Education Programs and was established to affect positive change in the lives of youth with disabilities, particularly those from culturally or linguistically diverse backgrounds.

Prof. Bruce Chadwick, English and History Departments, was a guest on Fox News’s “Strategy Room” segment discussing Abraham Lincoln’s political skills. The piece originally aired October 21, 2010.

Prof. John Hancock, an adjunct voice instructor, Music, Dance and Theatre Department, performed at the United Nations Day Concert, 22 October 2010, in the UN’s General Assembly Hall. The concert was part of the UN’s weeklong celebrations leading up to United Nations Day.

Prof. Midori Yoshimoto, Art Department, was a co-organizer and presenter at the workshop “Osaka Expo 1970 and the Japanese Avant-Garde” at Harvard University on November 6, 2010. Prof. Yoshimoto also gave a talk at the The Museum of Modern Art Library on the women artists who helped shape the Fluxus art movement.

The recent performance of the NJCU Jazz Ensemble at Dizzy’s Club Coca Cola at Lincoln Center was rebroadcast on XM (ch 70) and Sirius (ch 72) satellite radio on October 15 and 17, 2010.

Prof. Bruce Chadwick, English Department, has become a contributing reviewer for the History News Network, covering the New York metropolitan theater scene. His first review covers the rock musical “Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson,” now playing at the Bernard Jacobs theatre on Broadway.

Prof. Ana Marie Rosado, Music, Dance and Theatre Department, had an interview she conducted with guitarist Roland Dyens published in both Classical Guitar Magazine (UK) and, in translation, Gendai Guitar magazine (Japan).

Prof. Cindy Arrigo, Biology Department, and Program Director for Inspire at NJCU, spoke at the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities 24th Annual Conference in San Diego, California. Inspire at NJCU is a part of a postdoctoral training program made possible through a NIH-General Medical Sciences IRACDA Consortium Award of $3.95 million.

Prof. Josê Rodeiro, Art Department, and Prof. Sergio Villamizar, an adjunct instructor in the Fitness, Exercise and Sports Department in the College of Professional Studies, had a two-man show -- the Duende Exhibition -- that was part of Passaic County Community College’s Hispanic Heritage Month celebration.

Prof. Lisa Ficarelli-Halpern, an adjunct instructor, Art Department, was selected as the Artist of the Week by the Monmouth County Arts Council.

Prof. José Rodeiro, Art Department, is exhibiting work at the Perth Amboy Gallery Center for the Arts. Prof. Rodeiro’s work is part of “ENCOUNTER,” a trans-cultural exhibition featuring the work of 14 artists who are examining the themes of cultural and creative encounters.

Prof. John Hancock, an adjunct voice instructor, Music, Dance, and Theatre Department, performed with the American Symphony Orchestra in a program “James Joyce.” The concert, which featured the works of Joyce’s favorite composers, was held on Wednesday, October 6 at 8:00 pm.

Prof. Anthony Laciura, Music, Dance and Theatre Department, has a lead role in HBO’s new series, “Boardwalk Empire.”

Prof. Louise Stanton, Political Science Department, spoke at Virginia Tech’s Government & International Affairs Program to kick-off their Fall Lecture Series. Prof. Stanton, the author of The Civilian-Military Divide: Obstacles to the Integration of Intelligence in the United States (2009, Praeger), spoke on information sharing in the intelligence community in the post-9/11 era.

Prof. John DeBrizzi, Sociology Department, writing under the pseudonym “Jean-Baptiste DeBris,” had a collection of poetry, Requiem for the Unrequited, published in August 2010.

Prof. Maredia Warren, Music, Dance and Theatre Department, was the guest conductor of the Cobb Country Children’s Honor Choir Festival in Cobb, County, Georgia on October 28, 2010.

Faculty News (as of Fall 2010)

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Fall 2011 Urban Themed Semester: “Jersey City and Beyond”

Immigrant Experience Spring 2011

Announcing the spring 2011 “Immigrant Experience” celebrating our collaboration with Ellis Island and the launching of our revised

‘Ethnic and Immigration Studies Minor’FEAturIng:

Specially designed courses • Immigrant Speaker Series A weeklong Film Series • Trips to Ellis Island

Music, Dance & TheatreOrchestra ConcertDvořák “New World” Symphony • “Estancia” by Ginastera

“Saudades de Macao” by Bun Ching Lam

April 17th at 3:00 p.m.Margaret Williams Theatre • New Jersey City University

The Brief & Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao

This 90-minute presentation incorporates solo performance of the highest caliber framed by interactive discussions before and after the performance. (50-60 minutes of p erformance and 30-40 minutes interactive discussion)

This Pulitzer Prize-winning novel is the story of a Dominican immigrant family living in Paterson, New Jersey. It chronicles the life of Oscar de Leon, an overweight Dominican college student who is obsessed with science fiction and fantasy novels, falling in love, and the curse that has plagued his family for generations.

Join us Thursday, April 14 at 5 p.m. in the Black Box Theatre. Bring your classes! Please contact the dean’s office to reserve space!

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Transatlantic Immigration

Dialogues: A Forum on US

& European Immigration

PoliciesJanuary 27, 2011. 4-6:30 pm

gilligan Student union, Multipurpose room A-B

As part of a collaboration among academic institutions and museums in the U.S and Europe, (including New Jersey City University), a team of scholars from the U.S. , Belgium, and Italy will discuss how their respective nations are responding to the challenges posed by recent waves of immigration. Topics to be addressed include border/entry control policies, guestworker programs, pathways to legalization, job competition between native and newcomers, and issues of national security and identity.

For additional information please contact Max Herman, Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology and Anthropology at MHerman2@NJCU.edu or call 201.200.2280.

Fall 2011 Urban Themed Semester: “Jersey City and Beyond”

Rob Stephens, a Music, Dance and Theatre major, will be performing for with the Boys Choir of Harlem for a show which will be televised on ABC7 on Christmas Day.

On November 22, students from Prof. Joshua Fausty’s EC1 and RWAD classes attended a taping of Democracy Now, a daily news radio program hosted by Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez and syndicated on 850 stations across the USA.

The New Jersey City University Jazz Ensemble, under the direction of Prof. Ed Joffe, Music, Dance and Theatre Department, performed at Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola as part of the Jazz at Lincoln Center’s “Generations in Jazz” festival from September 14-19, 2010.

Art major Laura Krapacher is currently working as an intern at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York City, and following completion of the internship, will join the Museum staff as an art handler.

Biology major Rafael Garces has been accepted to the Undergraduate Research Program in Molecular and Quantitative & Computational Biology at Princeton University this summer. In this selective program, students complete an original research project as part of a world-class research group. Biology major Agata Kaczkowski, is working on a summer internship with the Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey as part of a US Department of Agriculture grant.

Alumni NewsClaudia Whitmeyer Ross, a 2009 graduate of our Art Department’s BFA program is working on her second children’s book. Her first book, “Brookie’s Itty Bitty Book of Words” (2010, from Kat Tales, LLC) won a Gold “Mom’s Choice Award.”

Lisa Ficarelli-Halpern, a 2010 graduate from our Art Department’s MFA program was selected as the Artist of the Week by the Monmouth County Arts Council.

Rebecca Feraneca 2008 graduate from our Art Department M.F.A program., along with two other Jersey City artists, Jaz Graf and Eileen Ferrara painted a 14’ x 4’ mural on a piece of bowling alley floor that will become the Greenville Fire Department’s new kitchen table.

This fall the College will sponsor a thematic semester focusing on the urban experience. Offerings focusing on urban issues include: specially designed courses, specially adapted courses and already existing courses. Many of these courses will include an experiential component which extend the learning experience beyond the classroom and into the city.

Additionally, the College will host a series of co-curricular activities to compliment these courses such as concerts, lectures, films and exhibits.

Student News

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BIO 106 Practical Nutrition: The Jersey Diner ExperienceCHEM 220 Environmental Chemistry: Implications to the Urban EnvironmentECON 102 Contemporary Economic Issues: Urban Enterprise ZoneENGL 188 Stories of ImmigrationENGL 190 Literature & Film: Add urban title hereENGL 199 Creative Writing: Add urban title hereENGL Pending Literature of the CityGEOS 114 Problems of Modern CitiesGEOS 209 Urban Environmental IssuesHIST Pending Metropolis: Comparing Paris & NYHIST Pending Urban DisastersLANG 215 Spanish for Bilingual Speakers: The Hispanic Urban ExperienceLATI 204 Latin American Communities in the US: The Urban Experience in NJ & NY

MEDI 338 American Directors: New York StoriesMEDI 413 Video Production Workshop: Urban DocumentaryMDT 105 Afro-American Music and MusiciansMDT 255 Music in an Urban SettingMDT 254 Latin American MusicPHIL Pending Religion and Society: Faith Encounters Urban LifePHYS 101 Basic Concepts of Physics: Physics of Urban LifePOLI 213 Urban PoliticsPOLI 313 Civil Liberties in the United StatesPOLI 202 State and Local Government: Urban ReflectionsPSYC 165 Psychology of Black ExperienceSOCI 254 Urban Sociology - “Cities of Industry”WGST 206 Men of Color in Urban America

In spring 2010 the College re-launched a Student Research Forum, an event that showcased the research skills of some of our most promising students. The inaugural event included presentations from students in Chemistry, English, Geoscience, Media Arts, Political Science, and Women’s & Gender Studies and the projects ranged from detailed literary analyses of Harry Potter to budding breakthroughs in nanotechnology; from a critique of recent models to end African poverty to a study of photographic images of the Ellis Island immigrant experience . For spring 2011 we are continuing the

program, with Profs. Hilary Englert, Jacqueline Ellis, and Ken Yamaguchi serving as the proposal review committee. This is one of the real highlights of the academic year and provides a wonderful platform for us to celebrate the good work that students across the college are doing in academic study. The proposal guidelines and submission form are available on the CAS website under the “Student News and Info” tab. Encourage your students to participate, either as presenters or as part of the audience. Keep an eye on the CAS webpage for further details.

Spring 2011

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Golden Key Honour Society

chartered on campus

On Tuesday, December 7, 2010 New Jersey City University chartered a chapter of the Golden Key Internationals Honour Society. There were more than 150 friends and family members in attendance. Dr. Howard Singer, of the Biology department, presented as the keynote speaker. He extolled the many opportunities for service that are available to us to serve our community. Dr. Carlos Hernández, NJCU president, and Dr. Joanne Z. Bruno were on hand to offer greetings and congratulate the students.

Golden Key International Honour Society, founded in 1977, is an academic honor society which recognizes and encourages scholastic achievement and excellence among college and university students from all academic disciplines. Eligibility for Golden Key is based on the top 15% of college/university sophomores, juniors and seniors meeting GPA requirements.

Interdisciplinary Minors

Art Kappa Pi (international) Visual Arts Building, Room 120 201.200.2367

BiologyBeta Beta Beta (national) Science Bulding, Room 335 201.200.3054

EnglishSigma Tau Delta (national) Karnoutsos Hall, Room 304 201.200.3337

HistoryPhi Alpha Theta (national) Karnoutsos Hall, Room 519 201.200.3157

MathKappa Mu Epsilon (national) Karnoutsos Hall, Room 506 201.200.3201

Modern Languages Sigma Delta Pi (national) Karnoutsos Hall, Room 202 201.200.3176

Opportunity Scholarship Program Chi Alpha Epsilon (national) Vodra Hall, Room 211 201.200.3355

Political Science Pi Sigma Alpha (national) Karnoutsos Hall, Room 606 201.200.3231

Psychology Psi Chi (national) Science Building, Room 432 201.200.3062

Sociology Alpha Kappa Delta (national) Rossey Hall, Room 539 201.200.3261

Golden Key Honour SocietyKarnoutsos Hall, Room 605

201.200.3001

Honor Societies

The William J. Maxwell College of Arts and Science offers our

students the opportunity to compliment their major area of study

with any of the following interdisciplinary minors. These minors

draw from numerous disciplines to allow a student focus on a topic

through an integrated curriculum spanning perspectives from several

departmental disciplines. For more information on any of these

minors please visit our website at http://web.njcu.edu/dept/cas

• African American Studies

• Ethnic & Immigration Studies

• International Studies

• Latin American, Caribbean, & Latino Studies

• Pre-Law

• Women’s and Gender Studies

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Fall 2011

Call for artiCles

Deadline: April 15, 2011

The Peer Review seeks articles about the urban experience for the fall 2011 issue.

How do you bring issues of the urban experience into the classroom? What books, activities, or units do you use to inspire your students to step outside the classroom and rethink the learning experience?

What literature—ranging from poetry to prose, classics to contemporary, picture books to plays, astronomy to zoology— helps to introduce and reinforce this theme?

Articles should be between 250 and 400 words and should be sent as a Word attachment to erue@njcu.edu.

Please include your contact information. Inclusion in The Peer Review is subject to approval.

2039 Kennedy BoulevardJersey City, NJ 07305

www.njcu.edu

The

Walking ToursAs part of the William J. Maxwell College of Arts and Sciences commitment to create a learning experience that goes beyond the borders of our campus, we are fortunate to have our very own Dr. Timothy White of the History Department offer walking tours of notable places throughout Jersey City and the New York Metropolitan area. For more information about these tours please contact Dr. Timothy White at TWhite@NJCU.edu .

Date Departing Tour

9/17/ Sat. 10 a.m. governors Island

9/22 Thurs. 3 p.m. Historic Lower Manhattan

9/23 Friday 1 p.m. Ellis Island trip #1

9/24 Saturday 11 a.m. Jersey City #1

10/6 Thursday 3 p.m. Chinatown & Little Italy

10/7 Friday 11 a.m. Brooklyn Bridge

10/13 Thursday 3 p.m. greenwich Village

10/14 Friday 1 p.m. Ellis Island #2

10/20 Thurs. 12 p.m. tenement Museum & Low. East Side

10/21 Friday 10 a.m. Jersey City #2

10/27 Thursday 11 a.m. Central Park

11/4 Friday 1 p.m. gay & Lesbian greenwich Village

11/10 Thursday 1 p.m. Harlem & the Apollo

11/18 Friday 3 p.m. times Square & tKtS

Peer Review“Salmagundi” is a showcase of short films and video works by NJ City University Media Arts students and alumni curated by Professor Jane Steuerwald for Urban Image, based at the University. It will premiere at the Five Corners Branch Library, on Monday, January 24th at 7:00PM, in the Mildred H. Hunke Auditorium. “Salmagundi” - a “mix of widely disparate things” is an eclectic program of satire, personal narrative, experimental mixed media, animation, and documentary.

The Five Corners Library is located on 678 Newark Avenue, in Jersey City, NJ, a few blocks from Journal Square. Admission is free and street parking is available.

For further information contact Professor Steuerwald at 201.200.3414 or e-mail her at jsteuerwald@njcu.edu.

Urban Image to be aired at the Jersey City Public Library

2039

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the Office of the Dean Karnousos Hall, room 605Barbara J. Feldman, Ph.D. DeanFran Moran III, Ph.D. Associate DeanRosa Perez, M.A., Ed.M. Executive Assistant to the DeanSarah Ambrose Roman, M.A. Assistant to the DeanElla Rue, M.A., M.F.A. Assistant to the DeanSusan Iwanowski, SecretaryDonna Williams, SecretaryDamaris Castillo, Secretary 201.200.3001

Non-Profit OrganizationU.S. POSTAGE

PAIDPERMIT #6633NEWARK, NJ

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William J. Maxwell College of Arts & Sciences Visit us online at http://web.njcu.edu/dept/cas