Monthly Archives: August 2011

Taylor Thomas Entered Already Serving—and Surfing!

August 24, 2011UncategorizedStudent Standouts

Taylor Thomas, all smiles for surfing and for her first day on campus

KSC hopes that its students will enter to learn and go forth to serve, but brand-new freshman Taylor Thomas moved into Fiske Hall today with an impressive resume of service already under her belt—or rather, her wetsuit. Taylor and her friend Lindsey Mercer created Surfing with Smiles and spent the summer at Hampton Beach teaching special-needs students how to surf.

“It’s the most rewarding thing I’ve done in my life,” Taylor said. “Lindsey and I are big surfers, and we decided that we wanted to give our passion to other people. So it’s not just us loving surfing, it’s other people loving surfing as well.”
Continue reading Taylor Thomas Entered Already Serving—and Surfing! →

In Memoriam: Prof. William Greer

August 24, 2011Uncategorizedobituary

The KSC community is sad to learn that Dr. William Benson “Bill” Greer, emeriti professor for industrial technology and safety, passed away in early August. Dr. Greer, originally from Lewiston, Maine, retired from his teaching position at Keene State College in 1994 after 30 years of service. He and his wife, Rosita, moved to Anna Maria Island in Florida’s Gulf Coast in 2002 and purchased an aging resort called the Island Plantation. After years of planning, the Greers demolished the resort and replaced built 12 luxury condominiums in its place. Just as the project neared completion, Dr. Greer was stricken with cancer. He survived the first operation and treatments and was cancer free until May 2011.

Bill Rymes, KSC’s plumbing and heating supervisor, had served as Dr. Greer’s lab assistant and remembers him for his easy-going nature and his keen intellect. All will remember him for his dedication to his family and his excitement for teaching and technology. The family requests that those wishing to honor Dr. Greer make a donation in his name to the American Cancer Society.

Rich Dart ’94 Keeps the Beat

August 24, 2011UncategorizedAlumni achievers, music

Rich Dart '94 on stage with Mickey Dolenz

Here’s another good answer to the question, “What do you do with a music degree?” Rich Dart ’94 left KSC with a BM in Music Performance with a specialization in percussion and a BA in Music Composition. Since then he’s played drums for Avenue Q on Broadway and for its first national tour. He’s toured with a production of Pippin and performs regularly at the Goodspeed Opera House in Connecticut. He’s played with Conan O’Brian’s famed trumpeter, Mark Pender, and the great David Johansen. He’s backed Mark Lindsey from Paul Revere and The Raiders, Peter Tork of the Monkees, and the late Andrew Gold. He’s received critical acclaim for his portrayal of “the Musical Merchant” in the Yale Repertoire production of Shakespeare’s Comedy of Errors. Oh, and he married Tracy Mintz (also from the class of 94) and they have a son who turned two in August.
Continue reading Rich Dart ’94 Keeps the Beat →

KSC Documentary on NHPTV

August 24, 2011Mark Your Calendarfilm

If you still haven’t seen the inspirational documentary on KSC, you have another chance, right in the privacy of your home. Enter to Learn, Go Forth to Serve: the First Hundred Years of Keene State College airs on New Hampshire Public TV at 8 and 9 p.m. on Sept. 26 and several other times this fall (see the schedule). Don’t miss it!

In Memoriam: Joe Iovieno ’94 M’01

August 24, 2011Uncategorizedobituary

The KSC community mourns the unexpected passing of Joseph (Joe) Iovieno ’94 M’01 on Friday, August 19. Joe, a Keene resident, had been a figure on campus for many years, both as a student and as an employee. He graduated from Keene State College with a masters degree in human services in December 2001 and started working here as a painter a month later. Back in 1991 he was a student employee in the psychology lab. Over his 20 years with Keene State, Joe made many friends and was known for his sense of humor, easygoing nature, and love of life.

Prof. Vincent Publishes in Holocaust and Genocide Studies

August 23, 2011Uncategorizedfaculty, Holocaust & genocide

Dr. Paul Vincent, chair of the Holocaust and Genocide Studies program at Keene State College, published the article “The Voyage of the St. Louis Revisited,” in the current issue (Fall 2011) of Holocaust and Genocide Studies, one of the journals of Oxford University Press.

In 1939, the MS St. Louis, a German ocean liner with 937 German-Jewish refugees aboard, all of whom had landing permits for Cuba, was denied entry into Havana. Following difficult negotiations, the ship disembarked its passengers in Antwerp, Belgium. Some passengers were granted refuge in England, while the others were divided between Belgium, France, and the Netherlands—all destined to come under Nazi occupation a year later. The event was the subject of a 1974 book, Voyage of the Damned, by Gordon Thomas and Max Morgan-Witts, adapted for a film with the same title in 1976. Dr. Vincent delves deeply into the diplomacy associated with the voyage, challenging some widely held suppositions about the incident.
Continue reading Prof. Vincent Publishes in Holocaust and Genocide Studies →

In Memoriam: Kitty Arsenault

August 19, 2011Uncategorizedobituary

Kitty (here with her with close friend and colleague, Dean Melinda Treadwell) was honored for her service at the May Retiree Recognition Program.

The KSC community was very saddened to learn of the passing of Carol I. “Kitty” Arsenault on August 12, following a long struggle with cancer.

Kitty had just retired from Keene State College this past spring; she served in several capacities on campus. She began as the administrative assistant at Wheelock School, where she served as the glue that kept the children, parents, teachers, and principals well informed and organized. After that, Kitty accepted a position supporting the programs and faculty in Technology, Design, and Safety. Her amazing organizational skills, critical thinking, sense of humor, and nurturing won everyone’s respect and admiration.
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KSC Wins Financial Literacy Grant

August 18, 2011Uncategorized

College students are seeking basic financial management knowledge, according to a recent study conducted by Higher One, a technology and payment services company focused on higher education. In response, Higher One launched the Financial Literacy Counts grant program, to help schools fund awareness campaigns, workshops, online financial literacy tools, and other programs to help students increase their personal financial management skills and abilities.

Keene State College was among the eight colleges and universities selected from a pool of over 80 applicants and received $4,000 from the grant. The proposals were selected based their high levels of student involvement in planning and execution, quality, creativity, and impact on the percentage of undergraduate students on campus.

The College spent the money on the financial literacy programs that it offers during Orientation to incoming students.

OSHA Ed Center to Conduct Safety Training for NOAA

August 18, 2011Uncategorized

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has selected KSC’s OSHA Education Center to conduct specialized training aboard the NOAA research vessel, Henry B. Bigelow. This fisheries survey ship supports NOAA’s mission to protect, restore, and manage the use of living marine, coastal, and ocean resources through ecosystem-based management. Its primary objective is to study and monitor Northeast Marine Fisheries throughout New England.

The education center will provide a customized program in hazardous waste operations and emergency response, designed especially for the ship’s environment and the crew of scientists, mariners, and military officers.

More information. …

Where’d I See That?

August 12, 2011UncategorizedWhere'd I See That?

Well, even if you don’t know where these are, you’ve sure heard ’em!

If you think you know where they are, write your answer in erasable marker on a small-shank, gold-plated Dennis Wick trombone mouthpiece and send it to Newsline, Alumni Center, 229 Main St., Keene, NH 03435. Or use the “comments” link, below.

Shawn Ahern ’10 on America’s Got Talent!

August 11, 2011UncategorizedAlumni achievers, dance

That's Shawn, second from right, with the Pilobolus gang working on the "All Is Not Lost" video.

Loyal Newsline readers will already have read about how Google hired the world-famous dance troupe, Pilobolus, featuring KSC alum Shawn Ahern ’10, to create a music video to showcase the technology in its new browser, Chrome. Well, the video was such a success that it was featured last night (Aug 10) on America’s Got Talent. If you missed the show, you can watch it online and see how Shawn and the gang created some of those amazing effects.

Work Begins on New TDS Center

August 11, 2011Uncategorized

Keene State continues to grow! To provide better opportunities for our students, expand our programs, and meet the labor needs of high-tech manufacturers, the Adams Technology Building and the newer addition to Butterfield Hall are coming down to make way for the Technology, Design, and Safety (TDS) Center. This super-efficient building will offer zero net energy performance and LEED Platinum certification—quite a contrast to the outdated, inefficient buildings it will replace.
Continue reading Work Begins on New TDS Center →

ROGUE ELEPHANT SHOT ON CAMPUS!

August 10, 2011Uncategorizedhistory

Only it wasn’t really the “campus” at the time, and it was even several years before there would be a Keene Normal School, let alone a Keene State College. Anyway, on July 18, 1885, the Barnum, Bailey, and Hutchinson Circus was in Nashua. It’s next stop was Keene, to provide the locals with the biggest entertainment event of the year.

Unfortunately, Albert, a huge bull Indian elephant (second in size only to Barnum’s fabled Jumbo), got in a tiff with another elephant. When elephant-trainer John McCormack stepped in to break up the fight, Albert knocked McCormack down and pinned him to the ground with his massive head. Then Albert bolted from the scene, onto the circus grounds, and could have caused considerable damage, were it not for the brave intervention of Prof. Astingstall, “the celebrated keeper and trainer who faced and subdued the brute in his mad rush.”

The circus doctor examined McCormack and found no broken bones, so everyone thought the trainer would recover, but he died of internal injuries during the train ride to Keene. By the time the train reached Keene, the circus owners decided that Albert was too great a risk, and needed to be put down.
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Winnie Langtry ’52 Invites Legislators to Support KSC

August 9, 2011Uncategorized

Spunky ’52 alumna Winnie Langtry, ever appreciative of the education she received here, wrote a letter to the Concord Monitor and invited those same state legislators who slashed the education budget to pitch in to the Class of 1952 Scholarship Fund.

Continue reading Winnie Langtry ’52 Invites Legislators to Support KSC →

Shawn Ahern ’10 Dances for Google Chrome

August 9, 2011Uncategorizedalumni, Alumni achievers, dance

It was just a year ago that newly minted alum Shawn Ahern ’10 tucked his diploma and his contract with the world-renowned dance troupe Pilobolus into his suitcase and leapt into the world of professional dance.

Talk about opportunity knocking! A year later, internet giant Google searches for the perfect medium to showcase the cutting-edge technology in its new web browser, Chrome, and guess what they come up with? You got it—a video of Pilobolus’ latest edgy visual brilliance, featuring KSC’s own Shawn Ahern.

You can watch the video on YouTube (including a fun look behind the scenes, where you’ll see more of Shawn), but, since Google is using it to highlight its latest browser technology, you’ll need to watch it on Google Chrome for the maximum experience (download Google Chrome, and then, from Chrome, visit this link: www.allisnotlo.st/index_en.html). That includes inviting you to type in a message, which the Pilobolus gang will spell out at the end of the video. Something like this:
Those are the bottoms of the dancers’ feet you’re seeing. Be prepared to be amazed—and send Shawn a comment.

If you’d like to know more about Google Chrome and the Pilobolus project, visit the company’s blog.

Two Off-campus Student Apartments Go Up on Ralston St.

August 9, 2011Uncategorized

Two new apartment buildings, designed for students, are going up on Ralston St., just a couple of blocks from campus. Arcadia Hall, a four-story building at the corner of Emerald and Ralston streets, will house 137 students in three- and four-bedroom apartments and should open next July. Nearby, the Davis Street Apartments will open August 1 and offer 51 beds in two-, three- and four-bedroom apartments. Rents for Davis St. range from $525 to $700 per bed, including all utilities, cable, and internet, and two parking spots per unit.
Continue reading Two Off-campus Student Apartments Go Up on Ralston St. →