Story and Source Ideas for Journalists
09/12/2016
This is a notice of upcoming events, photo opportunities and story ideas at UMass Lowell, compiled by the Office of University Relations, 978-934-3224. For more stories about UMass Lowell, visit www.uml.edu/pressroom. Please note that contact names below are for the media and are not for publication.
Sources of the week
UMass Lowell faculty experts are available to discuss:
- The significance of Hillary Clinton’s pneumonia diagnosis on the presidential campaign;
- How parents can help their children adjust to the challenges they are facing with the new school year, including adjusting to different schools, classmates and academic demands;
- The reasons behind Monday’s plunging stocks in financial markets around the world and whether there will be a long-term effect.
Contact UMass Lowell media relations if you need an expert source on any subject.
- Exhibit Chronicles ‘Countdown to the End of the Sun’
- Legacy of Trailblazing Woman Scientist Honored at Event
- Scholars Gather to Explore the State of Feminism
- Poets Reflect on Cambodian-American Experience, Khmer Rouge
- Women Entrepreneurs Share Stories Behind Their Ventures
- Concert to Showcase Talent of Music Faculty, Support Scholarships
Exhibit Chronicles ‘Countdown to the End of the Sun’
When: Tuesday, Sept. 13 – artist’s talk at 3:30 p.m., reception to follow at 5 p.m. Exhibit runs through Saturday, Oct. 8. Gallery hours are Monday through Wednesday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Thursday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; and Friday and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
What: Artist Alejandro Borsani’s free exhibit “Countdown to the End of the Sun” – which explores his fascination with environmental phenomena and technology – will open for the public and campus community. The central piece in the show uses a digital clock powered by sunlight to graphically detail in seconds the time remaining in the life of the sun. Another artwork uses crowdsourcing to document the wishes of people gazing at stars as they shoot across the sky. Borsani incorporates videos, installations, sculptures, custom software and electronics into his art, which has been exhibited around the world. The show is curated by Pavel Romaniko, a visiting faculty member in UMass Lowell’s Department of Art and Design, which is presenting the exhibition.
Where: Artist’s talk – O’Leary Library Learning Commons, Room 222, South Campus, 61 Wilder St., Lowell. Artist’s reception and exhibit – University Gallery, Mahoney Hall, 870 Broadway St., Lowell
Contacts for media: Deborah Santoro, gallery coordinator, 978-934-3491, Deborah_Santoro@uml.edu or Nancy Cicco, 978-934-4944, Nancy_Cicco@uml.edu
Legacy of Trailblazing Woman Scientist Honored at Event
When: Thursday, Sept. 15, 6 p.m.
What: Ellen Swallow Richards, the first woman to attend and teach at MIT, conducted groundbreaking experiments in water filtration at the Lawrence Experiment Station in the 1890s, which led to Lawrence becoming the first city in the U.S. to filter its entire water supply to prevent disease. Her legacy continues today through the Ellen Swallow Richards Annual Lecture, which presents the latest advances in science and engineering, including efforts to solve environmental problems. The free lecture will feature Susan Solomon, Ph.D., who holds the MIT professorship named for Richards and whose research includes the cause of the Antarctic ozone hole. The event is presented by UMass Lowell Prof. Chad Montrie and is funded by a creative economy grant from the UMass President’s Office. Members of the public who would like to attend should RSVP to chad_montrie@uml.edu.
Where: Everett Mill, Third Floor, 15 Union St., Lawrence
Contacts for media: Nancy Cicco, 978-934-4944, Nancy_Cicco@uml.edu or Christine Gillette, 978-934-2209 or Christine_Gillette@uml.edu
Scholars Gather to Explore the State of Feminism
When: Friday, Sept. 16, 2:30 to 7 p.m. Remarks by UMass Lowell Chancellor Jacquie Moloney, 5 p.m. Keynote address, 5:30 p.m.
What: More than 100 scholars, researchers and students from around the world are expected to attend “Analytical Feminism: Past, Present and Future,” a three-day conference that will delve into women’s quest for political, social and economic equality. The conference will include remarks by UMass Lowell Chancellor Jacquie Moloney – the first woman to lead the university in its history – along with a keynote address by Nancy Bauer, a noted researcher who will discuss the philosophical underpinnings of the feminism movement. Topics of the more than 30 sessions to follow on Saturday and Sunday include online harassment of women, lower-income women’s access to the justice system, the status of abuse survivors as well as feminism in the deaf community and for those with other types of disabilities as a way to improve inclusiveness. The event is presented by UMass Lowell and Boston University on behalf of the Society for Analytical Feminism.
Where: UMass Lowell Inn & Conference Center, 50 Warren St., Lowell
Contacts for media: Nancy Cicco, 978-934-4944, Nancy_Cicco@uml.edu or Christine Gillette, 978-934-2209 or Christine_Gillette@uml.edu
Poets Reflect on Cambodian-American Experience, Khmer Rouge
When: Thursday, Sept. 22, 12:30 p.m.
What: Poets Monica Sok and Chath pierSath, whose work reflects the Cambodian-American experience, will read from their poetry and talk about their creative process during a free event for the public and campus. Both artists write about their understanding of Cambodian’s brutal Khmer Rouge political regime in the mid-1970s and how it affected children and families. Sok is the 2015 winner of the Poetry Society of America’s Chapbook Fellowship whose latest book of poetry is “Year Zero,” while pierSath earned a master’s degree in community social psychology from UMass Lowell and is also a painter and children’s author.
Where: O’Leary Library Learning Commons, Room 478, South Campus, 61 Wilder St., Lowell
Contacts for media: Nancy Cicco, 978-934-4944, Nancy_Cicco@uml.edu or Christine Gillette, 978-934-2209 or Christine_Gillette@uml.edu
Women Entrepreneurs Share Stories Behind Their Ventures
When: Thursday, Sept. 22, 6 to 8 p.m.
What: The program “How to Make it Happen: A Woman Entrepreneur’s Journey,” will allow participants to learn about the challenges and successes behind three local startups from the women who are leading them. The event will include presentations by Abiche Dewilde, co-founder of the UMass Lowell spinoff company Invitrometrix, which is developing a biomedical device that aids in discovering new medications; Joanna Hall, florist and owner of The Flower Mill in Lowell; and Reem Yared, founder of the website HelpAroundTown, which matches people looking to complete yard work, household chores and other types of jobs with service providers throughout eastern Massachusetts. Representatives of the Merrimack Valley Small Business Center, Lowell Office of Economic Development and Enterprise Bank are also expected to participate in the program. The event is presented by UMass Lowell’s Office of Technology Commercialization.
Where: UMass Lowell Innovation Hub, Third Floor, 110 Canal St., Lowell
Contacts for media: Nancy Cicco, 978-934-4944, Nancy_Cicco@uml.edu or Christine Gillette, 978-934-2209 or Christine_Gillette@uml.edu
Concert to Showcase Talent of Music Faculty, Support Scholarships
When: Friday, Sept. 23. Reception with performers, 6:30 p.m., concert at 8 p.m.
What: UMass Lowell’s proud history of music performance and education will come alive during “Sounding Out!,” a concert that will showcase the talent of the university’s music faculty, students, alumni and friends who are an integral part of Greater Lowell’s cultural scene. Spanning genres from jazz to classical, pop to global rhythms, the concert – along with a reception with the artists immediately before the show – will support student scholarships. Performers are expected to include Music Department faculty members Alan Williams with his acclaimed pop-folk group Birdsong at Morning; John Shirley, who will lead a set of Chicago blues; Sovann Khon, known for his work with the Angkor Dance Troupe of Lowell, who will play traditional Cambodian folksongs; Ramon Castillo, who will perform a set of contemporary electronica selections; and John-Morgan Bush – an acclaimed horn player and director of the UMass Lowell String Project, which provides music instruction in classical stringed instruments to K-12 students – who will perform with colleagues Rebecca Leonard, Stephanie Busby, Amy Dinsmore and Susan Jackson. Tickets, which are $15 per person for the concert or $40 per person for both the reception and the concert, are available at www.uml.edu/Chancellor/Celebration-of-Music/default.aspx. Concert tickets will also be sold at the door on the night of the event.
Where: Durgin Hall, South Campus, 35 Wilder St., Lowell
Contacts for media: Nancy Cicco, 978-934-4944, Nancy_Cicco@uml.edu or Christine Gillette, 978-934-2209 or Christine_Gillette@uml.edu