Photo by Epicleff Media. “SCORE: A Film Music Documentary,” featuring Kalamazoo College Psychology Professor Siu-Lan Tan among its interviewees, is coming Sept. 22-28 to Celebration! Cinema Crossroads in Portage.
Mark your calendars today. “SCORE: A Film Music Documentary,” featuring Kalamazoo College Psychology Professor Siu-Lan Tan among its interviewees, is coming Sept. 22-28 to Celebration! Cinema Crossroads in Portage. Two showings, one at 6:30 p.m. Sept. 23 and one at 12:30 p.m. Sept. 24, will include question-and-answer sessions with Dr. Tan. Kalamazoo Film Society President Mike Marchak will host the Q&A’s.
Tickets for the shows with Q&A’s are available here for Sept. 23 and here for Sept. 24. Tickets and show times for Sept. 22 and Sept. 25-28 are available by entering the date you would like to attend here. Online ticket purchases are recommended, especially for weekend shows because they could sell out.
“SCORE: A Film Music Documentary,” a New York Times Critic’s Pick, explores how music brings magic to movies. The film, rated 92 percent fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, is a ground-breaking documentary as the first film to focus on film music with this breadth, with more than 50 Hollywood composers, directors, studio executives and others. It also features more than 30 iconic movie moments from Hollywood films.
Photo by Robert Batsell. Kalamazoo College Psychology Professor Siu-Lan Tan stands with the team from “SCORE: A Film Music Documentary” in Hollywood, California.
Dr. Tan’s interview was filmed at Dalton Theatre as the film crew visited from Los Angeles. Other interviewees include Hans Zimmer, James Cameron, Danny Elfman, Quincy Jones, Randy Newman, Rachel Portman, Alexandre Desplat, Bear McCreary, Trent Reznor, Moby and 40 others.
Two national honors, thanks in part to Kalamazoo College mathematics professor Eric Barth, are providing a local children’s music program with recognition and funds for expansion.
Photo by Liz Youker, Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra. Kalamazoo College mathematics professor Eric Barth helps children develop their interest in music through Kalamazoo Kids in Tune, which is earning two national honors.
Barth has served as the curriculum director and conductor of Kalamazoo Kids in Tune (KKIT), an afterschool orchestra immersion program available to first- through eighth-graders, since its inception in summer 2012. Such work is earning KKIT:
a Carnegie Hall PlayUSA award. Such awards support instrumental music-education programs benefiting low-income and underserved youths; and
National Arts and Humanities Youth Program honors that recognize 50 outstanding creative youth-development programs across the country for their work in providing excellent arts and humanities learning opportunities.
Barth’s KKIT duties might sound unusual for a math professor although music’s connections with math are boundless. Rhythms, scales, time signatures and more allow musicians to build valuable skills and talents through practice.
“My undergraduate degree was in music,” said Barth, who also has a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in mathematics, all from the University of Kansas. He said when he got involved with KKIT, “that inner musician kind of came out,” putting him in a role the organization needed. That role allows him to take the symphony orchestra music difficult for children and compose easier, yet meaningful music for them.
“Often the kids will recognize the music because it’s in movies and on television,” Barth said. “Through careful edits, we strip out the hard stuff, while offering a chance to perform music that moves the audience.”
Each student in KKIT selects an instrument to study and participates in group lessons and orchestra rehearsals. By learning to play instruments in an ensemble setting, students develop a sense of community while building mastery and resilience, skills that provide success in classrooms. The program and instruments are provided free of charge to participants, thanks to several local foundations, businesses and individuals. The program is a collaboration of the Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra, Communities in Schools of Kalamazoo and Kalamazoo Public Schools.
About 85 participants a year have learned in the dedicated classes that have integrated music lessons and orchestra rehearsals in a culture of kindness to one’s self and others. However, the Carnegie honors will allow the program to grow. In addition, Carnegie representatives will visit KKIT participants in November, and group organizers will visit New York for an event at Carnegie Hall in February.
Barth said the National Arts and Humanities Youth Program recognition provides evidence that the quality of KKIT places the program among the best in the nation and shines a spotlight on the arts scene in Kalamazoo.
KKIT previously has been featured in publications such as the Huffington Post and shows such as WGVU’s “Kalamazoo Lively Arts.” Other videos with more information are available in this promotion and through Public Media Unit GVSU.
A message about DACA developments from the presidents of Kalamazoo College, Kalamazoo Valley Community College and Western Michigan University.
To our campus communities:
Jorge G. Gonzalez
Our hearts go out to all DACA students, and we stand committed to the idea that their success as students and members of our community enhances the success of each of our respective institutions.
This is a community that cares deeply about education and the role it plays in realizing the American dream. Students, we support your efforts to inform your fellow students and our communities of your plight as you face the possibility of losing the status you have gained under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals order.
Support for the retention of DACA as a way of showing our nation’s compassion and basic sense of fairness crosses party lines and is steadily growing among Americans from every walk of life. House Speaker Paul D. Ryan, Sen. Orrin G. Hatch and several other Republican leaders urged President Trump not to end the program. On the other side of the aisle, Democratic Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi has called on her colleagues to protect dreamers and “shield families from separation and heartbreak.”
With growing and heartfelt support for DACA protections and the widespread dismay at the idea of losing DACA, we believe the time has come for Congress to legislate a solution. This is an opportunity for all to make their views known and work with their elected representatives.
We are proud of all of you, student dreamers, for your courage and for using your voices to make the cause personal and more understandable to those around you. Our campuses are better places for your efforts.
Edward Montgomery
President, Western Michigan University
Jorge G. Gonzalez
President, Kalamazoo College
Marilyn Schlack
President, Kalamazoo Valley Community College
Kalamazoo College faculty members Binney Girdler and James Lewis have been promoted from associate professors to full professors.
Biology Professor Binney Girdler is one of two faculty members being promoted from associate professor to full professor.
Girdler, a biology professor, focuses her research on studying the structure and dynamics of terrestrial plant communities such as shoreline communities, grasslands and forests. She’s also interested in applied conservation biology, and develops relationships with area natural resource agencies and non-profit conservation groups to match her expertise and students with their research needs.
Girdler is a member of the Ecological Society of America and the Society for Conservation Biology. She has taught courses in environmental science, ecology and conservation, plant biology, population and community ecology, and senior seminars in environmental studies. She earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Virginia, a master’s degree from Yale University and a Ph.D. from Princeton University.
Lewis, a history professor, has taught courses in U.S. history, Native American history, American environmental history, Revolutionary America, the American frontier and Western history, the history of U.S. foreign relations, post-World War II America, American political culture, the trial in American history and a senior seminar in history. Lewis is a professional member of the American Historical Association, the Organization of American Historians and the Society for Historians of the Early American Republic. He has written books including:
History Professor James Lewis is one of two faculty members being promoted from associate professor to full professor.
“The Louisiana Purchase: Jefferson’s Noble Bargain?” (2003);
“John Quincy Adams: Policymaker for the Union” (2001);
“The American Union and the Problem of Neighborhood: The United States and the Collapse of the Spanish Empire, 1783-1829” (1998); and
“The Burr Conspiracy: Uncovering the Story of an Early American Crisis” due out this fall.
Lewis earned a bachelor’s degree in government and foreign affairs from the College of William and Mary, a master’s degree in history from the American University, and a Ph.D. in history from the University of Virginia.
“Both Dr. Girdler and Lewis are respected teachers and scholars in the best tradition of the liberal arts and sciences,” Kalamazoo College Provost Mickey McDonald said of the faculty members promoted. “This promotion recognizes their sustained excellence and the impact they have had and will continue to have on Kalamazoo College and our students.”
In early May, 28 Kalamazoo College students had the opportunity to share a meal on campus with eight professionals who have at least two things in common—the K-Plan and careers at the Stryker Corporation, a Kalamazoo-based Fortune 500 medical technologies firm.
The alumni returned to campus at the invitation of the Center for Career and Professional Development to meet with students who could learn about career paths at Stryker and the relevance of the K-Plan to those paths. At least 15 current Stryker employees got their undergraduate degrees at K, and both institutions are interested in strengthening the talent pipeline between the two.
The event began with a welcome by S. Si Johnson ’78, the retired group president of Stryker MedSurg Group and a current member of the College’s board of trustees. Johnson shared the four core values of Stryker—integrity, accountability, people, and performance—and reflected on how the critical thinking and problem solving skills inherent in a K education are great preparation for a career at Stryker.
After students and alumni enjoyed informal networking conversations over dinner, James N. Heath ’78, the retired president of Stryker Instruments and a member of K’s board of trustees, moderated an alumni panel that included Randy Rzeznik ’08, director of customer excellence, Neuro, Spine, ENT and Navigation; Bryce Pearson ’15, finance representative; Kevin Packard ’05, clinical marketing manager, Neuro, Spine, ENT and Navigation; and Michael Weslosky ’02, staff scientist.
Panelists reflected on their trajectories from K to Stryker and talked about the qualities of the company they find most attractive. The panelists’ K majors were varied—chemistry, economics, biology, and business—and each panelist cited the value of the work ethic instilled by the K-Plan and the 10-week term. They also stressed the importance of persistence in the pursuit of employment. Pearson, for example, shared the effort and time that was required before he secured a position at Stryker.
Heath also invited one of the students in attendance, junior Alex White, to describe the extensive process he’d gone through to secure an internship with Stryker for the upcoming summer.
Other alumni attending the event included Legal Counsel Christopher DiVirgilio ’04 and Senior IS Business Analyst Russ Hankey ’96.
Students and alumni agreed that the evening was a success and excellent preparation for the next step in the K/Stryker relationship: a half-day immersion K-Trek for selected students to the company’s headquarters in the fall.
Twenty-four K students completed Green Dot bystander training in late April.
Twenty-four Kalamazoo College students and five K employee Green Dot-certified trainers launched the College’s first bystander training session on April 29. It’s one of several early steps toward the goal of a “greening” that will be year-round, forever.
Green Dot is a national prevention program that has proven effective in significantly reducing the likelihood of dating and domestic violence, stalking and sexual assault. Essential to the program’s effectiveness are bystanders, people trained to safely interrupt or prevent harmful precursor behaviors associated with dating violence, stalking and sexual assault. In the program’s iconography, a red dot is any person’s choice to harm another person with words or actions. In any environment, or map, enough red dots create a norm where violence is tolerated. Green dots are small actions to intervene when a red dot is occurring or to prevent the likelihood of red dots at all. Small as they may be, Green Dot words and actions draw their power from the large numbers of people who commit to speak or do them. Together, enough Green Dots can change “worlds,” small and large. And one of those worlds will be Kalamazoo College.
In late March some 30 faculty, staff and administrators completed four days of Green Dot “College Curriculum” training, which certified them to do bystander training for K students and overview training for K faculty and staff. One month—and a lot of preparation and practice—later the first bystander training took place in the Olmsted Room. It included students identified by their peers as well-respected and influential.
“The 24 students were highly engaged throughout the training,” said Ellen Lassiter Collier, Director of Gender Equity at K. “This was a day-long event in the middle of a busy spring term, yet no one left the session.” In fact, at least three students reported applying Green Dot interventions at parties or other events that very weekend.
“To establish a norm where the intolerance of violence is immediately and plainly evident—and a culture where everyone does their part to maintain that norm—will require a critical mass of K community members,” said Lassiter Collier. “Many times it will be students who are most likely to be present in settings and situations where ‘red dots’ tend to occur. Students trained as bystanders are absolutely indispensable, so we were very gratified by the participation of these 24 early adopters.”
Additional student bystander training is scheduled for the fall, and the “first” 24 will have contributed to the success of those sessions by providing the names of several score of other influential and well-respected students who will be invited to the fall training.
In concert with the effort to train a critical mass of student bystanders, employee Green Dot-certified trainers also will work with faculty and staff this spring and early and continuing into the fall.
The bystander trainers who joined Lassiter Collier on April 29 were Andrew Grayson ’10, Admission; Laura Livingstone-McNelis ’89, Department of Theatre Arts; Leslie Burke, Information Services; and Morgan Mahdavi ’14, Arcus Center for Social Justice Leadership.
The 24 students included Julia Plomer ¹18, Maddie Tracey ¹17, Sidney Wall ’17, Cody Colvin ’18, Douglas Robinett ’17, Leah Finelli ’18, Ashley Henne ’17, Sep’Tisha Riley ’18, Kourtney Johnson ’17, Tenley Mustonen ’17, Amber Salome ’18, Colleen Orwin ’17, Elizabeth Clevenger ’17, James Paprocki ’18, Alex Dykema ’19, Kiavanne Williams ’18, Lilia Robins ’18, Colleen Corrigan ’17, Kaiya Herman Hilker ’19, Sophie Higdon ’19, Roger Hood ’18, Rose Maylen ’19, Malak Ghazal ’19 and Lezlie Lull ’20.
Funding for Kalamazoo College’s Green Dot efforts comes from the State of Michigan Campus Sexual Assault Grant Program.
Roundtable meeting in Chicago during K to the Windy City, the newest K-Trek.
Kalamazoo College’s latest K-Trek, K to the Windy City, tested two expansions — in numbers and event type. The results are in: success above expectations!
“We wanted a K-Trek that would accommodate more students and provide more types of student-alumni and student-thought leader interaction,” said Valerie Miller, assistant director for external relations in K’s Center for Career and Professional Development. K to the Windy City is the largest K-Trek to date. Twenty-five students and 57 alumni participated in the three-day event, which featured round-table meetings (standard for K-Treks) and also offered panels, a networking event, a customized itinerary for nearly every student, and some fun and relaxation at a Second City performance.
Coordinated by the CCPD, K-Treks are multi-day immersive discussions with leaders in various industries. Previous treks (inspired by the thinking of alumnus Brad O’Neill ’93) have visited San Francisco (where the focus was on entrepreneurship) and New York City (finance and business). The Windy City trek focused on the law and nonprofit administration, with social justice as the bridge between those areas of interest.
“Our 25 students divided themselves roughly into three tracks,” says Miller. “About a third was certain they wanted to pursue a career in law. Another third were equally sure about nonprofit administration. The final group was on the fence. All were interested in social justice.”
Valerie Miller during the extensive K-trek prep phase.
K to the Windy City “started” the day after winter term finals, but prep work commenced long before that. Wade Thomson ’98, an attorney at Jenner & Block who also does pro bono work with persons seeking political asylum in the United States, provided the unique framework for this K-Trek that focused on the intersection between Chicago and justice.
For their part, student participants researched the alumni whom they would meet (and the organizations they worked for) and then prepared a list of questions for the interaction.
For her part, Miller relied on the cover letters and résumés of each student to customize individual itineraries that would provide the most educational impact.
The meetings provided some excellent outcomes and revelations for the students, according to Miller. “Some very practical advice,” she explained, “such as the need for solid business skills in nonprofit administration; timing for law school and how to optimize a gap year, should one choose that option; and the surprising number of law-related work opportunities that do not require a J.D.
“For those students certain about their choice (law or nonprofit administration),” she continued, “the experience may have confirmed or focused their vision. Those less certain found value in the additional information they could use to eventually decide.”
K to the Windy City departs Kalamazoo College, headed for the newest K-Trek experience.
Student participants represented a cross section of classes, majors and geography. Twelve seniors, six juniors and seven sophomores composed this first Windy City trek. Fourteen academic majors were represented; 11 students call Michigan home; 11 come from a variety of states; three were international students.
“I learned more in two days about what a legal career entails than I had learned in my entire life up to that point,” said Benjamin Toledo, a senior anthropology/sociology and business double major. “Given the chance to speak with successful lawyers from K provided us with the opportunity to clarify any uncertainty that we had in regard to a career in law, all while receiving advice from individuals who were once in our shoes. It was a truly phenomenal opportunity to meet and connect with such talented people.”
“I was surprised by how many alumni didn’t always know exactly what they wanted to do or have a clear vision of where they’d end up,” said sophomore Lauren Arquette (political science). She was grateful for the insight. “It takes away a lot of the pressure we put on ourselves of feeling like we always have to have a plan, because often times, things don’t exactly go according to plan. I realized that life doesn’t have to be stressful and meticulously planned out for you to be successful.”
After the event, students were provided a survey to prompt reflections on the value of the experience. The participants also are writing biographies of the alumni with whom they met to post on the CCPD website for future Windy City trekkers.
K students riding public transportation in Chicago.
“That’s a future for which we all hope,” says Miller. “This K-Trek was so successful that we’ll continue to work hand in hand with our colleagues in the Office of Development to encourage participation from alumni and to raise the funds for this and other treks.”
2017 Student Participants included: Abby Lu ’17, Ailih Weeldreyer ’19, Andrea Beitel ’17, Anja Xheka ’17, Anne Waugh ’19, Ben Toledo ’17, Blanca Moreno ’17, Carmen Nogueron ’18, Cat Cook ’17, Cody Howrigon ’18, Emily Levy ’17, Gunyeop Lee ’17, Hannah Lehker ’17, Heather Brown ’18, Honora Stagner ’17, Jasmine Khin ’18, Lauren Arquette ’19, Lauren Perlaki ’17, Madison Triplett ’19, Matthew Ryder ’18, Monet Foster ’18, Regina Shaw ’19, Ren Ballew ’17, Sirui Chen ’19 and Sydney Brown ’18.
The following alumni participated in a panel event, met with a group of students and/or hosted students at their place of work. Many of these alumni also provided additional support through funding, space, food and/or ideas for the planning of K to the Windy City, and many attended networking events — Kelly Bauer ’10, Assistant Corporation Counsel, City of Chicago Department of Law; Marietta Bowman ’02, Senior Survey Director, NORC at the University of Chicago; Jane Burchfield ’85, Manager of Talent Acquisition, NORC at the University of Chicago; Michael Cansfield ’87, Director of Development, Lookingglass Theatre; Megan Carney ’92, Director, Gender & Sexuality Center, University of Illinois at Chicago; Jeremy Cole ’96, Partner, Jones Day; Andrea Dakin ’98, Director of Program Development, AIDS Foundation; Kant Desai ’99, Principal, Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund; Mike Doornweerd ’92, Partner, Jenner & Block; Kim Drew ’00, Senior Project Manager, Economic Security Policy, Heartland Alliance; Caitlin Finan ’11, Research Analyst, NORC at the University of Chicago; Mark Furlong ’83, Chief Operating Officer, Thresholds; Marie Halverson ’93, Associate Director, Education and Child Development Studies, NORC at the University of Chicago; Cole Hardy ’06, Staff Counsel, FTD; John Hayes ’96, Assistant Unit Supervisor, Illinois Attorney General; Kathleen Hirsman ’76, Faculty, Loyola School of Law; Will Hobart ’06, Program Officer, Youth Guidance; Peter Knight ’95, Partner, Latham & Watkins; Carla Kupe-Arion ’02, Assistant Corporation Counsel, City of Chicago Law Department; Matt Lango ’97, Deputy Commissioner, Chicago Commission on Human Relations; Hope Lassen ’02,
Some fun at Second City
Restorative Justice Specialist, Alternatives, Inc.; Jodie Lawton ’99, Major Gifts Officer, McCormick Foundation; Stephanie Leite ’01, Lead Trainer and Curriculum Designer, Global Learning Modules; Matt Longjohn ’93, Evidence-Based Health Interventions and Community Integrated Health/National Health Officer, Y-USA; Carlton Marcyan ’76, Senior Partner, Schiller DuCanto & Fleck LLP; Elizabeth Okey ’07, Senior Associate, Corporate Responsibility, Burson-Marsteller; Jeff Owen ’76, Partner, DLA Piper; Anne Renaud ’10, Community Support Specialist, Thresholds; Sam Sedaei ’06, Associate Attorney, Foran Glennon; Wade Thomson ’98, Partner, Jenner & Block; Carla Varner ’97, Chief Legal Officer, Franklin Monroe; Mary Woolever ’70, Former Architectural Archivist and Reference Librarian, Ryerson and Burnham Libraries, Art Institute of Chicago; Mike Woolever ’71, Partner, Foley and Lardner.
The following alumni provided support for K to the Windy City through donations or through support/guidance around the development of trek events. Many also attended networking events — Alexandra Altman ’97, Doug Doetsch ’79, Jay Goodwin ’85, Andrea Johnson ’15, Alex Morgan ’11, Aaron Ries ‘06, Sonya Olds Som ’94, Juli Scalf ’09 and Elizabeth Schweitzer ’09.
And the alumni listed below participated in networking opportunities with students — Margy Brill ’11, Mathew Duggan ’09, Justin Evans ’09, Christine Grodecki ’06, Kelly Koss ’04, Haley Madel ’13, Kristen Nuyen ’12, Kathleen O’Donovan ’11, Sara Reschly ’95, Christopher Rollyson ’82, Christie Schuessler ’11, Jeannette Srivastava ’00, Erin Stockall ’11, Ajka Suljevic ’10 and Rachel Zarit ’02.
Seven Kalamazoo College computer science students traveled with professors Alyce Brady and Pam Cutter to the 6th Biennial Michigan Celebration of Women in Computing (MICWIC), held at Michigan State University in late March. Seniors Marlisa Pennington and Colleen Orwin presented posters on their Senior Individualized Projects–“JAVA Simulation Software for Handbell Change Ringing: Generating Permutations of Tones” and “Swim for Success Mobile Application,” respectively. Sivhaun Sera ’18 presented a poster on the benefits of having a Computer Science Leadership Team at Kalamazoo College. The Leadership Team is a new initiative the computer science department started this year.
At the celebration, the K students attended presentations, panel discussions and the poster session. They explored careers in computing fields by networking with computing professionals throughout Michigan and participating in a career fair featuring both regional and national companies. More than 200 participants from around the state attended the event.
The group also united with two computer science alumni. Pictured are (l-r): Courtland VanDam ’08; Azra Ahmad ’18; Marlisa Pennington ’17; Sivhaun Sera ’18; Associate Professor of Computer Science Pam Cutter; Colleen Orwin ’17; Serita Evelyn ’19; Nora Wichmann ’18; Alyce Brady, the Rosemary K. Brown Professor in Mathematics and Computer Science; Joo Young Lee ’19; and Hayley Smith ’15
The 25th annual conference of the ASIANetwork in Chicago drew a K presence from Kalamazoo, Tokyo and Toronto. ASIANetwork is a consortium of some 160 North American colleges that strengthens the role of Asian Studies within the framework of liberal arts education. Three Kalamazoo College Freeman Foundation Student Fellows (Frank Meyer ’18, Emerson Brown ’17, Hannah Berger ’18), one former student fellow (Dalby-eol Bae ’18, who transferred from K to the University of Toronto), and Dennis Frost, the Wen Chao Chen Associate Professor of East Asian Social Sciences at Kalamazoo College, presented a poster on the role of Okinawan identity in the protests against U.S. military bases on the island. That presentation was based on a research trip the five made to Okinawa last summer. Frost flew to the Chicago conference from his sabbatical in Tokyo. Other K presenters at the conference were Bailee Lotus ’17 and Assistant Professor of Japanese Noriko Sugimori. Lotus discussed her Senior Individualized Project, “Moving Forward of Standing Still: Black Women in South Korea.” Professor Sugimori talked about the Oral History in the Liberal Arts, a project that has produced for widespread classroom use the world’s first bilingual (Japanese and English) synchronizations of interviews Sugimori conducted that focus on the World War II memories of various Japanese individuals. Pictured (holding an Okinawan newspaper “Ryukyu Shimpo”) are the K attendees (l-r)–Noriko Sugimori, Dalby-eol Bae, Hannah Berger, Bailee Lotus, Emerson Brown, Frank Meyer, and Dennis Frost.
Professor of Psychology Siu-Lan Tan at Tower City theaters, where the film, SCORE, played for three days in five theaters as part of the Cleveland International Film Festival.
The very same expertise (teaching and music) that made the role of Siu-Lan Tan so prominent in the documentary SCORE also prohibited her from attending any of the more than 40 public screenings of the film–she was, after all, busy teaching classes. That changed in early April, when the professor of psychology at Kalamazoo College was finally able to see a festival screening of the film at the 41st Annual Cleveland International Film Festival (CIFF).
She picked a great screening, or screenings.
“The first screening at Cedar Lee Theater sold out,” says Siu-Lan. “On day two, they moved the film [full title: SCORE: A Film Music Documentary] to a theater complex at Tower City and the cinema sold out again. So they opened a second theater, and that one filled too! On the last screening day, they filled two theaters for SCORE and had to turn more people away.”
That enthusiastic reception kept Siu-Lan busy.
“The director [Matt Schrader] asked if I could attend as a special guest from the cast, and I joined Q&A sessions at the first and third screenings. I also did 35-minute extended Q&A Chat Room by myself.”
And CIFF is no small event. This year more than 100,000 people attended. The festival featured the work of some 300 filmmakers and a total of 418 films from 71 countries. SCORE won in its category (Music Movies Competition) and was one of only 15 films recognized on closing night.
Why the great response? Because the best movie you ever saw is the best, in part, because it’s the best movie you ever heard. Siu-Lan and some 60 other people interviewed for SCORE help explain the critical role of music scores to the emotional impact of a film. In addition to Siu-Lan, others interviewed include some of the top living film composers in United States and the United Kingdom (Hans Zimmer, Danny Elfman, Randy Newman, Howard Shaw, Trent Reznor, Alexandre Desplat, among others), as well as film directors like James Cameron, producers like Quincy Jones and several film scholars.
An expert in the psychology of music (a course she teaches at K) Siu-Lan appears five times in the film. Kalamazoo College is mentioned every time Siu-Lan appears, and K is thanked in the end credits along with the filming location of Dalton Theater.
The popular film is on the docket for many upcoming festivals. You can also check upcoming screenings here. So if you get a chance, go see SCORE; it’s likely to be the best film you’ve ever heard, or at least reveal why your favorite movie has as much to do with your ears as your eyes.
Shakespeare was right when he had Lorenzo say (Merchant of Venice, Act 5, Scene 1) that it is music creeping in our ears that has the sweet power (like Orpheus) to change the very nature of reality and the way we perceive it. A film without its score is a body without its heart.
SCORE is scheduled for release in theaters in 20-25 major cities on June 16.
In early May, 28 Kalamazoo College students had the opportunity to share a meal on campus with eight professionals who have at least two things in common—the K-Plan and careers at the Stryker Corporation, a Kalamazoo-based Fortune 500 medical technologies firm.
Seven Kalamazoo College computer science students traveled with professors Alyce Brady and Pam Cutter to the 6th Biennial Michigan Celebration of Women in Computing (MICWIC), held at Michigan State University in late March. Seniors Marlisa Pennington and Colleen Orwin presented posters on their Senior Individualized Projects–“JAVA Simulation Software for Handbell Change Ringing: Generating Permutations of Tones” and “Swim for Success Mobile Application,” respectively. Sivhaun Sera ’18 presented a poster on the benefits of having a Computer Science Leadership Team at Kalamazoo College. The Leadership Team is a new initiative the computer science department started this year.
The 25th annual conference of the ASIANetwork in Chicago drew a K presence from Kalamazoo, Tokyo and Toronto. ASIANetwork is a consortium of some 160 North American colleges that strengthens the role of Asian Studies within the framework of liberal arts education. Three Kalamazoo College Freeman Foundation Student Fellows (Frank Meyer ’18, Emerson Brown ’17, Hannah Berger ’18), one former student fellow (Dalby-eol Bae ’18, who transferred from K to the University of Toronto), and Dennis Frost, the Wen Chao Chen Associate Professor of East Asian Social Sciences at Kalamazoo College, presented a poster on the role of Okinawan identity in the protests against U.S. military bases on the island. That presentation was based on a research trip the five made to Okinawa last summer. Frost flew to the Chicago conference from his sabbatical in Tokyo. Other K presenters at the conference were Bailee Lotus ’17 and Assistant Professor of Japanese Noriko Sugimori. Lotus discussed her Senior Individualized Project, “Moving Forward of Standing Still: Black Women in South Korea.” Professor Sugimori talked about the 