Thornburgh to Deliver 13th Annual McLean Lecture on World Law

The Pitt School of Law’s Center for International Legal Education and the Global Solutions Education Fund–Pittsburgh will host the 13th Annual McLean Lecture on World Law featuring Dick Thornburgh at 6 p.m. Feb. 24 in the Barco Law Building’s Teplitz Memorial Courtroom. A former governor of Pennsylvania and attorney general of the United States, Thornburgh is a 1957 graduate of Pitt’s law school and a Pitt trustee.

Thornburgh’s lecture, titled “The Global Effort to Contain Official Corruption,” is free and open to the public and will be followed by a reception. Thornburgh will share his experiences and thoughts on the current global efforts to combat fraud and corruption.

As attorney general, Thornburgh mounted an unprecedented attack on white-collar crime as the Department of Justice obtained a record number of convictions of savings and loan and securities officials, defense contractors, and corrupt public officials. He established strong ties with law enforcement agencies around the world to help combat drug trafficking, money laundering, terrorism, and international white-collar crime. He also has served as a consultant to the United Nations and the World Bank on efforts to battle fraud and corruption. Thornburgh is currently counsel to the national law firm of Kirkpatrick & Lockhart LLP, at its Washington, D.C., office.

The McLean Lecture on World Law is held in honor of the legacy of Maclean W. McLean, a dedicated World Federalist founder and leader. Previous speakers include Steven M. Schwebel, president judge of the International Court of Justice; Fausto Pocar, judge for the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia; and Benjamin Ferencz and Henry T. King, former prosecutors at the Nuremberg Tribunals.

Thornburgh’s lecture has been approved by the Pennsylvania Continuing Legal Education (CLE) Board for one hour of CLE ethics credit; a $25 fee is payable at the door. For more information, call 412-648-7023 or cile@law.pitt.edu.

—Patricia Lomando White

Academic Resource Center Opens for Pitt Undergraduates

Pitt undergraduates can receive peer tutoring, mentoring, and workshops, among other services, at the University’s new Academic Resource Center (ARC), located in Gardner Steel Conference Center, G-1 (formerly The Pitt Club).

ARC “helps students to develop strategies that maximize their academic success,” said Regina Schulte-Ladbeck, associate dean for undergraduate studies in Pitt’s School of Arts and Sciences. “The ARC also serves as a ‘home base’ for students in a new and cozy state-of-the-art facility with wireless capability, a comfortable study environment, and a convenient location.”

The center’s free tutoring emphasizes popular and core courses in French, German, Italian, Spanish, logic, philosophy, biochemistry, physics, astronomy, psychology, chemistry, biology, genetics, physiology, anatomy, geology, archeology, economics, quantitative methods, financial accounting, and statistics, among other areas.

Tutoring is offered on a walk-in or by-appointment basis. Students may call 412-648-7920 to schedule appointments or check in at the front desk. Most tutoring is one-on-one, with a student reviewing assignments and exams with a more experienced peer. During finals week, students are encouraged to participate in such ARC group services as Cram Jam and Finals Survival workshops.
ARC is open from 8:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays and from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Fridays.

Retirement Education Sessions to Be Held For Faculty and Staff

Through June 30, 2006, Pitt faculty and staff as of June 30, 2004, who were born on or before Dec. 31, 1946, have the option to voluntarily retire from the University and obtain retiree medical coverage under the provisions of Pitt’s old retiree medical program.

Under the Pitt retiree medical program that took effect July 1, 2004—called the Defined Dollar Benefit—credits are placed into an account for faculty and eligible spouses/registered partners upon retirement. Credits may be used to buy retiree medical coverage sponsored by Pitt or to purchase non-Pitt retiree coverage, or accrue for use at a later date.

Retirement education sessions will be held to explain available options under the University’s new and old plans. The sessions will be held on the following Thursdays from noon to 1:30 p.m.: Feb. 24 in 342 Craig Hall; March 3 in 1501 Posvar Hall; March 17 in 1501 Posvar Hall; March 24 in 1501 Posvar Hall; April 14 in 1501 Posvar Hall; and April 28 in 342 Craig Hall.

Faculty and staff may register for sessions by e-mail at retireedu@hr.pitt.edu or by calling the Pitt benefits department at 412-624-8068. Regional campus education sessions will be scheduled through each campus’ human resources representative.

Summer 2005 education sessions will be announced soon.

For more information, visit www.hr.pitt.edu.

—Julia Gottlieb