Look: Campus Newsmakers

Ancient Art and Archeology

Scandinavian pre-Viking jewelry was the topic of a presentation made by Nancy L. Wicker (left), chair of the University of Mississippi’s Department of Art, at the Frick Fine Arts building on Jan. 25. Wicker was hosted by M. Alison Stones (right), a professor of medieval art in Pitt’s Department of the History of Art and Architecture, which sponsored the event. Wicker’s research traces ethnicity and gender through Scandinavian pre-Viking jewelry. She displayed several pieces of jewelry, including museum replicas and a piece made by modern goldsmiths who were experimenting to understand the early medieval techniques (inset). Wicker has assisted at archaeological excavations in Sweden and Germany, and in 1992 she held an international scholarship to excavate at the Viking Age trading site of Birka in Sweden.

Student Government Board

Chancellor Mark A. Nordenberg stands with the recently elected Pitt Student Government Board (SGB). Sumter Link, a senior majoring in civil and environmental engineering at the Swanson School, is the new SGB president. He and eight board members were installed during the ceremony on Jan. 10 at the William Pitt Union. The SGB represents the needs and interests of all Pitt students; it also allocates the student activity fee, which funds more than 350 student organizations at the University. Shown in the back row (from left) are Gary Sanderson, Perry Servedio, Link, Nordenberg, Ryan Haddad, and Ryan Very. Seated (from left) are Francee Varner, Nila Devanath, Lacee Ecker, and Amanda Reed.

Nationality Room Plaque

Chancellor Mark A. Nordenberg and E. Maxine Bruhns, director of the University’s Nationality Rooms and Intercultural Exchange Programs, stand in front of a new granite plaque commemorating Pitt’s 26 Nationality Rooms. A gift to the University from the Nationality Rooms Program, the plaque is located in the corridor leading from the Cathedral of Learning’s Fifth Avenue entrance to Forbes Avenue. The columns list each room’s dedication date and name, the name of the nation in its native language, as well as the room’s period and architectural style. The Nationality Rooms Program celebrated its 80th anniversary in 2006.

One Man’s Crusade

Chancellor Mark A. Nordenberg hosted Pitt Trustee William E. Strickland at a reception to celebrate Strickland’s new autobiographical book, Make the Impossible Possible: One Man’s Crusade to Inspire Others to Dream Bigger and Achieve the Extraordinary. The book focuses on Strickland’s belief that each person has the potential for remarkable achievement. Strickland graduated cum laude from the University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in history. He is chief executive officer of the Manchester Bidwell Corp. and its subsidiaries, Bidwell Training Center and Manchester Craftmen’s Guild on the Northside. The reception was held Jan. 11 in Alumni Hall’s J.W. Connolly Ballroom.