In the News

The Chronicle’s biweekly column “In the News” offers a digest of commentary and quotations by a few of the University faculty members, students and alumni who have been headlining the news in recent weeks.

The University’s 13th annual Scavenger Hunt received attention in the media recently. The event, which gives students the opportunity to search their minds, the campus and the city for unusual and sometimes bizarre items, was covered in the Monday, May 10 Chicago Sun-Times, the Friday, May 7 Reader and the Wednesday, May 19 New York Times.

Jeopardy! champion Carolyn Cracraft, a third-year student in Near Eastern Languages & Civilizations, was featured on the front page of the Saturday, May 15 issue of the Chicago Sun-Times following her win one day earlier.

Anil Kashyap, Professor in the Graduate School of Business, was quoted in a Saturday, May 15 article in the Chicago Tribune about April’s leap in consumer prices––the largest leap in nine years. “It wouldn’t surprise me if inflation eventually picks up a bit, but I don’t think one [consumer price] number is going to lead them [the Federal Reserve] to raise rates,” said Kashyap.

Robert LaLonde, Professor in the Harris Graduate School of Public Policy Studies, was quoted in a Chicago Tribune article published Wednesday, May 19, about state employment and job-training programs.

Vivian Paley, former kindergarten teacher at the University Lab Schools and author of the recently published book The Kindness of Children, was interviewed for a story that appeared in the Thursday, April 29 Boston Globe about teaching children how to be kind and compassionate in these “out-for-No. 1-only times.” Martin Marty, the Fairfax M. Cone Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus in the Divinity School, was also quoted in the story.

Raymond Pierrehumbert, Professor in Geophysical Sciences, was interviewed for a story in the Friday, May 14 Chicago Tribune about the continuing debate on global warming and greenhouse gases.

In a special town section featuring the neighborhoods of Hyde Park and Kenwood and published by the Chicago Tribune Wednesday, May 19, University students’ volunteerism was highlighted. Catherine Potter, a third-year English concentrator and a tutor in the Washington Park Youth Program, was interviewed for the story, as was Joseph Viviano, a Chicago law student who volunteers as a mentor and tutor with the Midtown Educational Foundation.

Melissa Roderick, Associate Professor in the School of Social Service Administration, was quoted in a Monday, May 17 Chicago Tribune story about social promotions in the Chicago Public Schools. “If you double-retain a kid and they are a regular attender, that’s a clear case that the teacher doesn’t know what to do with that kid. After two retentions, that’s a complete failure on the part of the teacher.”

Allen Sanderson, Senior Lecturer in Economics, was interviewed by the Chicago Tribune for a story about the Star Wars hype. The article appeared in the Thursday, May 20 issue, one day after opening day of the long-awaited prequel. University student Andy Sujdak was also interviewed about the film’s debut. The biochemistry and economics concentrator was quoted in the Chicago Sun-Times Tuesday, May 11. Jay Vanasco, a University News Editor and Resident Head for Shorey House, wrote an op-ed that was published in the Tuesday, May 18 Chicago Tribune about waiting for Star Wars tickets to go on sale. The op-ed also was mentioned in the Friday, May 21 USA Today. “We wanted to show that the Line Jedi … would emerge victorious over the Dark Side of phone and Internet ticket sales.”

Stephen Schulhofer, the Julius Kreeger Professor in the Law School, was quoted in two recent Chicago Tribune stories on unrelated topics. One published Friday, May 7, addressed a sexual harassment case in Cook County that has already cost taxpayers $400,000. The other story, published Wednesday, May 12, was written on the topic of Cicero’s fight against gangs.