November
19, 2004
MHC
Newsmakers
Radio
Activity James Hartley, associate professor of economics,
offered a postelection perspective in an interview with news director
Bob Paquette of WFCR-FM, the National Public Radio affiliate serving
western New England. Hartley offered his support for President
Bush’s declared intention to use some of the political capital
gained during the election to alter Social Security and the federal
tax code. The interview can be heard online here.
Team Player Emily Groth ’07, who has overcome juvenile
rheumatoid arthritis to play two sports, was profiled in the
October 31 edition of the Boston Globe. In “Franklin Athlete
Excels at Two College Sports,” staff writer Marvin Pave
wrote that Groth “is writing a chapter of her life that
neither her doctors nor her parents could have envisioned. Groth
has to wear orthotics in her shoes, get lots of sleep, and take
medication to alleviate her occasional pain, but she is nevertheless
playing two sports at Mount Holyoke, where she is considered
the most versatile player on the varsity volleyball team and
a hard-working, accurate-shooting forward on the varsity basketball
team. She was recently named to the Seven Sisters Volleyball
All-Tournament Team.” “I’ve never thought of
myself as unlucky,” Groth told Pave. “I’d say
I’ve had pretty good luck to be able to play sports and
attend a school like Mount Holyoke. Going through all of this
has made me stronger, and right now the arthritis is inactive,
so it’s all relative. I’m grateful for what I have
today.”
Five College Efforts in Holyoke Armed with a substantial, three-year
federal grant, Mount Holyoke is joining with UMass and the other
members of the Five Colleges to support an array of community
development efforts in Holyoke. News of this new program was
reported in the Daily Hampshire Gazette, the Republican, and
other local media recently. Here is an excerpt from UMass-Amherst’s
announcement of the grant:
“The University of Massachusetts Amherst is leading a coalition of area
colleges and grass roots community groups in addressing some of the toughest
urban problems around—in its own backyard. Low-income neighborhoods in
Holyoke will be the focus of a community-based effort that will draw on university
research and outreach to help residents broaden educational opportunities, highlight
cultural resources, increase home ownership, and revitalize Holyoke’s downtown
without outside gentrification.
“The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has announced it
will provide $400,000 for the three-year project under its Community Outreach
Partnership Center (COPC) Program. The effort is being coordinated by Karen Barshefsky
of UMass Extension’s Communities, Families, and Youth Program, working
in collaboration with the Holyoke Planners Network, a coalition of academic and
community groups promoting a community-driven approach to sustainable development.
The network is an advisory body for the grant.
“The UMass Amherst/Holyoke Planners Network Community Outreach Partnership
Center will target Holyoke’s growing Latino and low-income populations
with a variety of research and outreach activities in four major focus areas:
education; economic development and community planning; capacity building; and
fair housing and lending.
“Holyoke Mayor Michael J. Sullivan said his city’s collaborations
with UMass Amherst have been particularly fruitful, and he is looking forward
to strengthening that tie through the COPC grant. ‘We’re really excited
at the prospect of this new partnership,’ said Sullivan. ‘The concepts
and plans put forth in the grant proposal could benefit Holyoke greatly. UMass
is a great partner, and we are eager to work more closely with all the participants
in this project.’
“Neighborhood participation has been a key element in identifying the issues
to be addressed and will be instrumental in shaping its impact, Barshefsky said.
Among the organizations participating in the COPC are
El Arco Iris Youth and Community Arts, Nuestras Raices, Nueva Esperanza, Enlace
de Familias, !Avanza!, and the Community Education Project, along with the
Holyoke Public Schools, Juntos ABE Advisory Project, and the Massachusetts
Fair Housing Center. Collaborators include Holyoke Community, Amherst, Mount
Holyoke, and Hampshire colleges.”
Professor of politics Preston Smith, head of Mount Holyoke’s Community-Based
Learning program, has been involved in putting the grant together and will
coordinate the College’s participation.
For more information, go to www.umass.edu/umhome/news/articles/6975.php.
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