RHODE ISLAND SPEAKING TRUTH - EXPRESSING IDEAS. EMBODYING CIVILITY. Stories of the First Amendment in Action - The University of Rhode Island
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ree exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the righ
RHODE ISLAND
UNIVERSITY
he people peaceably toOF
assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of gr
nces. • Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or proh
ng the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or
ight of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a red
of grievances. • Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment
SPRING 2020
MAGAZINE of religion
prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the pr
or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government f
edress of grievances. • Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of
gion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, o
he press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Gov
ment for a redress of grievances. • Congress shall make no law respecting an establ
ment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom
peech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to peti
SPEAKING TRUTH.
he Government for a redress of grievances. • Congress shall make no law respectin
EXPRESSING IDEAS.
stablishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the f
dom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, an
EMBODYING CIVILITY.
petition the Government for a redress of grievances. • Congress shall make no law resp
ng an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging
reedom of speech, or Stories
of the press;of
or the
the right of the people peaceably to assemble,
o petition the Government FirstforAmendment
a redress of grievances. • Congress shall make no
especting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abr
ng the freedom of speech, in Action.
or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to ass
ble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. • Congress shall mak
aw respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof
bridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceabl
ssemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. • Congress s
make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exer
hereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the peo
peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. • C
gress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the
xercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of
people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievan
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting
ree exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the righ
he people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of gr
Aperture
BUILDING ON CREATIVITY
Ben Anderson is an associate professor
of three-dimensional art and sculpture in
URI’s Department of Art and Art History.
An award-winning artist, he has taught at
colleges and universities throughout the
United States. Initially reluctant to teach,
Anderson ultimately found it uniquely
satisfying. “What I find stimulating,” he
says, “is the constant experimentation
that can occur—where one student tries
something and then another builds upon
that, it’s an infectious state of creativity.”
In his own work, Anderson is interested
in materials and object-making. He draws
inspiration from the natural world and
is building his library of ceramic molds
representing local sea life, developing
new glaze formulas, and exploring
alternate firing techniques through an
NSF EPSCoR grant.
This piece, Baptismal, was not a
planned project; rather, says Anderson,
“It grew spontaneously from a mound of
freshly processed clay.” He was showing
some of his molds to his students to
explain how they worked. Together, they
ended up building this piece from those
molds, working collaboratively on what
became the finished piece. •
—Barbara Caron
Detail from Baptismal, By Ben Anderson,
hand-built and press-molded stoneware,
23" x 14" x 17", 2009.
PHOTO: COURTESY BEN ANDERSON UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND MAGAZINE 11
Inside
UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND MAGAZINE • VOL. 2, NO. 2 • SPRING 2020
CURRENTS F E AT U R E S NET WORK
8 12 18 44 49
In Brief Syllabus The First Class Notes Looking Back
URI news to keep you How to improve your Amendment URI alumni are amazing! Journalism Professor
in the know. science literacy—tips Stories that illustrate why Catch up with your Emerita Linda Levin
from Nancy Karraker of freedom of expression is classmates and get to taught and was loved by
9 URI’s SciWrite program. worth protecting, and know the newest and countless URI students.
Go Rhody why we all have a longest-standing members Years later, she remains a
13 responsibility to speak of the Rhody family. mentor, example, and
How Rams centerfielder
You Can Quote Me our truths. inspiration.
Tyler Brosius ’20 found
success on the pitcher’s
48
URI experts are quoted
mound. in the media frequently. 28 Close Up 50
Here are a few that bear Let Go of What’s Neighborhood Your Stories
10 repeating. Weighing You pharmacist Eugenio The Class of 1970
Bay and Beyond Down Fernandez ’13, M.B.A. celebrates its 50th
17 ’13, Pharm.D. ’13, Reunion this year.
Sea urchin ranching? Laurie Lindemann,
focuses on people and Members of the class
Saddle up! Sea urchins Why I Teach M.A. ’02 experienced
dispenses health recall the transformative
could be the next big History professor Rae the emotional power of
education and resources, years that led up to
thing in Rhode Island Ferguson teaches her cleaning out the “stuff ”
along with prescriptions. their graduation. 14
seafood. students to listen and to that weighed her down.
follow their curiosity. Now, she helps others Annotations
do the same. 56
11 A visual guide to the Inner Space Center's
Caption This Production Control Room and the team
Ask Our Big
Thinkers 32 Stroll down Memory that keeps the show going, no matter what.
An Extraordinary Lane, check out last Here, team member Jessica Kaelblein
URI Cooperative issue's winners, and shoots video on location in the Canadian
Extension helps you get Family
send your best caption Arctic Archipelago.
your garden ready for Marc McGiveney ’92 for this issue! Ka Ki "Kay" Tse '19 at Ijen
spring. and Deb Harbin ’92 are
special parents. Five of
Volcano in East Java, 38
Indonesia last summer.
Fast Break their eight children have Tse visited Indonesia
Rediscovering URI’s Agricultural Roots
Personal finance tips special needs. But they during a solo backpacking Faculty, staff, students, and alumni are leading the
you can use now. say the hard parts of trip to Southeast Asia. way for a new generation of farmers and food
caring for their family Tse loves solo backpacking. producers. Saffron, pictured here, is just one of
can’t compare to what “It gives me a chance to URI's many agriculture research areas. Most saffron
they get back. meet people, experience is grown in Iran, but URI research is showing that it
different cultures, and can be grown sustainably in local soil.
learn about myself,”
she says. Read about
Tse on page 16.
2 SPRING
PHOTOS: 2020
COURTESY KAY TSE; ALEX DECICCIO; TODD MCLEISH UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND MAGAZINE 3
FROM THE PRESIDENT
Signs of Spring
President Dooley on next-generation food producers, a new
governing board, freedom of expression, and the Class of 2024.
SPRING IN NEW ENGLAND FREQUENTLY enrollment, administrative, and staffing showcase the URI community’s views on
arrives late and then fades into summer needs. More opportunities for our com- the First Amendment, I could not help
too soon. Even so, it is invariably a time of munity of scholars. And many more ben- but reflect on the amendment’s centrality
growth and transformation, when the efits. I ask those of you who live in Rhode to our own mission. A prominent mem-
dull, drab landscapes of winter explode Island to thank your state representatives, ber of our extended community who per-
with color and new life, the robins really senators, and the governor for their sup- fectly exemplifies the amendment’s spirit
do return, the Quad is once again full of port, which will, in turn, strengthen our is Laurie White ’81, who established the
students, and Commencement concludes position as a leading economic engine for Taricani Lecture Series on First Amend-
another special academic year. Rhode Island. ment Rights in honor of her late husband,
At URI, we have become very familiar The Board of Trustees will also sup- Jim Taricani, Hon. ’18, a renowned inves-
with growth and transformation. From port our drive to create academic pro- tigative journalist, who was, in her words,
our founding in the 19th century as an grams that address societal issues and “a champion of the news media’s First
agricultural institution, to the 21st-century meet market demands today and into the Amendment rights. He knew that protect-
interdisciplinary sustainable agriculture future—like URI Online. Offering the ing those rights is critically important—
and food systems programs featured in academic rigor students have come to not only for a journalist, but for all of us.”
this issue of the magazine, URI has always expect from URI and taught by URI Students are drawn to places where
been among the leaders in agricultural faculty, URI Online represents a pivotal these sentiments are not only expressed,
research and practice. Today, our students development in our evolution. We but brought to life in and out of the class-
are preparing to lead a new generation of launched with undergraduate programs room. So I am delighted, but not at all
growers and producers in areas such as in communications and nursing, as well surprised, to report that this year URI has
organic foods, aquaculture, animal man- as master’s programs in cybersecurity, broken records, receiving 23,500 applica-
agement, and agricultural technology. The dietetics, teaching English to speakers of tions for 3,250 spots in the Class of 2024.
recent agreement with private sector part- other languages (TESOL), and health- That’s a testament to the university we are,
ners to create an agricultural innovation care management, along with several cer- and to the university we are becoming.
campus is the most recent manifestation tificate programs—and this is just the
Onward and upward,
of URI’s leadership. beginning.
The rapid increase in URI’s partner- Like other 21st-century universities,
ships with companies and organizations we embrace online learning and other
throughout Rhode Island, our growing technology-based educational innova- David M. Dooley
impact on economic development in the tions. At the same time, we must rein- President, University of Rhode Island
state, dramatically increased enrollment force our time-tested role as a safe place
and student success, and the surge of for civil discourse, disagreement, and the
innovative, interdisciplinary research and exchange of ideas and perspectives; a
scholarship at URI are among the reasons place where the freedoms of expression
the Rhode Island General Assembly cre- protected by the First Amendment—
ated, as part of the current state budget, a religion, speech, press, and peaceful
new governing board of trustees for the assembly—are honored and advanced. In
University. What does this mean? Greater
agility. More flexibility. Faster decisions
fact, the First Amendment is foundational
to the values of all American universities.
WaterView A non-traditional student, Henning is finishing the art degree she started more than 20 years ago.
Her husband’s Army career and raising three children put degree completion on hold. This painting, for
on funding and financial aid to meet Perusing the stories in this issue that MICHELLE HENNING ’22 Professor Bob Dilworth’s Painting II class, depicts the view from Bonnet Shores Beach in Narragansett,
“Bonnet Shores” Rhode Island. Henning is an ocean lover, but says her favorite subject to draw or paint is the human figure.
Oil on canvas, 16” x 20”, 2019 Says Henning, “I’ve always been an artist and known it was what I wanted to be since I was very young.”
PHOTO: JOE GIBLIN
4 SPRING 2020 UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND MAGAZINE 5
Feedback
Write to us: urimag@uri.edu Recognition for William C. O’Neill ’57
Visit us and comment at uri.edu/magazine ON PAGE 5 OF THE FALL 2019 the bike path, especially since Peace Dale Elementary School,
issue of URI Magazine, there it is named after a URI alum- South Kingstown High School,
From the Editor was a photo of the newly com-
pleted addition to the William
nus, William C. O’Neill. and URI. Shortly before Bill
Bill was a member of the died in 2003 at the age of 72, a
Last week, I read a 2015 piece from The And even if you don’t buy into that
C. O’Neill Bike Path, a spur Rhode Island House of Repre- small group I was involved in
New Yorker called, “Can Reading Make research, the author continues, other
connecting the main path to sentatives and later a member suggested naming the South
You Happier?” Maybe I was drawn to it studies have shown that reading is simply
the URI Kingston Campus. I of the Rhode Island Senate. In County Bike Path for Bill. Ted
because I knew it would validate my own good for readers—putting them into a
was disappointed and surprised addition to his URI degree, he Wright of Narragansett pur-
answer to that question, which is a meditation-like state and leading to better
that the photo and the brief held a master’s degree from sued the matter and the path
resounding, “Yes!” sleep, lower stress and depression levels,
description did not include Harvard University. I was a was officially named for Bill.
The author puts forth the theory that and higher self-esteem.
anything about the name of classmate and friend of Bill’s in —Charles Sweet ’51
“reading fiction is one of the few remain- Besides validating my own lifelong
ing paths to transcendence, that elusive bookworm habits, the piece shores up
state in which the distance between the my feelings about what we do in the
self and the universe shrinks.” She goes on University of Rhode Island Magazine: We Consider Goldenseal
to discuss the history of a kind of therapy tell stories that connect readers to fellow
In response to a story in our but buy the planting stock “Wild goldenseal populations
I’d never heard of, but, in fact, have used members of the URI community. While
spring 2019 issue, we received from a cultivated source, not are vulnerable to overharvest-
all my life: bibliotherapy, or reading books the stories you read here are rarely fiction,
this message: wild harvested. It is easy to ing, so don’t harvest wild
as a treatment for life’s troubles and chal- we aim to tell them in a way that invites Plastics are a problem for the Earth,
grow but requires shade. There goldenseal! Plant it!” Same
lenges. Until I read this piece, I had no you to understand and empathize with its oceans and waterways, and GOLDENSEAL HAS MEDICINAL are a few other plants that also goes for American ginseng,
idea that bibliotherapist was an actual job. the characters. ultimately for all of us. But we've properties similar to barberry, contain berberine. she says. Liebovitz adds,
English majors, take note. So, in the interest of happiness, empa- become dependent on plastic. Do and its native range includes —Dan Lawton ’88 “Harvesting plants for medicine
The author cites research about read- thy, a better world, and a better night’s you have an idea—big or small—for Rhode Island, although there is a big factor in threatening
ing’s effects on the brain. In a nutshell, sleep—read on! tackling the problem? Are you are no known native popula- Elizabeth Liebovitz, coordinator wild plant popluations with
people who read fiction develop empathy. —Barbara Caron, Editor-in-Chief making a difference in your daily tions. So you can tell people to of URI’s College of Pharmacy overharvesting,” and offers
When we read about characters in books, life or in your business or research? harvest wild barberry, but if Medicinal Garden, emphasizes unitedplantsavers.org as a
we learn about and develop an under- Do you know fellow Rhody alumni they want to grow their own our reader’s point about plant- resource for information about
standing for them. This translates into our who are taking on the plastics medicine, plant goldenseal, ing and not wild harvesting: conserving medicinal plants.
real lives in the form of empathy. problem? Please let us know:
urimag@uri.edu.
Titles Matter
The University of Rhode Island Magazine is I ENJOY READING ABOUT MY ALMA and we all work for our advancements.
SOCIAL SNAPS | INSTAGRAM published by the University of Rhode Island. mater and keeping current with exciting Proper recognition of these titles is
Copyright pending, all rights reserved. news from campus. In the fall 2019 issue therefore important.
Email: urimag@uri.edu the headline story about the engineering —Dr. Laura Schifman, Ph.D. ’14 and
Online: uri.edu/magazine building was especially exciting to me. Brandon Spirito ’13
Phone: 401.874.5895 My husband was an electrical engineer-
Executive Editor: Michele A. Nota ’87, M.S. ’06, ing major and for my Ph.D., I closely Thank you for your message and for
Vice President, URI Foundation & Alumni Engagement worked with Dr. Vinka Oyanedel-Craver pointing out the error in Professor Oyandel-
Editor-in-Chief: Barbara Caron of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Craver's title. We absolutely recognize the
Art Director: Kim Robertson I noticed that in the front-cover fold- years of hard work involved in being pro-
Contributing Editors: Annie Babineau, out her title was noted as “assistant pro- moted through faculty ranks, and strive
Dina M. Dionizio ’91, Shane Donaldson ’99,
Dave Lavallee ’79, M.P.A. ’87,
fessor.” Dr. Oyanedel-Craver was actually to recognize that and accurately reflect
Jazz Show Archived at URI Welcome to Brookside Hall! Determination Leslie Lowenstein, Kate O’Malley, promoted to full professor this summer, faculty titles in this publication. In spite
Show archives from late iconic URI opened its newest residence URI’s Michael Scott captured a Marybeth Reilly-McGreen an achievement that marks her success of our best efforts to verify all names and
Pittsburgh jazz DJ Ronald “Butch” hall in February, featuring 500 great shot at this track event at Contributing Designer: Cynthia McMillen in the field and as a faculty member. I titles through multiple sources, we clearly
Perkins were donated to URI, beds, a café, and apartment units Boston University in January. Photographer: Nora Lewis strongly encourage you to correct this missed this one. We corrected it immedi-
thanks to music professor Emmett Rhody Rainbow with full kitchens. URI’s Kristina MacLure (second Illustrations: Anthony Russo ’74 mistake ASAP, as the promotion to full ately in the online version of the story,
Goods (right) and Calvin Stemley, @kristinamoyet found a pot of @brooksidehalluri from left) finished fourth in the
gold on Upper College Road in Digital Design: Laurel McLaughlin ’92 professor occurs after a promotion to and offer our apologies and this correction
(left) a close friend of Perkins. 60-meter hurdles.
@uri_artsandsciences February! @urimscott Editorial Board: Kelly Mahoney ’03, Executive associate professor (from assistant) and here, in print. We also acknowledge the
@universityofri Director, External Relations and Communications; therefore acknowledges a minimum of point you make about women faculty in a
Linda A. Acciardo ’77, Director, Communications and
Marketing; Austen Farrell, Chief Marketing Officer,
10 years of service. This is no small feat, male-dominated field. It is an important
URI Foundation & Alumni Engagement particularly for a woman in a male- point and we thank you for raising it.
dominated field. Titles are important
6 SPRING 2020 PHOTOS: ISHAN SEEFROMTHESKY; NORA LEWIS; CREATIVE COMMONS UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND MAGAZINE 7
Currents
today.uri.edu
Get more
= NEWS TICKER =
news at
A Decade Green
For the 10th year running,
= IN BRIEF = URI made The Princeton
Review’s Guide to 375 Green
Former Hasbro CEO Invests in URI College of Business Colleges, for its commitment
to sustainability, academic
With a recent $15 million gift, ogy fund for the college. The gift
offerings and career prep,
Alfred J. Verrecchia ’67, M.B.A. will also enable the University to
policies, and initiatives.
’72, Hon. ’04, and his wife, establish its first faculty chair and
Geraldine, aim to elevate the a professorship in artificial intelli-
Neuroscience Degree
prominence of the College of gence and business analytics.
Business and the University, which, In honor of the Verrecchias’ URI has a new undergraduate
they say, “will continue to push transformative gift and their academic program in neuro-
the boundaries of learning and years of dedication to URI, the science. Students can choose
technology, practical experience, University will establish the from three areas of focus
and interdisciplinary thinking.” Alfred J. Verrecchia Center for within the major, distinguish-
The generous gift will create Business Excellence, a hub for ing it among neuroscience
scholarships for high-achieving teaching, learning, and research programs in New England.
students, a fund for students to inspire the exchange of ideas
pursuing competitive intern- and an entrepreneurial mindset. What Your Spit Says
ships, and an emerging technol- Matthew Ramsey, assistant
professor of cell and molecu-
lar biology, received a $2.2
million grant from the = GO RHODY =
Kudos for Improved Student Outcomes National Institutes of Health
A decade ago, over a three-year • 9% enrollment
to identify which organisms
promote healthy bacteria in
A New Home—on the Mound
period, URI lost $26 million in increase
state support. Recent stories in • 14% improvement in
the mouth. Ciancola Scholarship recipient Tyler Brosius ’20 knew there wasn’t
two national publications praised on-time graduation rate room for him in centerfield, so he found a new home—on the mound—
URI's turnaround. In his story for
Childhood Nutrition
• 50% cut in racial Health sciences professor
and became one of the Atlantic 10’s top relief pitchers.
Forbes, contributor Michael T.
achievement gap Allison Tovar will serve on a
Nietzel said, "Although [URI] has
yet to recover all its lost funding, These improvements, Robert Wood Johnson Foun- CENTERFIELDER TYLER BROSIUS ’20 10 walks and allowing 18 hits through and character, takes pride in representing
it has achieved results that are said Field, "have trans- dation panel creating arrived at URI one year after All-Conference 11.2 innings—and finished the year with URI, displays a strong work ethic and
nothing short of remarkable." lated into millions of national guidelines for and All-Region centerfielder Jordan Powell. a whopping 12.34 ERA. commitment to his teammates, represents
In the Chronicle of Higher dollars in tuition revenue healthy eating behaviors After seeing no playing time as a redshirt Unwilling to believe that was his best, himself well in the community, and is a
Education, Kelly Field praised that the university has among children in the U.S. freshman, Brosius was honest with himself Brosius worked tirelessly in the offseason. leader on and off the field.
URI's student outcome successes used to hire dozens of about how the next few years would likely In 2019, his effort paid off. He turned in a It had to be Brosius. It was a no-brainer.
over the last decade, including: new faculty members." Minority Research
play out. team-best 2.27 ERA with a 6-2 record, six “Tyler has come such a long way,”
Scholarships “I was playing behind a really talented saves, 32 strikeouts, and only six walks. Cerrato says. “He's gone from a non-
Bryan Dewsbury, assistant
veteran player and I knew I wasn't going to Opponents hit just .195 off of him. scholarship outfielder to one of the best
professor of biological sci-
Eye Test Could Detect Alzheimer’s take his spot,” Brosius says. “If I was going Call it a breakout season. Call it a relievers in the country, with a realistic
ences, and Niall Howlett,
associate professor of cell to contribute to the team, it would have to reward for hard work. The one thing chance to pitch professionally.”
URI researchers are leading a buildup of amyloid plaque in the be in some other way. So I asked the Cerrato won't call it is a surprise. It’s not just his performance on the
and molecular biology,
$5 million study that could lead brain—a known biomarker for coaches to give me a chance on the mound.”
received a $1.25 million grant “He was filthy last fall, almost unhitta- mound that demands respect, though.
to using an eye exam to help the neurodegenerative disease Brosius had made just one pitching
from the National Institutes ble,” Cerrato says. “Right from the begin- “He’s an excellent student, a guy you
detect Alzheimer’s disease years affecting 5.8 million Americans.
of Health for scholarships appearance in high school, but Rams base- ning, he was coachable and willing to want representing your program, and some-
before symptoms develop. Led “The cells in the neuronal layers
and stipends for minority ball head coach Raphael Cerrato agreed to work. He kept at it, kept making adjust- one the Ciancola family can be proud to
by Peter Snyder, URI’s vice presi- of the retina are the same types as students in the biomedical give him a shot. ments. Once he figured it out, the confi- have carrying on Joey's legacy,” says Cerrato.
dent for research and economic cells in the brain that are attacked sciences.
development and professor of by the disease, so cell changes in
“Tyler’s a great kid, and I respected his dence came. From that point on, he was The gravity of that responsibility is
biomedical and pharmaceutical the retina might reflect the same willingness to take on a new role,” Cerrato our go-to arm out of the bullpen.” not lost on Brosius.
Rhodes Finalists
sciences, the retinal screening changes that are happening in says. “Coming to us with this idea showed When Cerrato had to choose a 2020 “It’s an incredible honor,” Brosius says.
Two recent URI grads, Madison
tests may be able to detect the the brain,” Snyder said. a lot of maturity, and a strong desire to be Ciancola Scholarship recipient, he took “You play every day for your team, and
Cook-Hines ’19 (theater) and
Autumn Guillotte ’18, (history,
part of the team, so I said, ‘Let's do it.’ ” a moment to reflect. your teammates, and your university. But
The five-year, Atlas of Retinal Imaging in Alzheimer’s Study (ARIAS) is Brosius made four appearances during The scholarship honors the memory to play for someone else, who didn't have
philosphy) were finalists for
sponsored by BayCare Health System and funded largely by Morton Plant that 2017 season, giving up six runs on six of Rams pitcher Joey Ciancola, who the chance to fulfill his own dreams?
the prestigious Rhodes
Mease Health Care Foundation and St. Anthony’s Hospital Foundation in hits over 3.1 innings of work. Statistically passed away in 2011 during his redshirt That's something that will be in the back
Scholarship. Of 14 regional
Pinellas County, Florida. Stephen Salloway, M.D., director of Neurology and speaking, the following season wasn't any
finalists, they were the only freshman season. It is awarded to the of my mind every time I step out on the
the Memory and Aging Program at Butler Hospital in Rhode Island, and better. He lacked command—issuing
two from a public institution. player who best embodies Ciancola’s spirit field this season.” •
others, are also part of the ARIAS team.
—Jodi Pontbriand
8 SPRING 2020 PHOTOS: DMITRY RATUSHNY; NORA LEWIS; HAL GATEWOOD PHOTO: BRETT MUNSON UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND MAGAZINE 9
CURRENTS
= ASK OUR BIG THINKERS =
Is Your Garden Ready for Spring?
= BAY AND BEYOND = Does spring fever have you itching to get out in your garden?
Git Along, Li’l Urchins If so, Kate Venturini ’06, M.A. ’10, collected some great tips from URI Master
Gardener volunteers to help you get ready for gardening season. Venturini is
URI scientist Coleen Suckling and her students are studying the viability an outreach programs administrator with Cooperative Extension, and works
of sea urchin ranching in Rhode Island. Their work could predict whether with faculty, staff, students, and volunteers to extend science-based
sea urchins could be Rhode Island’s next climate-resilient crop. information to communities to help protect the environment. It may not be
time to put tomato plants in the ground yet, but here’s what you can do
SEA URCHIN RANCHING? ocean acidification,” said Campus, URI seniors Max Even if the formulated diet right now to help your garden grow this season:
Yes. You read that right. Suckling, URI assistant profes- Zavell, Anna Byczynski, and works as expected, many addi-
Atlantic purple sea urchins sor of sustainable aquaculture. Alli McKenna are conducting tional questions remain before Do a light version of Have your soil tested Look around your yard Make gardening easier Come to the URI
are common in coastal waters “So they’re a good species to a three-month trial on purple urchins could be raised com- what the pros call "site for pH and texture to for plants that didn't by giving your garden Spring Festival!
along the East Coast, and URI turn to for commercial har- urchins caught in Rhode mercially in the state. assessment.” How much determine its drainage make it through the tools some love. Pump Saturday, May 2, from
scientist Coleen Suckling vest. And you can get a good Island waters. The urchins are “It’s a local species, so we sunlight, wind, and capacity. This will help winter, and replace up those wheelbarrow 9 a.m.–1 p.m. in the URI
thinks the Ocean State could return on your investment being fed a variety of foods to can potentially grow them water, and how many you choose plants that them with natives that tires, bring your lawn- Botanical Gardens. Buy
become the home of a new from them.” see how well they grow and if here, but is it something the existing desirable plants can thrive in your soil, attract pollinators and mower in for service, your veggies, herbs,
industry to raise the spiny The global sea urchin mar- they become marketable. The Coastal Resources Manage- do you have? Site or amend your soil so other beneficial insects. remove rust from tools, perennials, and annuals,
marine creatures for consump- ket is valued at about $175 students monitor water quality ment Council and the Depart- assessment will help you can grow the plants If nothing died over and sharpen and oil all and grab free seeds!
tion in Japan and elsewhere million per year, with about 65 and regularly weigh and mea- ment of Environmental Man- you identify where to you want. the winter, add native blades! Proceeds support the
around the world. to 70 percent of the harvest sure the urchins. They expect agement would be interested plant a vegetable, herb, plants to your gardens URI Master Gardener
She has teamed with a being sold to Japan. Urchins to have preliminary results in?” Suckling asked. “Are there flower, and/or rain gar- anyway! Program.
company called Urchinomics, are primarily used for sushi, this spring. aquaculture farmers interested den—or even a lawn
or privacy screen. For more on these and other topics
which is pioneering urchin though they are also used in a “If they become market- in growing them? Can we Visit uri.edu/mastergarden/gardeningresources or uri.edu/coopext.
ranching around the world. variety of other recipes. able, then it opens up a whole ranch them reliably? We’re just Call or email the URI Gardening and Environmental Hotline at 401.874.4836 or gardener@uri.edu.
Suckling is testing a sea urchin The edible part of the sea interesting range of potential taking the first step to see if it’s Video at uri.edu/magazine
feed the company developed urchin is its gonad tissue— options,” Suckling said. “Under worth the effort to answer
in Norway to see if Rhode which chefs refer to as roe or future climate conditions, there these other questions.
Island’s urchins will eat the uni. Suckling says it tastes may be a need to diversify “Part of my role is to try to
= FAST BREAK =
product and, in turn, become “like what you imagine a clean what we produce in the sea- understand what seafood we
commercially appealing.
“Sea urchins are generally
ocean smells like”—but the tis-
sue must be firm and bright
food sector. And since urchins
are good at coping with acidi-
may need to turn to in a sus-
tainable manner so we can
What’s In Your Wallet?
good at coping with climate yellow or orange to get the fication, this could be a good maintain food security and Simple basics for personal money management
change; they appear to be best prices. opportunity here in Rhode economic security in the
resilient to warming and At the Narragansett Bay Island to exploit sea urchins.” future,” she added. • BALANCING A CHECKBOOK The tips to the right are
— Todd McLeish (yes, that’s still an important just a few of the basics Xiao Let’s face it, many of us, even if we think we know
skill), filing personal income and Porto teach their students. this stuff, could use some tips and reminders.
taxes, examining the costs and The last tip on the list is Here are the basics, according to Xiao and Porto:
benefits of student loans, or particularly important for
calculating retirement needs college students to consider, o Put 10 percent of your o Use the Rule of 72 to
are topics often overlooked at salary into savings every determine how long it
given the ongoing student
month. will take an investment
the collegiate level. But many loan crisis in the United
to double: Divide 72 by
college students—and even States. The average student o Have an emergency
the expected growth
graduates—lack these simple, leaves college with about savings of at least three
rate of your investment
yet critical, skills. $30,000 in loans to repay, months of your income.
to get the number of
Professor Jing Jian Xiao according to the Pew Research years it will take to
o Housing and all other
and Assistant Professor Nilton Center, and roughly 10 per- double. For example,
obligations should be no
Porto of URI’s Department of cent are late or delinquent on more than 50 percent of if the growth rate is
Human Development and their loans. “It’s OK to get a your disposable income. 8 percent, it will take
Family Studies in the College loan if you need one,” says nine years (72/8) to
of Health Sciences, teach Porto, “Just make sure you are o Establish and maintain double the investment.
courses that help students taking the right amount and good credit. “Having
learn the basics they’ll need enough savings is o Limit student
that there is a plan in place to
number 1, but good borrowing to your
now and for the rest of their pay it back.” •
credit helps in an first year’s expected
financial lives—"Money Skills —Patrick Luce ’99
emergency,” Porto says. annual salary.
for Life” and “Personal Finance.”
10 SPRING 2020 PHOTOS: ISTOCKPHOTO.COM; DIDIER WEEMAELS UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND MAGAZINE 11
CURRENTS
= MEDIA SPOTLIGHT =
You Can Quote Me
On detecting and stopping explosives used by terrorists: On his team’s discovery of
microplastics in the
= SYLLABUS = “We think about how to detect and mitigate the threats for today, while Canadian Arctic:
we’re still realizing that if we get really good about today’s threats, there’s
ScienceYouCanUnderstand going to be a different threat tomorrow.”
Science literacy is critical—if people don’t understand —Jimmie Oxley, URI professor of chemistry and co-director of URI’s Center of Excellence for Explosives
The plastic
what causes global warming and why it’s a problem, Detection, Mitigation and Response just jumped out
CBS This Morning
they won’t care about or participate in curbing it. But in both its
for science to be understood, it has to be abundance and
communicated clearly. That’s the goal of SciWrite, a On URI’s improving On declining fertility and birthrates in the U.S.: its scale.
enrollment, retention,
program that trains students to translate complex and graduation rates:
“It’s hard to have children because of a lack of
science so that even non-scientist audiences—the affordable child care and not-very-generous
public and policymakers, for example—can understand policies for parental leave, especially in —Brice Loose, URI professor of
it. How can you up your science literacy? Read on.
“The hardest part
comparison to many European countries.” oceanography and chief scientist
of student success of the Northwest Passage Project
—Melanie Brasher, URI professor of sociology and demographer
SCIENTISTS DON'T GET POLITICAL. is having the The Washington Post
Reuters
Nancy Karraker in Sulawesi, Indonesia, where, in 2017–18,
Nancy Karraker heard this often as a student she traveled on a Fulbright Fellowship to conduct research
discipline to stick
studying wildlife and conservation biology. on the Southeast Asian box turtle. to it. These things
“I was told, ‘You are not to be an advocate. On his $15 million gift to URI’s College of Business:
Be impartial,’” she says. “But science literacy
take time. Progress
“
in America is on the decline. It’s our obligation is incremental; you
You Can Build Your Science Literacy Too—Here’s How: One of the challenges the University has had—the College of
to be advocates.” have to stay the
An associate professor in the College of the Business included—is we are trying to train students for jobs that
Use trusted sources of Become an Read! Dive into these course.”
Environment and Life Sciences, Karraker also information. Karraker environmental books about science
don’t exist today. We want to make sure they have an education that
has a master's in teaching writing. She is one recommends: activist: and writing: —David
David M. Dooley, president, will allow them to transition and be flexible and adaptable to new
”
of the professors behind SciWrite, a program University of Rhode Island
• theconversation.com/us • Attend a protest march. • Bird by Bird: Some The Chronicle of Higher
jobs that are going to come on the scene.
offering a two-year graduate certificate in
Fact-based journalism Instructions on Education
science writing and rhetoric, as well as work- • Write to your state
from experts Writing and Life, by —Al Verrecchia ’67, M.B.A. ’72, Hon. ’04, former chairman and CEO of Hasbro, Inc.
shops, courses, and internships to URI’s aca- representatives.
Anne LaMott The Boston Globe
demic community. • envirobites.org
• Join a land trust—an
In the two-year program, students take Expert summaries of • At the Water's Edge:
organization dedicated
courses in writing in the natural sciences, public recent environmental Fish with Fingers,
to purchasing and On whether primates have an easier time
engagement with science, ethics, and multi- science research. Sister Whales with Legs, and On what a Broadway actor feels like at the end of a day
protecting open space. giving birth than humans:
media. They also complete a four- to six-week sites: oceanbites.org How Life Came Ashore when he’s done two seven-hour shows:
and astrobites.org but Then Went Back to
internship in which they translate an organiza-
tion's science into accessible writing: blogs, • kids.frontiersin.org
• Join a community
science organization Sea, by Carl Zimmer “ It always comes back to a profound sense It’s not like a baby just falls
press releases, grant proposals, podcasts, etc. such as URI’s Watershed of gratitude because you do it and you out like some Monty Python sketch
Frontiers for Young • Classic Krakauer:
"We would like to become known as the Minds, an open-access
Watch, which enlists the
Essays on Wilderness
listen to the people who’ve come to see it for nonhuman primates. They do struggle
place to go to get training in science writing," public in testing local and the effect that it had on them, and you
scientific journal written and Risk, by Jon and still they have a seemingly
Karraker says. bodies of water:
by scientists, reviewed
uri.edu/watershedwatch.
Krakauer say, ‘Well, screw any feelings that I had of much more easy childbirth
At a moment in time when misinformation
is rampant and scientific fact is challenged,
by kids
• nationalgeographic.org
• Monitor wetlands and
• On Writing: A Memoir
of the Craft, by
exhaustion, I’m doing this for these people.’ ” than we have.
programs like SciWrite are of vital importance. —Andrew Burnap ’13
frog communities with
Familiar, trusted, Stephen King People
Increasing the public’s capacity and confidence Roger Williams Park —Holly Dunsworth, URI associate professor of anthropology
130-year-old global Andrew Burnap made his Broadway debut last fall as Toby Darling in
in their knowledge of science, Karraker says, Zoo’s FrogWatch: • Cod: A Biography of Matthew Lopez’s two-part, seven-hour-long production, The Inheritance. Netflix series Sex, Explained, season 1, episode 5
nonprofit focused on
“will make them more likely to understand, for science and exploration
rwpzoo.org/frogwatch. the Fish that Changed
example, what a changing climate means for our the World, by
• Join a global community
coastal communities, how choices we make at Mark Kurlansky On running new models that help researchers predict tsunamis more accurately:
of naturalists contributing
the grocery store affect how much plastic ends to a database serving • The Everglades: River
up in our oceans, and how the purchase of a frog conservation biology of Grass, by Marjorie
[The success of our work has] helped us confirm that our modelling methodology
or turtle from the local pet store may contribute efforts through Stoneman Douglas is quite realistic. ... This is very important for hazard assessment from volcanic sources.
to the species' extinction from the wild.” • inaturalist.org. —Stefan Grilli, URI professor of oceanography and global tsunami expert
—Marybeth Reilly-McGreen BBC News
12 SPRING 2020 PHOTO: DANA DRAKE UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND MAGAZINE 13
CURRENTS
The ISC Production Control
Room Crew, left to right:
Andrea Gingras ’01, producer;
= ANNOTATIONS = Ben Woods ’22, intern/editor;
Alex DeCiccio ’10, director;
Command Central Jessica Kaelblein ’18, switcher;
Derek Sutcliffe ’11, engineer;
The Inner Space Center's Production Ryan Campos, audio engineer.
Control Room translates science
from the field into real-time,
relatable stories
URI’S ONE-OF-A-KIND, INTERNATIONALLY
known Inner Space Center delivers science,
in real time, to the public and to other
scientists. Using telepresence—the ability
to interact with what’s going on in one
place while you’re somewhere else—the
center links scientists on research vessels
at sea with other scientists, the media, and
schools.
The production control room is the
heart of the operation, turning all the
incoming and outgoing feeds into seamless
broadcasts. Producer Andrea Gingras '01
says, “Live production is like a puzzle. I try
to put the pieces together before we even
start so that when we say, ‘That’s a wrap,’
the audience sees the full picture.”
In October 2019, for example, the
center used ship-to-shore telepresence
in a pilot project funded by the National
Science Foundation. The production con-
trol room crew put its telepresence chops
to the test, connecting scientists on the
R/V Laurence M. Gould in the Western
Antarctic with classrooms around the
country, giving students an incredible
opportunity to interact in real time with
scientists conducting critical research.
Asset Library.
Ten years’ worth of
Sound as easy as turning on a livestream?
It’s not. It takes a lot of equipment and a
Remote Science Creativity Required. video and growing.
Within Reach. In July, The book, Creativity, Inc.: The production control
multitasking crew with technical know- 2019, an international Audio. “Audio is Overcoming the Unseen room library includes
how, science background, creative leanings, team of scientists stud- critical,” says production Forces that Stand in the Lighting. You won’t ocean content, both
and communication skills—real communi- ied the rapidly changing Headset. Produc- director Alex DeCiccio Way of True Inspiration, find standard-issue deep-sea and topside
cation skills—knowing how people listen Arctic Ocean aboard the tion control room staff ’10. “And it is the most by Ed Catmull, president office lighting here. The in the field. The crew
and learn, and knowing how to effectively Core Crew. The Swedish icebreaker, direct broadcasts, complex thing we deal of Pixar and Disney crew favors softer task uses these video assets
and authentically translate science into brainchild of URI profes- Oden. The ISC shared quickly shifting from with in our work. If Animation, is a model lighting that helps their on every project. And
stories people can relate to. • sor of Oceanography the expedition in real one site to another, Switcher. The audio fails, it creates the team uses to inspire creativity thrive. “I figure with each new project,
—Barbara Caron and legendary ocean time, moving deftly injecting expert com- switcher is one of the the worst kind of awk- their workplace culture. if we model our creative the library grows.
explorer Robert Ballard, between researchers, mentary, ancillary video, most important pieces ward silence.” Audio They strive to cultivate environment after the Engineer Derek Sutcliffe
the Inner Space Center audiences, and pre-pro- and more. They’re a of equipment in the ISC. engineer Ryan Campos a creative vibe and root best out there,” says ’11 says, “During the live
is directed by marine duced video segments. little like the crew that Jess Kaelblein ’18 says, adds, “Most people out hidden forces that DeCiccio, “We may broadcasts, I watch and
Video at uri.edu/magazine research scientist The crew had to be broadcasts a football “Technical directing is don't listen with the can cramp their creativity stumble on a few inter- troubleshoot the com-
Dwight Coleman. ready to keep the game or any other live, like editing in real time. intent to understand. and problem-solving. esting ideas.” And, he puters handling the live
Coleman and his team broadcast going, even multi-camera event It's my job to switch It's my responsibility to "DeCiccio says, "Our adds, “It doesn’t hurt stream and broadcast.
are the multitalented, if the extreme Arctic staffed by dozens. between available vid- articulate and translate success is tied to how that we work with the I also maintain the pro-
multitasking core crew environment disrupted But they do it with a eos and live cameras to using sound, making well we can creatively smartest people in duction equipment, and
of the center’s produc- their satellite signal with small, rotating crew create a dynamic and the information more think of solutions to ocean science. Big ideas later, I archive the show
tion control room. the research team. of five to eight people. engaging show.” digestible.” problems." for the big blue!” recordings.”
14 SPRING 2020 UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND MAGAZINE
PHOTO: KEEGAN
PHOTO: NORA
HOUSER 15
LEWIS
CURRENTS
= RHODE TAKEN = = WHY I TEACH =
Make Self-Discovery Your Major—No Matter RHODE TO A The Art of Teaching Active History
DEGREE
What Your Degree Says Rae Ferguson, Associate Professor of African-American History
Ka Ki “Kay” Tse ’19 life and the lives of people I know in
Current Life Goals AS A CHILD, RAE FERGUSON WOULD materials to provide a holistic view of the
Complete a master’s degree spy on spies. people at the center of historic events. She particular historical moments. Personal
at Wake Forest, work Really, she would. Ferguson grew up rarely lectures, preferring to involve her stories make students sit up and listen.
Last summer, Kay Tse solo as a clinical exercise on a farm in Wildflecken, Germany, dur- students in projects that require intro- “I want them to really look at stuff, to
backpacked in Southeast Asia. A physiologist, travel, then ing the Cold War era. She watched East spection. "When we reach the civil rights be open to noticing something. Be more
four-day motorbike loop in Ha decide what’s next… German soldiers building barbed wire movement in my intro-level class, I ask self-aware,” Ferguson says. “Be always
Giang, Vietnam's northernmost
fences, and she surreptitiously listened to them to do some research on different reading or looking.”
province, (at left) was a highlight Surprising Superpower
of her trip. She had never ridden a
CIA agents. In her home. “My parents’ civil rights organizations and choose And, she adds, “Follow a curiosity
At 5’1”, 120 lbs., Kay can
motorbike before, and says it was best friends worked for the CIA; my par- one that they would have wanted to be about things that are different.” •
squat 210, bench 135, and
the experience of a lifetime. ents’ best friends were spies. I remember I involved with then,” Ferguson says. “Then —Marybeth Reilly-McGreen
deadlift 315 pounds.
would be seeing people testify on TV, and they tell me about it in a short essay and
psychology to her academic Internships they were the same people who would sit make something creative.”
program as a second major. Weight Control and around our dinner table on the weekends.” Students have written letters and
Tse was on URI’s powerlift- Diabetes Research Center Listening, really intently paying atten- newsletters, made videos, and created
ing team her sophomore and at Miriam Hospital, Primal tion, is a skill Ferguson works to cultivate Twitter threads. “And, whether they know
junior years. “The training Athletes Training Center in her students. “I've always been aware it or not, they've really captured the way
taught me a lot about persis- in Cranston, R.I. that people don't see each other,” she says. these people spoke and thought about
tence. Even if you aren’t the “I'm not cynical, but I question what it will whatever it was they were involved in,”
Undergrad Research take to see each other as human beings.” Ferguson says.
strongest person on the start-
Assistantship This extends to the closely examined What Ferguson is asking of her stu-
ing line, if you work hard for
URI Kinesiology and lives of historical figures. History has a way dents is what she is demanding of herself.
what you want, you can achieve Psychology Departments
it—you just have to put the of myth-making. Historical figures become She is working on a memoir of growing
work in,” she says. “It made me Scholarships
enshrined, apart from and above the rest of up in Cold War Europe.
mentally stronger and helped Rhode Island Academic us. “My students come to class thinking of Viewing oneself as an actor in history
me to feel confident.” Promise, Francis H. Horn, these people as anomalies,” she says. rather than an observer of it is citizenship,
Her relationships with pro- and Centreville Bank Not true. Historical figures are, gener- Ferguson says. “I want my students to
fessors like Christie Ward- Charitable Foundation ally, ordinary people who felt called to act, see themselves as part of a historical
Ritacco and Deborah Riebe Ferguson argues. “But that wasn't the only thread that’s always moving, always
were transformational. Best Outside-Her- thing that defined their lives,” she says. changing. In class, I talk a lot about my
WHEN KA KI “KAY” TSE ’19 She found friends—in her “They took the time to Comfort-Zone Experience “These people weren’t that different from
moved from Hong Kong to the classes, through her job at the know me,” says Tse. “They Being a volunteer TA for my students’ parents. We’re all struggling
Ferguson, who is also a prolific painter,
United States with her family Fascitelli Fitness and Wellness encouraged and supported KIN 300 (exercise physiology). to figure out how we fit in. In what ways says in her painting she follows her own
in 2012, her parents wanted Center, and through involve- me—and opened my eyes to “I had to lead review are we American?” curiosity, which is advice she gives her
her to have a better life. ment in campus groups like new opportunities. I want to sessions in English, my And so Ferguson steeps her students students. Ferguson is often accompanied
As a first-year URI student the URI Service Corps, where be that person for someone
second language. I gained in videos, poetry, and primary source on campus by her dog, Rakhi.
public speaking skills
in 2015, Tse had only been she was as an alternative else. I want to be the person
and confidence.”
speaking English for a few years spring break leader. Her love who listens and helps them
and wasn’t entirely comfort- of travel led to summer adven- find their way.” Pearl of Wisdom
able making friends. “For a tures in Ghana and Togo with Tse is attending Wake “Listen to people when
while I felt lost,” she says. “I Operation Groundswell, and Forest University in North they’re talking. There’s
thought I needed to have every- to a backpacking trip through Carolina, working on her always something you can
thing all figured out and I wasn’t Europe after her junior year, master’s degree in health and learn from their life stories.”
sure what I wanted to do.” which gave her time and space exercise science.
What she knew about herself for some much-needed soul “I’m thankful for my expe- Advice to Undergrads
was that she’d always enjoyed searching. rience at URI, for the teachers “Seek opportunities. Get out
physical activity, so she chose An internship at the I’ve had, the friendships I’ve of your comfort zone. New
a kinesiology major, thinking Weight Control and Diabetes made, and the opportunities experiences always teach you
physical therapy might be her Research Center at Miriam I’ve been offered. I thought something about yourself.”
career path. She dove into her Hospital broadened Tse’s per- I would come to school and
URI Degree
studies and soon discovered spective—she became inter- mainly focus on academics, B.S. 2019, kinesiology
that living on campus offered ested in behavior change and but I’ve learned so much about and psychology
her newfound freedom and what motivates people to want myself.” •
surprising opportunities. to be healthier. So she added — Dawn Bergantino ’94
16 SPRING 2020 PHOTO: COURTESY KA KI TSE UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLANDPHOTO:
MAGAZINE
NORA LEWIS 17"I do believe it's my mission to share the voices
of people who do not otherwise have a voice."
—Vladimir Duthiers ’91, Hon. ’17
Why Are We Talking About the
FIRST
AMENDMENT? By Marybeth Reilly-McGreen
This year, URI kicks off the Taricani Lecture Series on First Amendment Rights,
in honor of the late Jim Taricani, Hon. ’18. Taricani was a champion of First Amend-
ment rights, and his wife, Laurie White ’81, has made it her mission to keep his
legacy alive. We asked other members of the URI community to share their stories
about why the First Amendment matters. The result is a powerful collection of
testaments to the importance of the freedoms protected by the amendment—
religion, speech, press, and peaceful assembly.
Vladimir Duthiers ’91, Hon. ’ 17, reported for
CBS News from Brussels, Belgium, after three
coordinated suicide bombings on March 22,
2016, killed over 30 people and left hundreds
injured.
18 SPRING 2020 PHOTOS: COURTESY VLADIMIR DUTHIERS UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND MAGAZINE 19You can also read
