Top Stories
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Applications are up, but class size stays the same
With the admissions season now concluded, Bucknell has announced that a near-record number of students applied to be admitted to the University's Class of 2011. [full story]
But while the application pool of 8,945 was the second highest in Bucknell history, down less than 1 percent from the record 9,021 students who applied for the Class of 2010, the actual enrollment for Bucknell's newest class will be about 900, a level that has remained steady in recent years.
In the past decade, enrollment for the incoming class has ranged from 889 to 953.
"This year's admissions process was among the most selective in the University's history," said Kurt Thiede, vice president for enrollment management and dean of admissions at Bucknell. "Academically, the Class of 2011 is one of the strongest on record."
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Summer research keeps undergraduates busy
Dozens of Bucknell’s brightest and most intrepid students are taking advantage of research opportunities this summer, many of which are in close association with professors. [full story]
For Stephen Smith ’08 and Christine Kassab ’09, summer research meant hitting the beach in
Cape Hatteras, N.C., where they collected sediment samples using an instrument called a vibracore. Other summer research projects involve studying spider silk (Eun Pa Kang ’08), alternative fuels (Nicholas Batt ’09), obsessive-compulsive disorder (Lauren Rutter ’09), aquatic robots (Abhay Agarwal ’09), and hydraulic flumes (Ryan Winn, ’08). But not all are scientific in nature.
Anja Wade ’08 is translating an Uzbekistani author’s novel to English from Russian. Jeff Detrick ’09 is analyzing J.R.R. Tolkien’s Orcs, a race of fantasy creatures. David Lopera ’08 is creating a documentary on the art of capoeira, a dance or martial art originated by West African slaves in
Brazil. Bucknell’s undergraduate research programs are a major benefit for students who arrive on campus engaged and ready to participate. In many cases, the students collaborate directly with their professors.
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Exploring Hindu art, and building a better robot
With funding from major grants, two Bucknell professors are taking their research to new levels – and locales. [full story]
Karline McLain, assistant professor of religion, received a National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) grant to study the legacy of Raja Ravi Varma — a late 19th-century artist whose influence can be seen in today’s popular Hindu art.
The NEH summer stipend grant is funding McLain’s six-week research trip to India American Academy.
“Historically, Hinduism has been hard to define as a religion,” said McLain. “Scholars have studied how literature has helped to create a more unified Hindu identity, but my project argues that printed images also played a role, and that Varma’s lithographs were at the heart of this process.” In audio interviews, McLain discusses Varma and god posters, how she incorporates research in the classroom, and her inspiration for the project – Hindu comic books.
A National Science Foundation (NSF) Research Opportunity Award (ROA) recently took Keith Buffinton, professor of mechanical engineering at Bucknell, to Ohio State and Stanford to work on creating a bipedal robot that is more agile than predecessors like Honda’s well-known “Asimo.”
He collaborated with Stanford Professor Ken Waldron and Alex Perkins ‘05, a Stanford Ph.D. student and Bucknell graduate. Buffinton helped to develop mathematical models that simulate the behavior of two-legged running robots.
Buffinton and Perkins have maintained the type of exceptionally close faculty-student relationship that is characteristic of Bucknell. They crossed paths in courses, campus organizations, projects, and research, and co-authored and -presented papers in Cambridge, Mass.,and Osaka, Japan
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New Catholic Chaplain arrives on campus
Father Michael Letteer settled into Newman House in June to begin his new role as director of the Catholic Campus Ministry (CCM). He replaces Father Marty Moran, who was named executive director of the national CCM Association after nine years at Bucknell. [full story]
The Diocese of Harrisburg assigned Fr. Letteer to the post of Catholic chaplain, where he will tend to the spiritual needs of the nearly 1,100 students who have self-identified themselves as Catholic. He joins Reverend Ian Oliver, University chaplain, and Rabbi Serena Fujita, Jewish chaplain, in serving the lively interest in faith and religion shared by many Bucknell students.
While Fr. Letteer plans to continue CCM’s popular student programs, such as the Thursday night dinners and “Theology on Tap,” he has also issued an invitation for member ideas and suggestions. “I want to find out what their interests are, and what excites the students,” he said. “My goal is to give them a personal experience with the Catholic faith on a day-to-day basis.”
He also welcomes the opportunity to build upon the University’s ecumenical efforts and to meet other CCM supporters in the Bucknell community. “I look forward to meeting with alumni to hear about their experiences,” Fr. Letteer said. “A great deal of this program’s success is made possible by the time, talent, and treasure of students, faculty, alumni, parents, and friends of Newman House.”
Fr. Letteer previously served as parochial vicar of several churches in the Harrisburg area. He has been actively engaged with Diocesan youth programs, retreats, and education.
A native of Lancaster, Pa., Fr. Letteer graduated from the University of Scranton. He went on to study at Saint Vincent Seminary in Latrobe, Pa., where he earned a master of divinity and a master of arts degree in Biblical scripture, both with high honors. He has special interests in archaeology, history, and culture, particularly of Biblical lands.
Fr. Letteer speaks six languages and frequently leads pilgrimages abroad. His previous destinations include Israel, many countries of Eastern and Western Europe, Ireland, Russia, Greece, Turkey and China.
