Town & Gown
TALK President’s Message When I first became involved in Town & Gown, I remember thinking, I wish there was a place on campus to call “home” for our long-time support organization. Over the years as I have become more deeply immersed on the board and in campus activities, I have come to embrace the idea that we have a ubiquitous presence at the University. We, Town & Gown, are essentially everywhere on campus. We are the gardens at Elliott Alumni House and the American Flag at the Argyros Global Citizens Plaza. We are the Gentle Spring fountain in the Escalette Plaza at the center of campus and the student scholarship recipients who go into the world and make it better. We are some of the books on the book shelves and an Alcove in the Leatherby Libraries. You can find us on the Milestones on the Road to Freedom in the Law School, names on the plaques in Argyros Forum and the donor wall in Davis Hall. We are professors in the classrooms and good neighbors engaged in the communities in which we live. And some, who have gone before us, are even laid to rest in the Columbarium at the Fish Interfaith Center. As an organization we have always been passionate about supporting the University. We continue to leave a legacy as prescribed by our predecessors to assist in the education of our young scholars through our Endowment Fund and contribute to campus beautification projects. All of these things have been made possible over the years by our membership dues. So as we move into a new year with new goals, it’s nice to pause and reflect on the contributions we’ve already made. In gratitude,
Penni McRoberts President
OF THE
winter 2014
TOWN
Lunch at the Forum 21st Season Continues Just Improvise: Applying Theatre Tools to Work and Life Illuminating Stones: Exciting Excavations in Ancient Israel Kicking off the second half of our Lunch at the Forum season on February 5, is Theresa R. Dudeck, Ph.D, Instructor of Acting, Department of Theatre, College of Performing Arts, with “Just Improvise: Applying Theatre Tools to Work and Life.” Dr. Dudeck will share her expertise on improvisational theatre, applied improvisation, and will demonstrate with her students some basic impro techniques to enhance the people skills we use in everyday work and life. Impro is now being taught in top business schools. She will also show how major corporations are hiring more impro-trained consultants to teach them to thrive in spontaneous collaborative, risk-taking and ideagenerating environments. Improvisation is not just for actors! The world is truly our stage and with this mini-master class, we can begin to set that stage for our best performance. On March 5, Julye Bidmead, Ph.D, Associate Professor, Department of Religious Studies, Wilkinson College of Humanities and Social Sciences, will present “Illuminating Stones: Exciting Excavations in Ancient Israel.” Dr. Bidmead will discuss her research in domestic archaeology, exploring unearthed remains which shed light on understanding daily life in biblical times. Some of these excavations have changed our understanding of Old Testament events. Dr. Bidmead conducts excavations each summer and supervises students on two prominent biblical archaeological excavations: Tel Megiddo, an ancient Israelite city and the location of biblical Armageddon, and its sister city, the neighboring Tel Jezreel, the winter palace of King Ahab and his notorious wife, Jezebel. Come and hear how stones and artifacts 3,000 years old illuminate the historical, societal and religious context of biblical narratives. Linda Ruth 1st VP, Programs The Lunch at the Forum is being held this year at 11:30 a.m. in Beckman Hall, in the George H. W. Bush Conference Center, Room 404. For ticket information, please call Nicole Shay (714) 628-2874 or visit the Town & Gown website www.chapman.edu/tg.