William Curt Hunter, former senior vice president and
director of research at the Federal Reserve Bank of
Chicago, has been appointed dean of the School
of Business. Hunter's wealth of experience stems from
an exceptional career in the worlds of economics and
finance, spanning academia as well as government.
Under his leadership, UConn's growing reputation for
excellence will expand. This year, Business Week
placed UConn's MBA among the top 30 public programs
nationally. U.S. News & World Report hailed
UConn's MBA as the best in New England. Forbes said UConn's
MBA provides one of the nation's highest
returns-on-investment. The Wall Street Journal
elevated UConn to its list of top business schools.
Leadership in human rights distinguishes University
When UConn hosted its Annual Comparative Human Rights Conference this year, it made history by bringing together UNESCO chairs in human rights from around the world. UConn's Amii Omara-Otunnu, the first and only UNESCO chairholder in human rights in the U.S., arranged for six UNESCO chairs to confer at the UConn conference. Chairholders came from Israel, Jordan, Germany, the Netherlands, and South Africa to discuss international human rights education. UConn's human rights initiatives began in 1999 with an historic partnership with the African National Congress. In March, University President Philip Austin led a delegation to South Africa. They met with academic and government officials and were invited guests at the opening of South Africa's Parliament.
UConn doctors first to receive smallpox vaccine
UConn made medical history when it led the nation in
a safety effort to inoculate health center workers
against biological terrorism. Health Center doctors
were the first medical practitioners to receive the
smallpox vaccine, signaling the start of a federal
smallpox inoculation program of medical first
responders. Medical personnel in the health care
community include emergency department physicians and
nurses, state and local health department officials
and emergency professionals, such as medical
technicians, police, firefighters and rescue workers.
The development of a 40-acre area on the edge of the
main campus in Storrs into a vibrant destination with
retail outlets, restaurants and commercial office
space gained momentum. An environmental impact study
completed this year concluded that the proposed
project would not adversely impact the environment. A
coalition of town of Mansfield and University
officials, local businesses and more than 250
residents, including members of the student body, are
working together to create the downtown center. UConn
alumnus Philip Lodewick chairs the downtown
partnership initiative.
Researching how touch can heal
The UConn Heath Center's Exploratory Center for Frontier Medicine will receive $1.8 million in National Institutes of Health funding over the next three years to study complementary and alternative medicine. UConn is one of only two universities that are receiving these pioneering grants. According to the NIH, people make about 250 million more visits each year to alternative medicine practitioners than they do to primary care physicians. Despite this extensive, documented search for treatment that people believe frontier medicine provides, little is known scientifically about its short- and long-term effectiveness. Under the terms of the grant, UConn's research will focus on energy medicine - therapeutic and healing touch and the form of massage known as reiki, used for conditions ranging from headache to cancer.
Sacklers' philanthropy animates creative vision
Raymond and Beverly Sackler, instrumental in forging
a unique partnership between the Metropolitan Opera
and UConn, have now established a Music Composition
Prize. The prize promotes composers and the
performance of new musical works, recognizing
remarkable creative exploration. It is part of a
broader program promoting the creative spirit within
UConn's School of Fine Arts. Composer and pianist
Gabriela Lena Frank won the first $20,000 award for
"An American in Peru," a composition about her
father's experiences as a 1960s Peace Corps
volunteer. The Sacklers' other University-based
philanthropic initiatives include an
artist-in-residence program, the Master Artists and
Scholars Institute, and the Art and Archeology
lecture series.