In the News

“If someone had told me, even when I was in college, that I’d be singing at the Metropolitan Opera, I never would have thought that would happen. I didn’t grow up with classical music; my voice just developed that way.” —tenor Anthony Dean Griffey ’01E (MM), talking with the Winston-Salem (N.C.) Journal about the lead role in Peter Grimes, a February performance at the vaunted venue that was recorded for the PBS series Great Performances.

Norman Neureiter ’52 Receives Award from National Academy

Norman Neureiter ’52, a longtime leader in efforts to make international technological and scientific cooperation an important part of U.S. foreign policy, has been selected to receive one of the top honors of the National Academy of Sciences. Neureiter, the director of the American Association for the Advancement of Science’s Center for Science, Technology, and Security Policy since 2004, this spring will receive the academy’s Public Welfare Medal, an award first presented in 1914 and whose past recipients include Carl Sagan and Maxine Singer. A chemistry major at Rochester, Neureiter served in the state department early in his career before joining Texas Instruments, where he was an executive for 23 years until his retirement. Named in 2000 as the first science and technology policy advisor to the secretary of state, Neureiter served under Madeline Albright and Colin Powell.

Grammy Goes to Maria Schneider ’85E (MM)

Composer and orchestra leader Maria Schneider ’85E (MM) took home the Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Composition this February, her second award from the Recording Academy. Schneider was recognized for “Cerulean Skies,” the centerpiece of her new album Sky Blue. In 2005, she received the Grammy for Best Ensemble Album for Concert in the Garden, the first Grammy-winning recording with Internet-only sales. Also nominated for Grammys this year were the Ying Quartet, Eastman’s quartet-in-residence, in the chamber music category, and Paul O’Dette, professor of lute, in the best opera album category. Renée Fleming ’83E (MM) was nominated in two categories—best classical album and best classical vocal performance.

Lois Giess ’63N Recognized for Rochester Leadership

Lois Giess ’63N, a former president of the Rochester City Council, received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the University’s Susan B. Anthony Center for Women’s Leaderhip in recognition of her work as a political leader and neighborhood activist. Giess, who served on the council from 1986 to 2007, worked as a public health nurse in Rochester’s city neighborhoods before being elected to the council. The Anthony Center also presented a new award, the Distinguished Women Leaders at the University Award, for mid-career women who have contributed to women’s education. The inaugural recipients were Sandra Schneider, a professor of emergency medicine at the Medical Center, and Judith Smetana, a professor in the Department of Clinical and Social Sciences in Psychology.

Bob Bly ’79 Honored for Copywriting

Bob Bly ’79, the author of the direct-marketing standard The Copywriter’s Handbook, has been named the Copywriter of the Year for 2007 by American Writers & Artists, a publisher of copywriting and graphic design study programs. A freelance writer based in Dunham, N.J., Bly specializes in business-to-business, high-tech, and industrial copywriting, and is considered a top direct-marketing consultant. The Rochester engineering major has written more than 70 books, including his most recent, Getting Started as a Freelance Writer.