In Review: University Notebook

With a new support and operational structure, the Douglass Leadership House will become the University’s first “living-learning community.”

The new program is designed to allow members of the house to offer academic, social, and housing options through partnerships with several University curricular and cocurricular units.

The house, located on the Fraternity Quad of the River Campus, will operate under an umbrella of support consisting of the College, the Office of Minority Student Affairs, the Frederick Douglass Institute for African and African American Studies, Residential Life and Housing Services, and the Office of Equity and Inclusion.

Jeffrey Runner, dean of the College, says the formalized partnerships will provide a stronger, more effective infrastructure for the house and its programs.

The house was established in 2012 by a group of undergraduate students as a physical expression of the principles set forth by Douglass, a 19th-century African American social reformer and abolitionist who made Rochester his home for a quarter century. The house’s mission is to establish an engaging intellectual community where students of all cultural backgrounds live together and raise awareness of the Black experience, including culture, politics, history, and diasporic roots.

Gateways Music Festival Orchestra Sets Carnegie Hall Debut

The spring 2022 edition of the Gateways Music Festival will feature the orchestra’s debut at Carnegie Hall, along with a commissioned work composed by Jon Batiste.

Organizers announced the New York City leg this summer as part of the upcoming season for Gateways, a biennial festival that celebrates musicians of African descent and their contributions to classical music.

Featuring about 100 musicians from across the country, including several Eastman School of Music alumni, the festival is a collaboration involving Eastman and Rochester-area churches and community organizations.

Originally planned for this fall, the 2022 festival will kick off in Rochester on April 18 with a series of recitals, talks, and other events. The Rochester portion wraps up with an April 20 concert at Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre.

Gateways will then travel to New York City for a similar series of events, April 21 through April 24, culminating in a concert at Carnegie Hall on April 24.

The spring festival includes the world premiere of a Gateways-commissioned work by Batiste, the Oscar-winning musician and music director for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Created for a full orchestra and narrator, the work will be premiered as part of Gateways’ Carnegie Hall program.

A full schedule, including information about purchasing tickets for both the Rochester and New York performances, is available online.

New Coalition Focuses on Student Mental Health and Wellness

A newly formed University Coalition on Student Mental Health and Wellness will assess the current state of student mental health at Rochester and make recommendations for ways the University community can work to improve student well-being.

The decision to form the coalition was made jointly by President Sarah Mangelsdorf and Melissa Sturge-Apple, vice provost and University dean of graduate and postdoctoral education.

The coalition begins with 11 members, forming a steering committee chaired by Susan McDaniel, a family psychologist and the Dr. Laurie Sands Distinguished Professor of Families and Health in the Departments of Psychiatry and Family Medicine.

Steering committee members, including representatives from the University Counseling Center, University Health Service, several academic units, as well as two students, anticipate forming working groups composed of additional members of the University community as well as colleagues at other universities engaged in similar projects.

The group hopes to announce recommendations to the University community by the end of the calendar year.

Chief Human Resources Officer Appointed

One of the University’s key leaders in the development of the institution’s workforce has been named vice president and chief human resources officer. Kathleen Gallucci, who has served as vice president for human resources at the Medical Center since 2016, moved into the University-wide role on August 1.

Appointed on an interim basis last fall, Gallucci led University-wide HR programs as the institution responded to the COVID-19 pandemic and the changing needs of the institution’s 25,000 employees.

Reporting directly to President Sarah Mangelsdorf, Gallucci oversees human resources programs and services for every division of the University.

The cabinet-level leadership role directs the overall strategic and operational human resources functions and implements programs and policies that recognize the diversity of the University community, enhance organizational effectiveness, and ensure quality recruitment retention, training, and development of employees.

The appointment came after a national search to succeed Tony Kinslow, the former associate vice president for human resources.

Rochester Sets Vaccine Expectations for Students, Faculty, and Staff for the Fall Semester

The University has set guidelines for vaccinations as students, faculty, and staff return to campus for the fall semester.

All students were required to submit proof of vaccination by August 1 in order to be on campus. For those who were unable to get vaccinated by that date, the University plans to provide vaccines as students arrive for the 2021–22 school year. Students can apply for religious and medical exemptions, but those without an approved exemption who fail to get vaccinated face having their registration revoked early in the semester.

Similarly, faculty and staff were required to submit their vaccination status by the middle of August. Those who aren’t vaccinated are required to take a COVID-19 test frequently and regularly beginning this fall.

The moves are part of a national effort among colleges and universities to help ensure safe learning environments on the nation’s campuses and to help limit the potential for outbreaks as students return to campus.

Opera Performances Go Online

With pandemic restrictions limiting in-person performance opportunities, Eastman Opera Theatre has taken its summer season online.

In a series of three productions, the program launched an on-demand streaming format to overcome some of the challenges faced by vocal and operatic performance teams.

The third production in the series, Postcard from Morocco, by Pulitzer Prize–winning composer Dominick Argento ’58E (PhD) and librettist John Donahue, is available to stream until September 13. The performance was directed by Steven Daigle, a professor of opera and artistic director of Eastman Opera Theatre, with music directed by Timothy Long, an associate professor of opera and music director for Eastman Opera Theatre.

Earlier productions included Mozart Mayhem, an inventive, immersive twist on three of the composer’s most beloved operas: Le nozze di Figaro, Così fan tutte, and Die Zauberflöte. The production was directed by Eastman School of Music master’s student Madeleine Snow with music directed by Wilson Southerland, an assistant professor of opera and assistant music director of Eastman Opera Theatre.

The second production was Elizabeth Cree by Pulitzer Prize–winning composer Kevin Puts ’94E, ’99E (DMA) and Mark Campbell. The performance was directed by Stephen Carr, an associate professor of opera and musical theater studies and associate artistic director of Eastman Opera Theatre, with music directed by Long.

More about the season.

Strong Expansion Aims to Improve Patient Care

The Medical Center has begun planning for a long-term project to significantly expand Strong Memorial Hospital’s Emergency Department—roughly tripling its size to relieve overcrowding—while also providing for new inpatient space designed around modern care needs.

Known as the Strong Expansion Project, the initiative aims to bring necessary updates to the facility, allow for future growth, and provide space for faculty and staff to deliver care in modern and private facilities that meet the expectations of patients.

Design work on the project has begun, and the final plan ultimately is contingent upon approval from the University’s Board of Trustees. Rochester’s emergency department has not expanded significantly since the loss of two city hospitals about 20 years ago.

Since then, Strong Memorial has seen a substantial 66 percent increase in emergency room visits. Patients frequently experience long wait times because of lack of treatment space, which also challenges staff who serve patients and their families.

The plan calls for completing the project in 2027.