1780 – The Official Blog of Transylvania University

1780 | The Official Blog of Transylvania University

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Transylvania students shine at annual Yale institute for bioethics

Posted on by Office of Marketing and Communications

LEXINGTON, Ky.—Should humans use animals to grow new ears? Should we attempt to revive extinct species like the passenger pigeon or the wooly mammoth? How shall we care for our aging human population? What ethical and philosophical challenges are raised by such questions? These are examples of the heady issues confronting participants in the annual Summer Institute offered by Yale University’s Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics. Transylvania has awarded Lydia Lissanu ’15 of Somerset, a sociology major with a biology minor, a full scholarship to the program, which brings together undergraduate and graduate students from around the world for two months each summer. Because of the success of previous Transylvania participants, Yale has reserved a spot for a Transylvania student since 2009. Transylvania selects the student from a pool of applicants and covers the enrollment fee. “I feel really blessed,” said Lissanu of being chosen for the Yale seminar. “It’s an honor. I hope that I can make the school proud when I’m there.” Participation in the program will afford Lissanu, who is on a pre-med, pre-public health track with plans to pursue a career in global health, the opportunity to study with an esteemed group of professors from Yale and other institutions. She was drawn to the program’s interdisciplinary focus, which is similar to the approach of several of her Transylvania courses. “She was really an extraordinary candidate,” said Jack Furlong, a Transylvania philosophy professor who’s on the selection committee.

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Fourth Street improvements will transform north Lexington

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—Collaboration. According to Lexington Mayor Jim Gray, that’s what made it happen. Connections. That’s what Urban County Council member Chris Ford wants the improvements to create. Transformation. And that’s what Bluegrass Community and Technical College President Augusta Julian expects for the surrounding neighborhood. It may have seemed like just another annoying road project to some who traveled it, creating the usual traffic snarls and inconvenient detours, but those who live in the area know differently. The Fourth Street improvements may truly transform the neighborhood. Several local dignitaries gathered last week at BCTC’s Newtown campus to celebrate the completion of the Fourth Street road project as well as a number of other important construction projects in the area, including Transylvania’s Athletics Complex. The newly reconfigured Fourth Street—which is now two-way between Newtown Pike and Jefferson Street, with freshly painted bike lanes, inviting sidewalks, and improved lighting—is indeed a critical connection between the residents of north Lexington and the downtown area and between the campuses of Transylvania University and BCTC. Said Ford, “The project is truly about mobility and connectivity.” The collaboration required to make the project a reality was the first indication of the connections this project could forge. It took a cooperative approach among multiple parties to envision the Fourth Street improvements and sustain the momentum for their completion: District 7 of the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government, R.J. Corman Railroad Group, Transylvania University, and BCTC. Julian

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What to do with all these chimps?

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—You might think the United States has a wide variety of surpluses: fast food restaurants, ineffective politicians, talentless celebrities, overpaid athletes, insipid tweets. But chimpanzees? You bet, says April Truitt, executive director of the Primate Rescue Center in Nicholasville. She will give a talk titled “The Chimpanzee Paradox: Too Few in the Wild, Too Many in the U.S.” at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 5, in Transylvania University’s Cowgill Center, room 102. Truitt will discuss what the future holds for the more than 800 captive chimpanzees in U.S. research facilities and why there are so many here. Plus, she’ll address the question of who is responsible for the future care of these long-lived creatures. The United States and the tiny African nation of Gabon are the only two countries still using chimpanzees in biomedical research. More than 100,000 non-human primates are in U.S. laboratories, whether for breeding or experimentation, according to Truitt’s website. “Those apes and monkeys kept for [experiments] are subjected to everything from psychological deprivation to repeated surgeries and other invasive procedures.” Truitt’s center is home to more than 50 primates, including 11 chimpanzees. Some came from research facilities, and some were pets: “Individuals pay dealers hefty fees for cute, cuddly, and easy-to-handle babies, only to find they’ve made a terrible mistake when their aging pets become stronger, wilder, and potentially dangerous,” according to the center. The 30-acre facility, which is funded by private donations, is meant

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Henry Clay Center names new executive director

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—The Board of Directors of The Henry Clay Center for Statesmanship has named Eduardo Nino-Moreno as the center’s new executive director. The center, a partnership between Transylvania University, the University of Kentucky and the center’s board, strives to honor the legacy of Henry Clay by promoting compromise as a means of solving our nation’s problems. The flagship program of the center, the Student Congress, invites rising high school seniors to the Transylvania campus each summer for a week-long program of activities where they learn about diplomacy, negotiation and conflict resolution. Nino-Moreno brings a wealth of experience to the position, having served around the world as a senior United Nations official for three decades. In that role, he had first-hand experience facilitating dialogue and developing consensus to avoid serious national confrontations. Nino-Moreno has a bachelor’s degree from Dartmouth College and a master’s degree from Cornell University. Prior to his appointment, Nino-Moreno was Transylvania’s director of campus diversity and inclusion. “I am thrilled to accept the challenge of leading the Henry Clay Center for Statesmanship,” said Nino-Moreno. “It is crucial for new generations of students to become acquainted with the rich legacy of one of Kentucky’s most illustrious sons who showed that compromise is an effective tool for strong leadership.” The executive director is responsible for establishing the strategy for the center and overseeing the center’s programming, including the annual Student Congress. For more information about the Henry Clay Center for

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Concert explodes with Rachmaninoff, soothes with Beethoven

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—On Sunday, Nov. 17, gifted pianist David Viscoli will perform works of two musical giants, Beethoven and Rachmaninoff, presenting a program that demands passion and virtuosity. The concert begins at 3 p.m. in Carrick Theater and is free and open to the public. The first half of the recital features two Beethoven sonatas. Both works reveal the composer’s more lyrical side. In the second half, listeners will hear a collection of works that, because of their difficulty, are rarely performed publicly: the nine Etudes-Tableaux, op. 39, of Rachmaninoff.  Transylvania music professor Greg Partain, a recognized pianist himself, encourages people to “come and hear the piano explode.” Partain knew of Viscoli’s work when they were students together at The University of Texas at Austin, where Partain considered Viscoli to be one of the most gifted young pianists in attendance. Viscoli is currently professor of piano at Minnesota State University in Mankato. American Record Guide, America’s oldest classical music review magazine, said of Viscoli: “… [he] relishes punishing virtuosic repertoire; but he’s capable of tender, understated lyricism as well.” Parking is available in the Mitchell Fine Arts parking lot adjacent to the building. For more information, please call Gretchen Shoot, fine arts administrative assistant, at 859-233-8141 weekdays between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.