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As proud family and friends waved tiny American flags, Hamilton President Eugene M. Tobin congratulated the 40 new Americans who were sworn in at a May 9 naturalization ceremony at the Federal Court House in Utica. In his remarks Tobin said the essence of being an American "is our system of freedom under law" and that "the responsibilities of citizens are as important as the rights accorded citizens."

Hamilton College Professor of Government Cheng Li, one of the nation’s foremost authorities on Chinese leadership, has been named a Woodrow Wilson Fellow for the 2002-03 academic year. Li will spend his fellowship year in Washington studying Chinese leadership changes and the implications for U.S.-China relations.

After years of overlooking notable black performances, the Academy Awards finally seem to have given black performers the credit they deserve. For the first time since 1972, blacks earned three nominations in the lead acting categories: best actor nominations for Denzel Washington in "Training Day," Will Smith in "Ali," and a best actress nomination for Halle Berry in "Monster's Ball." These nominations represent a welcome change, to be sure, but the Academy Awards still have a long way to go before breaking the color line. This year's nominations, alas, continued Oscar's tradition of ghettoizing black performers in stereotyped roles.

Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, the highest ranking woman in the history of U.S. government, met with about 50 Hamilton students prior to her public lecture March 6 and gave her views on U.S. foreign policy and hot spots around the world.

More than 250 people, including College President Eugene M. Tobin and many members of the Board of Trustees, participated in the fourth annual Alternative Spring Break Auction Friday evening, March 1, in Commons Dining Hall.

The Hamilton College Board of Trustees unanimously elected real estate entrepreneur Stuart L. Scott of Chicago, Ill., as its next chairman and investor Chester A. Siuda of New Vernon, N.J., as its next vice chairman.

In "Recalling Timbuctoo, A Slice of Black History, The New York Times highlights a plan by Gerrit Smith, an 1818 Hamilton graduate and a wealthy landowner at the time, to give away land to black families so that blacks could "acquire the means to vote."

Comedian, actor and activist Henry Holden will offer a free public lecture on Tuesday, Feb. 26, at 8 p.m. in the Hamilton College Chapel. Holden, who contracted polio at age four and walks with the aid of crutches, will discuss "The Misconceptions Continue: How the Media Represent People with Disabilities."

Hamilton Professor of Government Cheng Li is one of this nation’s foremost experts on China, especially Chinese leadership. The author of China’s Leaders: The New Generation, Li is frequently called on by U.S. government officials and media representatives to offer an informed perspective on who will succeed Jiang Zemin later this year at the 16th Communist Party Congress. When he gets to China, President Bush is expected to meet with Hu Jintao, the person Professor Li says is the frontrunner to succeed Jiang.

The New York Times, in its Feb. 15 edition, featured two new Florida law schools set to open this fall. Both schools, according to the Times article, were established "at universities with high minority enrollments, in an effort to bring more blacks and Hispanics into legal careers without using affirmative action."