Issue Archive
University of Cincinnati magazine encourages readers to submit letters. Letters submitted online may be considered for publication here and in the print edition of the magazine.
Letters to the Editor
Cover to cover
Congrats on a fantastic "UC Magazine" [September]. I particularly enjoyed the stunning photography featured throughout. It begs to be read from cover to cover.
I only wish that it arrived in my mailbox more than three times per year! (My wife's OSU alumni magazine comes six times a year.) Oh well, for now I will be satisfied with quality over quantity.
Chris Chaney, Eng '94
Cincinnati
Wow! What an absolutely spectacular issue of the magazine in September, particularly the two-page nighttime view of the UC campus. To say I am jealous of all those who have the opportunity to attend what UC has become since my graduation is to put it mildly. I have always felt I had great and devoted teachers and advisers back then, but the fabulous facilities make me sorry I am a few generations late.
My last visit was in 2002, consisting only of a drive-by. In 1997, I was able to walk around much of the campus and was totally impressed, but now it is almost more than I can comprehend.
Hopefully, I'll be able to visit one more time. Meanwhile, keep up the wonderful work with the magazine.
Monta Huber, Ed '57
Escondido, Calif.
I just finished reading the September edition of "UC Magazine" and wanted to let you know I thought it was one of the best to date. Keep up the great work.
Steve Wentzel, CAS '70, '84 and '92
Okeana, Ohio
The latest issue is very well done. It's been the best thing to connect me to the university since I graduated in '74 (other than sports).
Randy Doyle, Bus '74
Houston, Texas
We fumbled
I have read your September issue of the UC magazine and found it to be one of the best issues that UC has published. I do call your attention to the football schedule on the back outside cover . . .
Frank J. Kopich, A&S '64
Cincinnati
Editor's note: Frank caught errors in the schedule, which we immediately corrected online.
1948 News Record
You previously printed a picture of some members of the 1948 News Record staff and asked if anyone could identify them. I was the editor of the News Record that year, and I can name all but one. . [See the photo caption for his IDs.] I had some help from Nancy Nenninger Keating [Ed '49], who recognized Shirley Schneider [Bus '50]. I haven't been in the News Record office since June of 1948. I would love to come over and see the new one some day.
J. Howard "Bumpy" Frazer, A&S '49, JD '50
Cincinnati
In the picture of the News Record staff, the girl on the far right is Rita Obermeyer Leming. She married Pinky [Robert] Leming [Law '49 -- who passed away in '99]. I am a lifetime friend of former Alumni Association director Chris Demakes. I'm now in a nursing home, but doing OK at age 80.
Betty Ketta Taylor, Bus '48
Maplewood, NJ
As one of the News Record staffers pictured in the 1948 photo, I'd like to help clear up the IDs involved. I'm the one in the white shirt seated in front of the typewriter. Although the identity of the girl at the far right with her head down is too hard for me to tell with certainty, there is no question about the others. I recognized all of them, but conclusive verification can also be found in the News Record staff photo that appears in the 1949 yearbook.
Just to be sure, I called Shirley Schneider Weinstein, with whom I'm still regularly in touch, and was able to confirm with her that she is the person sitting alongside the desk in the corner right foreground. [See the photo caption for his other IDs.]
The News Record office was a regular haunt in those days for many of us who worked on it, and it was a fun place. The photo served as a pleasant reminder.
Stan Cohen, A&S '50
Newport Beach, Calif.
Editors's note: Letters in two issues of the magazine have confirmed IDs of three people and raised questions about others. Yet if the 1949 yearbook's listing of News Record staff is correct, the mystery is solved: Stan Cohen (white shirt at the typewriter) identified himself, as did Shirley Schneider Weinstein (sitting in the chair -- not Peggy Mason as previously guessed). Jody Schuck Young, A&S '50, is standing with her hand on the chair of sportswriter Jerry Teller, A&S '51, JD '53. Although the fellow at the far left has been identified as Edward Grad, A&S '52, MS (A&S) '53; Henry Hauenstein; and Al Batik, A&S '50, the yearbook identifies only Al as a staff member. Similarly, the yearbook indicates that Barbara Perry Fitzhugh, Edu '51, is more likely to be sitting on the desk than is Rita Obermeyer, Bus '44.
Flower Show omission
I was delighted to see the write-up in "UC Magazine" about the UC horticultural-program garden at the Cincinnati Flower Show. The omission of Holly Hawkins' name from the article, although probably inadvertent, was a mistake.
Thomas Fryman and other faculty and staff designed and worked on the garden. However, Holly Hawkins was the one who pulled it altogether. She put in an enormous amount of hours and even used some of her own personal items for the exhibit.
We love to work with the University of Cincinnati. The garden this year was lovely, and we have received many comments on how spectacular it was.
Mary Margaret Rochford
President, director of shows
Cincinnati Horticultural Society
Impressive tour
It was a wonderful experience to read the September magazine. This summer I convinced my 17-year-old grandson to visit the university with me because he is preparing to apply for admission to a school and has an interest in science and engineering. It had been 53 years since I visited the campus, and I had a rewarding experience. I think he was equally impressed.
Being an engineer, I was impressed by the architectural diversity and student facilities available. We had a comprehensive tour, and our student guides were outstanding. One even arranged a tour of the engineering department where a faculty member and two attentive graduate students gave us an introduction to the science of "nanotubes."
We had lunch in a cafeteria, where he was introduced to Cincinnati chili, another highlight of the visit. When we returned to Baltimore, I told several people that if I were an engineering candidate, I would select UC.
Robert Noll, Eng '53
Lutherville, Md.
Power of words
"There is a little ego involved there, but there is a public service thing, too." I concur fully with Professor Jon Hughes' quoted comment in the article "Write What's Right -- 125 Years of the News Record" [May].
A little of both were elements of what turned out to be a significant "Letter to the Editor" that I wrote to the News Record in my final year at UC. Little did I know at the time what an impact it would have.
A seemingly slow arrival time by area hospital medical personnel responding to a student felled by a seizure at the UC dining hall caused me to write a letter to the paper, urging the university to provide better on-campus emergency response. Dolly Seasongood, a prominent Cincinnati philanthropist, saw that letter and donated a fully equipped ambulance to the UC Health Service. Her photo presenting the keys of the vehicle to university officials appeared on the front page of the News Record with an explanation that the letter prompted the donation.
One never knows what far-reaching results may come from the written words of a newspaper, and that particular event launched my "second career" of writing public letters to the editor.
Fredrick Falls, DAAP '70
Mansfield, Ohio
Mistaken name
A column in the September issue of "UC Magazine" states that UC has six members of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS). While it is correct to say that UC has six members of the National Academies, UC has only one member of the NAS.
The National Academies comprise the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, the Institute of Medicine and the National Research Council. UC has one member of NAS (Elwood Jensen, medicine) and five members of the Institute of Medicine (Eula Bingham, Tom Boat, Robert Graham, Jane Henney and David Williams). I am very pleased with the progress that UC has made under President Zimpher's tenure and would like to see the UC administration take a more active approach toward increasing the membership of UC faculty in the National Academies and other prestigious organizations.
I appreciate the president's efforts and successes at making UC a great university. My daughter graduated (2006) from the business school, and, as a parent, I was very impressed with her education.
Stephen James, Eng (MS) '73
President, UC Engineering Alumni Board
Cincinnati
Editor's note: Stephen is correct. The column should have referred to the National Academies only. Furthermore, we have six members in the Institute of Medicine. Jeff Whitsett was omitted from his list. New members to the National Academies must be nominated by current members, leaving UC at a disadvantage outside the Institute of Medicine. UC intends to better acquaint Academy members with UC faculty through events such as the national Lingrel Symposium at which Nobel Prize winners and NAS members are invited to speak on campus.
Implosion video
I am a two-year Sander Hall veteran ('72-74), and I enjoyed the four-view implosion video online very much. I could see my freshman room crumble, and my soph one as well. So much life lived in a point suspended in thin air.
Chris Roberts, A&S '77
Seaford, DE
Famous alumni
I happened to be reading the Wikipedia entry on UC [online] and saw the "famous alumni" listing. It linked to your magazine. Maybe I'm missing it, but one famous alum I went to school with was Faith Prince [CCM '79], Tony Award-winning actress ("Guys and Dolls") who is still a regular on television.
While at UC, Faith was a resident adviser in dear old Sander Hall, and I was on that staff, as well. Faith was a scream to work with. During the "Mr. Sander Hall" contest, I put together the "All-Star Blues Pit Band" to play some tunes (I played trumpet), and Faith came out and sang a few songs.
Steve Magas, A&S & Ed '79
Cincinnati
Editor's note: The Wikipedia link went to a Web page that didn't list Faith, although she is listed elsewhere on our Web site. We restructured the linked page so she's easier to find.
Letters to the Editor policy
Letters to the editor must relate to the university, be signed and include addresses, colleges and years of graduation, when applicable. The editor reserves the right to edit letters for length, clarity or factual accuracy and to reject letters of unsuitable content. Letters may not criticize other letter writers. Opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of the University of Cincinnati.