From the President's Desk
Next Tuesday, February 20, Professor Emeritus Ferdinand Ofodile, M.D., formerly Chief of Plastic Surgery at Harlem Hospital, will speak to us about his inspiring medical mission initiatives in Nigeria. We will be joined by several eminent guests from the Nigerian United Nations diplomatic community and African studies scholars. The informal conversation at lunch in Faculty House afterwards should be especially interesting!
EPIC is once again engaged in a
community-based speakers series at Morningside Gardens, our neighbors to the North, in collaboration with the
School of Professional Studies. Thanks to Professor Emerita Jo Shepherd for her work in shaping the series. Professor Emerita Fran Pritchett, who delighted the group last year with a talk on small poems, will be delving into the origins of yoga. Several of us in EPIC’s yoga classes will be having dinner before and going to the talk. You’re welcome to join in, even if you haven’t been contorting on a mat on Thursdays.
Email EPIC for more information.
Last Sunday, under the headline
"'Aging Pride' Challenges the Cult of Youth,"
The New York Times reported on an exhibit at the Belvedere Museum in Vienna. The artists and/or subjects were seniors and, for some mystifying reason, were mostly in the nude. Would be an amazing turn of events if somehow we were going to be re-subjected to the body image debate – especially now that I’ve gotten used to wearing comfortable clothes and shoes, fashion-be-damned!
By contrast, a different inspiring display of artistic passion took place at the first EPIC musicale, organized by Professor Emerita Carolyn Greenberg and graciously hosted by Frank Wolf at his apartment. Sixteen Columbia and 92nd Street Y musicians played classical music in trio, quartet, and quintet ensembles for strings, woodwinds, and piano and socialized over lunch. Another play-in is being planned for the spring and smaller, self-forming groups are also being organized.
Let us know if you are interested in participating.
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As usual EPIC yoga, led by Professor Emerita Ginny Papaioannou, continues on Thursday mornings with two session options, mat at 10:00 a.m. or gentle/chair format at 11:15.
Have a good day.
Jeanne Mager Stellman, President, EPIC
Professor Emerita & Special Lecturer
Mailman School of Public Health
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Tuesday, February 20
"Rethinking Rural Health Care Delivery: A Nigerian Diaspora-Town Union Partnership"
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Dr. Ferdinand Ofodile, M.D.,
Clinical Professor Emeritus of Surgery, will share experience and insights from the Nnobi USA Diaspora Health Group.
Dr. Ofodile, who hails from Nnobi, Nigeria, conceived the initiative to address the long neglected health care situation in Nnobi, a town in Idemili Local government area of Anambra State. The free health fairs and screening offered by the group across Nnobi benefited over 1000 people last year. Out of that number, 607 were treated on the spot, 280 for malaria, 290 for high blood pressure and 37 for diabetes.
In the summer of 2017, friends and supporters donated over $11,000 to support the initiative at a fundraiser connected with the 2017 Nnobi Union North America’s convention held at Adria Hotel in New York City.
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Nnobi USA Diaspora Health Group Screening Site.
Photo: Dr. Ferdinand Ofodile.
RSVP to let us know if you will join for lunch.
12
:00 - 1:30 p.m.
Faculty House, Seminar Room 1
Guests welcome!
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Tuesday, March 6: EPIC Conversation with Victor Navasky
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Please join us for the first in a series of conversations with distinguished colleagues from the Emeritus Professors in Columbia community. This EPIC Conversation is co-sponsored by the
Columbia Journalism School
.
Victor Navasky chairs the
Columbia Journalism Review
. He was the George Delacorte Professor of Magazine Journalism at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism, where he directed the Delacorte Center for Magazine Study. He has served as editor, publisher and now publisher emeritus of
The Nation
, which he joined in 1978.
In the 1970’s Navasky served as an editor on
The New York Times Magazine
. In the 1960’s he was founding editor and publisher of
Monocle
, a “leisurely quarterly of political satire” (that meant it came out twice a year). His books include
Kennedy Justice
and
Naming Names
, which won a National Book Award, and (with Christopher Cerf)
The Experts Speak: The Definitive Guide to Authoritative Misinformation,
and also
Mission Accomplished! Or How We Won the War In Iraq, A Matter of Opinion,
which won the 2005 George Polk Book Award and the 2006 Ann M. Sperber Prize, and of which
The New York Times
wrote, “Anybody who has ever dreamed of starting a magazine, or worried that the country is losing the ability to speak seriously to itself, should read
A Matter of Opinion.
”
Navasky is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Most recently he has published
The Art of Making Magazines: On Being an Editor and Other Views from the Industry,
edited by Victor S. Navasky and Evan Cornog, and
The Art of Controversy: Political Cartoons and Their Enduring Power
(Knopf, 2013).
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Navasky will be in conversation with Michael Rosenthal, Roberta and William Campbell Professor Emeritus of the Humanities, another distinguished Columbia author and scholar, and an EPIC steering committee member.
12:00 - 2:00 p.m.
Joseph Pulitzer World Room
Pulitzer Hall
Columbia University
Lunch provided.
Seating is limited. RSVP Required.
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EPIC Yoga Spring Schedule
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Professor Emerita Virginia Papaioannou, a registered teacher with the Yoga Alliance, continues to lead EPIC Yoga Thursdays in Faculty House in the Spring 2018 semester.
No prior experience is required to join. Yoga can benefit people at all levels of physical training and health, but it is always wise to consult with a physician before undertaking any new exercise regime. Modifications will be offered to any participants with specific limitations arising from recovery from injury, arthritis, limited movement, or other causes.
Two one-hour classes are offered each week.
The 10:00 to 11:00 a.m. class practices breathing techniques and moves through some basic yoga poses, concentrating on alignment, balance, and flexibility. Those with experience move more deeply into the poses.
From 11:15 a.m. to 12:15 p.m., we practice gentle/chair yoga, which is ideal for those of more limited mobility or flexibility. Classes include breathing, stretching, and yoga poses, done either seated in a chair or standing. No yoga mats are required for this class.
Please see the EPIC events calendar for schedule details.
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Morningside Gardens Speaker Series
Begins February 21
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Spring 2018 Program
February 21, 7:00 p.m.
“Yoking Up Yoga” Where does Yoga come from and where is it going? Is Yoga an important part of Hinduism? Some answers to these questions may surprise you. You don't need to be a yogi to find this talk interesting!
Speaker: Frances Pritchett, Professor Emerita of Modern Indic Languages, Department of Middle Eastern, South Asian, and African Studies, Columbia University
March 14, 7:00 p.m.
“The Diaspora and The Medically Underserved: A Case for a New Approach” This is an illustrated talk about Professor Ofodile’s experience working with Diaspora groups to provide medical aid in Africa and the Caribbean.
Speaker: Ferdinand Ofodile, M.D., Clinical Professor Emeritus of Surgery, Columbia University Medical Center
April 18, 7:00 p.m.
“Eve and Adam in the Gardens” For millennia, readers have interpreted the story of Adam and Eve by pandering to him and blaming her for their expulsion from the Garden of Eden (Genesis 2-3). But there are more excellent ways to understand the story. This talk will undercut the traditional reading by exploring anew the story of Eve and Adam as they enter the Gardens of Morningside.
Speaker: Phyllis Trible, Baldwin Professor Emerita of Sacred Literature, Union Theological Seminary
May 16, 7:00 p.m.
“Columbia University on Morningside Heights: The Early Years in Postcard Views” As the title implies, Mr. Susi takes us on a tour of Morningside Heights using vintage postcards he began collecting more than 20 years ago.
Speaker: Michael V. Susi, Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs, Columbia University; local historian and postcard collector
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Tuesday Talks
March 20
Professor Dickson Despommier
"The Vertical Farm: Feeding the World in the 21st Century"
April 10
Professor Justin Golub
"How Age-Related Hearing Loss Affects the Brain"
April 24
Professor Sunil K. Agrawal
Lecture and Tour: Robotics and Rehabilitation (RoAR) Lab, Columbia University
First Thursday Graduate Scholar Talks
March 1
Nicole Thompson, Ph.D.Candidate, Department of Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Biology
"The Fitness Benefits of Social Connection over the Lifespan of Blue Monkeys"
April 5
Michelle Van Tieghem, Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Psychology:
"Neurobehavioral Predictors of Risk and Resilience following Early Adversity"
Social Media Workshop
March 27
Annual Reception
May 8
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