1. Haitian Revolution theme of MLK events
Noted scholar Alex Dupuy, professor of sociology and Latin American studies at Wesleyan College, is the keynote speaker for the 2004 Martin Luther King Jr. Day observances at Bates College. Dupuy's address, "Toussaint L'Overture and the Haitian Revolution: Race and Questions in the Americas," is part of the annual Bates celebration of King's life and work that includes performances, academic workshops and a debate with Bates, Morehouse and Spelman college participants. Classes at the college are canceled and special programming is scheduled throughout the day with an emphasis this year on the theme "The Haitian Revolution: The Bicentennial and Its Legacy." Dupuy will illuminate the links between the historic 1804 Haitian revolution and contemporary issues of race relations. Find out more about the entire schedule. www.bates.edu/x46760.xml

2. Bates events in the sun
Headed to Florida this winter? There are many Bates events planned between January and March, including lectures by Professor Anne Williams, golf with football coach Mark Harriman, and more. For information, click www.bates.edu/x46758.xml.

3. Student work to be highlighted at mayor's inauguration
Students in the environmental studies seminar "Introduction to the Study of the City" created neighborhood "portraits" of sections of Lewiston using maps, resident interviews, photography and a panel presentation. Lewiston Mayor-elect Lionel Guay Jr. was so impressed by the students' presentations that he has invited them to show posters of their work at his inaugural reception on Jan. 5. www.bates.edu/x46827.xml

4. Did you know?
As an undergraduate, there are only 1,378 +/- days from the first day of classes to graduation day four years latter. That total includes all breaks, holidays, and vacations.
(Source: A. Charles Kovacs, Director of the Office of Career Services)

5. Asia Week at Bates
Thanks to support from a foundation dedicated to deepening undergraduate understanding and appreciation of Asia, Bates is dedicating the third week of January to programs that reflect the cultural wealth and diversity of that continent, particularly China. Supported by the Freeman Foundation, Asia Week includes a concert of Chinese music, photographic exhibitions documenting China, a lecture on Japanese garden design and an Asian film festival. www.bates.edu/x46784.xml

6. Class of 2004 elects officers
The Class of 2004 elected Eduardo Crespo as Class President and Tanya Schwartz as Class Secretary after a very close run-off election in late November. Crespo is from Quito, Ecuador, and has been very involved at Bates including being twice elected as At-Large Class Representative and representing the class of 2004 on the Dean's Advisory Committee. Schwartz hails from Hopewell Junction, N.Y., has been involved at Bates on the Educational Policy Committee, Representative Assembly, and as a dorm president. Both Crespo and Schwartz are dedicated to raising the largest senior class gift in the history of the College. The senior gift program serves as an opportunity for the Class of 2004 to make its first philanthropic mark on the College. Senior gift stresses the importance of joining the Bates alumni family in giving back to the College, and supporting its current projects and student activities. The senior gift committee, led by co-chairs Alexander Strekel, Shelby Graham, Crespo, and Schwartz, will begin its work at a kick-off dinner in mid-January.

7. This month in Bates history: the Winter Carnival torch lighting
A Bates tradition was born in 1958 when then-Maine Gov. Edmund Muskie '36 lit a torch to help celebrate Bates' Olympic-themed Winter Carnival. Since then, Maine governors (and at least one first lady) have lit the Bates carnival torch nearly every January -- some showing more panache than others, judging from a selection of 1950s to 1980s photos we've found and posted at the URL below. This year's torch is scheduled to be lit Jan. 21. www.bates.edu/x46830.xml

8. Bates humanities journal presents awards
Christine Woll of Pembroke, Mass., Amanda Millis of W. Newton, Mass., and Kathryn Moore of Pelham, N.H., have been chosen winners in the First Year Seminar research paper competition, sponsored by E-clectic, the Bates electronic journal of the humanities. Christine wins first prize of $100 for her paper "That Damned Fence: Relocation Camp Life through the Eyes of Japanese Alien and Japanese-American Poets," written for Professor Atsuko Hirai's First Year Seminar 234, The U.S. Relocation Camps in World War II. Amanda Millis garnered one of two second prizes of $50 for her paper "Getting It Right-Side Up," written for Professor Marcia Makris' FYS 261 "Ain't I a Woman?": Reading and Writing a Woman's Life. Kathryn Moore was winner of the other $50 prize with her paper "May the Circle Be Unbroken," written for Professor Elizabeth Eames' FYS 172 Power and Perception: Cinematic Portraits of Africa. The three winning papers and the other nine submissions can be read at the zine site: www.bates.edu/eclectic/.

9. Art and angels in New York City
The New York City Bates Alumni Club has joined with ten other NESCAC schools, Columbia University and HBO to offer "An Evening with Tony Kushner, Author of 'Angels in America.'" The Jan. 13 event includes a reception hosted by HBO and a talk by Mr. Kushner. On Jan. 24, Mark Bessire, director of the Bates College Museum of Art, and William Pope.L, a member of the Department of Theater and Rhetoric at Bates, will be hosting the opening of Pope.L's exhibit "William Pope.L:e-racism" at the Artists Space. See more information on these and other alumni club events: www.bates.edu/alumni-events-calendar.xml

10. Bates People in the News
The Washington Post explains how Democratic presidential candidate Howard Dean relies on a small, tightly knit group of advisers -- with senior aide Kate O'Connor '86 at the center. The New York Times joins Bates and the nation's medical community in saying goodbye to Dr. John A. Kenney Jr. '42, a former Trustee and a pioneer in dermatology. Meanwhile, The Portland Press Herald put a spotlight on local high school students who, through a college program more than two decades old, take advantage of a challenging and unusual opportunity to take courses at Bates. Also in the Press Herald: Three years after Tom Connolly '79 tipped off local news media about President Bush's old OUI conviction, the president sends him a card of thanks for his involvement with his campaign. www.bates.edu/bates-in-the-news.xml