UChicago News

Investigative journalist adapts reportage on police torture scandal into a play

David Ford — Mon, 21 May 2012 10:11 -0500

John Conroy isn’t letting anyone off the hook.

After spending much of the last two decades covering the Chicago Police Department’s torture scandal in the pages of the Chicago Reader, the veteran investigative journalist has now compressed the details of that grisly chapter of the city’s history into My Kind of Town, a two-act play premiering this month at TimeLine Theatre.

“What I wanted...

Martha Nussbaum honored with Prince of Asturias Award for Social Sciences

Meredith Heagney — Thu, 17 May 2012 12:26 -0500

Martha C. Nussbaum, the Ernst Freund Distinguished Service Professor of Law and Ethics in the Law School, Philosophy Department and Divinity School, has received the 2012 Prince of Asturias Award for Social Sciences. The award is given by Prince Felipe of Spain to those whose work in various disciplines “...

Institute of Politics to host bipartisan panel on 2012 presidential election

Sarah Galer — Thu, 17 May 2012 10:00 -0500

Leading political commentators will meet at the University of Chicago on May 29 for a bipartisan discussion on the current state of the U.S. presidential election, hosted by the new Institute of Politics.

The program, “Campaign 2012: A Halftime Update,” will begin at 5 p.m. at International House’s Assembly Hall. Doors will open at 4:15 p.m. The event also will be webcast through the...

Federalist Society honors Elder Dallin H. Oaks, JD’57

Sarah Galer — Tue, 15 May 2012 14:10 -0500

“If you only do in the legal profession what you get paid for, you will miss some of your choicest opportunities,” said Elder Dallin H. Oaks, JD’57, a distinguished Mormon leader, to a group of University of Chicago law students.

The students had gathered at the Law School on May 3 to present Oaks with the Federalist Society’s 2012 Lee Lieberman Otis Award for Distinguished Service to honor his years of dedicated...

Undocumented, young immigrants face obstacles, uncertain futures

Fri, 11 May 2012 13:41 -0500

Undocumented Latino youth who migrate to the United States face futures clouded by limited rights and the constant fear of deportation, according to a new report from the University of Chicago and the University of California, Irvine.

Many don’t fully realize the constraints of their status until they become older teenagers and young adults, the report finds.

“Rites of passage common to American youth — getting a driver’s license, traveling, working...

Stephen Raudenbush elected to National Academy of Sciences

William Harms — Tue, 08 May 2012 15:34 -0500

Stephen W. Raudenbush, chair of the Committee on Education, has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences.

Raudenbush, the Lewis-Sebring Distinguished Service Professor in Sociology and the Harris School of Public Policy Studies, develops and applies quantitative methods for studying child and youth development within social settings such as classrooms, schools...

Prof. Thomas Holt to reflect on teaching about race in 2012 Ryerson Lecture

William Harms — Wed, 02 May 2012 10:56 -0500

Thomas Holt, an eminent scholar of African American history, will deliver this year’s Nora and Edward Ryerson Lecture at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, May 8 at the Max Palevsky Cinema in Ida Noyes Hall. The event is open to the public.

Holt, the James Westfall Thompson Distinguished Service Professor in History and the College, will discuss “Reflections on 40 Years of Teaching about Race,” tracing the evolving social and political context for studying and teaching about race,...

Municipal CFO conference focuses on pension reform

Sarah Galer — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 15:27 -0500

With cities across the United States facing $7 trillion in outstanding public pension liabilities, a first-of-its-kind conference brought together 14 major municipal chief financial officers to discuss how to close these huge funding gaps.

“When I took over as Chicago’s chief financial officer last year, I had to hit the ground running,” said Lois Scott, who helped organized the Municipal CFO Forum, which the City of Chicago, Office of the Mayor and the...

Belief in God rises with age, even in atheist nations

William Harms — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 09:00 -0500

International surveys about the depth of people’s belief in God reveal vast differences among nations, ranging from 94 percent of people in the Philippines who said they always believed in God, compared to only 13 percent of people in the former East Germany. Yet the surveys found one constant—belief in God is higher among older people, regardless of where they live.

A new report on the international surveys, “Belief About God Across Time and Countries,...

Four UChicago scholars receive Guggenheim fellowships

Allan Friedman — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 16:52 -0500

Four UChicago scholars—Alison Bechdel, John H. Cochrane, Adrian Johns, and Don Kulick—have been named 2012 John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellows. They are among 181 diverse scholars, artists and scientists selected this year in the 88th annual competition for the United States and Canada.

Chosen from a group of almost 3,000 candidates, the recipients have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the...