Knox in the News

From the Louisville Courier-Journal:

Tim Kasser, an authority on issues related to consumption and values who teaches at Knox College in Galesburg, Ill., said that people raised in uncertain or harsh economic times tend to be more focused, not less, on acquiring material comforts than the offspring of affluent societies.

“If you look at how the ‘Greatest Generation’ ended up acting once they got money, they certainly built a lot of big houses and got gas-guzzling cars and all the rest,” he said.

Kasser pointed to research that supports the idea that money truly can’t buy happiness. Those who focus on material possessions have a higher incidence of smoking, alcohol and drug abuse and depression, while people who are oriented toward intrinsic values tend to be more content. Happiness in Western industrial society has remained relatively stagnant for the past 50 years, he noted, even as prosperity has grown.

From the Register-Mail:

A combined choir of 120 voices, a 50-piece orchestra and two professional vocalists are joining forces to present a heartwrenching choral masterpiece by Johannes Brahms.

The Galesburg Community Chorus and the Knox College choir, accompanied by an orchestra comprised of some of the most talented musicians in the area, will present Brahms’ “Requiem” in German at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at the Orpheum Theatre, under the direction of Laura Lane.

“This is incredibly powerful, deep music,” Lane said. “It’s beautiful at all levels.”

From WGIL radio:

A Knox College baseball standout has won a top Midwest Conference award, while two teammates are named All-Midwest Conference South Division selections.

Senior outfielder Kevin Malone is the MWC South-Division Co-Player of the Year. The Bushnell-Prairie City graduate shares the honor with Grinnell College freshman designated hitter Mike Nodzenski…..

Also named to the first team were junior pitcher Spencer McNeil and junior catcher George Nicholson….

Knox College senior pitcher Sam Almohandis was named to the MWC All-South Division Second Team.

From WGIL radio:

Free college tuition and plenty of opportunities could be in the future of 15 local students as the The George Washington Gales Scholars Program inducted their 13th class of scholars at the George Washington Gale House. The students are graduating 8th grade and if they maintain good grades, complete community service hours, and take advantage of mentoring and career planning activities, the students will receive a two years tuition waiver at Carl Sandburg College and then a 2 year tuition waiver at Knox College.

Director of the Gale Scholars Program Les Hunter says the program creates opportunities for students’ futures in the area and tells WGIL he hopes the selected students learn from those who have been involved with the Gales Scholars in the past.

“I hope they take the opportunity that they have,” Hunter said. “I hope they take pride in the initial selection and I hope they take the opportunity that the students shared that can exist because they are Gale Scholars.”

Hunter spoke to the graduates Wednesday before Knox College President Roger Taylor and Carl Sandburg College President Tom Schmidt presented the students with certificates from the program. High School and college students involved with the program also spoke to the students saying they have been presented great networking and career opportunities because of The Gale Scholars program.p

From The Arizona Republic:

The Republic asked two [sic] people with unique perspectives to share their impressions of President Barack Obama’s commencement address at Arizona State University.

Mitchell S. McKinney is a professor at the Department of Communications at the University of Missouri.

Rodolfo Espino is a political-science professor at ASU specializing in American politics, racial politics and voting rights.

Corey Woods is the first African American elected to the Tempe City Council. He is working toward a master’s degree at ASU in education and has taught prospective teachers at the school as well….

Espino: As expected, he talks about the turbulent economy that these graduates now enter…. this is similar to his famous Knox College speech from 2006 where he warned about greed and irresponsibility…. we now see that a lot of that has come to pass, which he uses as a brilliant opportunity to talk about again… brilliant because it shows his concerns are still the concerns of the majority of the American electorate.

From WGIL radio:

Jonathan Powers has been named head coach of the Knox College Prairie Fire Swimming and Diving team.

Powers is an assistant professor of economics at Knox who swam for four years at Amherst College, where he graduated magna cum laude in 1987. At Amherst he was captain of the swim team his senior year - the same year his team placed 25th at the NCAA Division III National Swimming and Diving Championships. Powers also competed in water polo at Amherst, serving as captain his senior year, and in recent years has competed in several triathlons.

A member of the Knox faculty since 2000, Powers earned his doctorate in economics at Northwestern University in 2002. He teaches microeconomics, industrial organization, and game theory and has presented research papers at the American Economic Association, Midwest Economic Association and Western Economic Association annual meetings….

In addition to teaching economics at Knox, Powers has coached the club water polo team. It seems right then that he would take over the swimming program.