University of Rochester

Rochester Review
May–June 2014
Vol. 76, No. 5

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Support for Success

Congratulations to everyone profiled in the “Center of Success” article in the March-April 2014 issue. I’m happy to read, in this and other articles, of the U of R’s support for students who might otherwise not be able to access quality education because of their racial, ethnic, socioeconomic, or cultural backgrounds. The individual stories of students served by the Kearns Center sound remarkably similar to those of students I have known who have participated in the Upward Bound program at the University of Maine, where I am currently a faculty member in education.

I believe that anyone who was impressed by these success stories should also be aware that the continued existence of the Upward Bound and McNair programs cannot be taken for granted. These federally funded TRIO programs are in jeopardy because of efforts to cut the budgets of federal programs that serve low-income Americans. The outstanding work that these programs do, as illustrated by the U of R students featured in the issue, could be reduced or eliminated if the “small government” advocates in Washington, D.C., and around this country get their way. Sadly, two years ago, the federal government stopped funding the University of Maine Upward Bound program, along with many other Upward Bound programs across this country.

I think it’s important to be clear, when speaking of these programs, that they represent our federal tax dollars at work. These programs need and are deserving of our political support.

John Maddaus ’65

Orono, Maine

The writer is an associate professor of education at the University of Maine.

lettersBAND OF MEMORIES: Dave Goldberg ’86 and Alan Sherman ’89 sent a photo of the 1985–86 edition of the pep band, one of many incarnations of the group. (Photo: Courtesy of Dave Goldberg ’86 and Alan Sherman ’89)
A Very Peppy History

I saw with interest the two-page spread about the pep band (“Pep in Their Step,” March-April). However, the comment that Greg Savich ’06 “founded” the band is not quite correct. He may have “re-founded” the band, but there was already a pep band in existence many years before that. When I arrived as a freshman in fall 1959, there was a thriving pep band as an adjunct of the marching and concert bands. We had yellow sweaters with a large “R” on them and, indeed, we had our place in the bleachers of the Palestra to help cheer on our basketball teams as well as provide the national anthem, “The Genesee,” fight songs, and halftime entertainment. We were a small but energetic group and always had fun.

I am proud to say that by the time I was a senior, I had the honor of being the president of the pep band as well as the marching and concert bands. It is one of my most enduring memories of my time at UR.

Allan Carlton ’63

Long Beach, N.Y.

I beg to differ with your caption on the photo of the pep band. It should say that this is the 10th anniversary of this iteration of the pep band. I know there was one from 1959 to 1964 (I played in it for my first three years at school), and I suspect there were other dates your readers can provide. Unfortunately, I found the conflict between being there regularly and getting my labs written up unworkable.

Charles Bash ’64

Midland, Mich.

letters (Photo: University Libraries/Department of Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation)

Photographic Memories

Janet Baker Jennison ’63, Steve Rothschild ’63, ’70S (MBA), Chris Wyser-Pratte ’65, and John Cotnam ’69W (EdD) wrote to identify the studious group overlooking Fauver Stadium that we used as the opening photo of Class Notes for the March-April issue. Correspondents were pretty much unanimous that the young man sitting in profile with horn-rims at the right of the photo is Christopher Lindley, then an assistant professor of history who left the University and became a city councilman and later deputy mayor of Rochester. Most agreed that Lindley is with members of the Class of 1963, but the roster of the circle of students was a little fuzzy. Mentioned as possibilities were Ann Holder Howe ’64, Len Strickman ’63, Bob Beardsley ’64, George Wingate ’63, Mike Boland ’63, ’75W (Mas), Ed Friedrich ’63, Fred Suter ’63, Bob Pincus ’63, Mike Boland ’63, ’75W (Mas), Dave Malone ’63, and Peter Cross ’63. As one writer noted in remarking on the lack of definitiveness about some of the IDs, “Honestly, it was 50 years ago.”

—Scott Hauser

While I am happy to see the pep band getting press, I want to correct an error—the pep band is not 10 years old. My father, who graduated in 1970 from UR, played in the pep band and the marching band. I graduated in 2003 and as a freshman joined some fellow classmates to form a pep band, under the leadership of David Morris ’02. We played at football and basketball games, including the sesquicentennial football homecoming game. I have no doubt that between 1970 and 2003, there were other incarnations of the band. We even wore the same shirts that are pictured!

Laura Osborne ’03

Alexandria, Va.

I was very excited to see a picture of the pep band. I noticed in the caption that they mentioned that it was the 10th anniversary. I wanted to comment that I was the president of the pep band from 1988 to 1991. In fact, it was through pep band that I met my future wife, Tracy Donnell ’95N, during my senior year. When I became the president in 1988, I believe that the band had been going on for at least four to five years before that. So I believe that this year is more like the 30th anniversary of the band, albeit not necessarily continuous. It’s great to hear that Mr. Savich resurrected the band from what seems like some time off around the turn of the century. As you can understand, the band was a very enjoyable and important part of my college life and I’m glad to see it continuing on.

Andrew Rocha ’91

Lynwood, Wash.

It was great to see the picture of the pep band featured in the March-April issue. However, we have to point out that the caption, describing the group as having “celebrated its 10th anniversary” was most definitely an error. We don’t know how long the University’s pep band existed before we arrived on campus in 1982 and 1985 respectively, and perhaps it was inactive for some period of time, but we can assure you the group was very much in existence and cheering on the Yellowjackets even back then. And just to prove it, here is a picture of the group from 1985–86 (Dave is the trombonist in the front row directly in the center, and Alan is the trumpet player second from the right). We reconnected 15 years ago, and are both now living in the Boston area. The pep band remains a fun UR memory for both of us.

Dave Goldberg ’86

Belmont, Mass.

Alan Sherman ’89

Lexington, Mass.

Thank you for publishing a great magazine. Being the parents of a current student, we look forward to reading about all the great things happening at the U of R. Thank you for featuring the pep band in the March-April issue. That was a great photo with catchy headlines. I wanted to give a shout out to Greg Savich ’06 who has been the guest conductor of the pep band for many years. Pep band members really are unsung heroes. They play because they love to support the university. Unlike at many universities, they do not get class credit or get paid to play in pep band. My only wish is that you could have listed ALL of the current pep band members even though they may not have been present for the photo. Thanks again for doing a great job!

Tori Myers

Madison Lake, Minn.

The writer is the mother of current student and pep band member Michael Myers ’16.

Editor Scott Hauser writes: We apologize that we didn’t identify all the members of the band and that we weren’t as precise in our description of the band’s history as we should have been. For more about the current incarnation of the band, including its current membership, visit https://ccc.rochester.edu/organization/marchingpepband.

lettersSKI-A-THON: A 1986 photo shows the cross-country ski team during a fundraiser. (Photo: University Libraries/Department of Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation)
More Skiers

I can identify some of the skiers in the photo from the January-February issue. All are members of the U of R’s first cross-country ski team, founded in the fall of ’85 by John Frittelli, the first (front) skier. The second skier is me, Roger Solin ’86.

John posted a notice in Wilson Commons about wanting to create a cross-country ski team. I was the first to respond. It was started as a recreational club, and we competed with other universities in upstate New York. This particular photo was from a fundraiser we did for the club in early March 1986 (maybe late February). We did a ski-a-thon, doing laps for pledged amounts from our friends and classmates, around the Eastman Quad to raise funds and awareness for the club. Our top skiers were John and Rob Dawson ’88 (I believe that is his last name; he is the skier in the back).

The black-and-white photo does not do justice to the beauty of the day and the scene. It was a warm, sunny day (we were concerned it would be too warm and there would not be enough snow for the event), and we were wearing the club’s first uniforms, lycra ski suits of light blue with golden yellow trim.

Roger Solin ’86

San Francisco

Department of Corrections

Our apologies to Edward Letteron ’55 for our description of the book Developing High Performance Tennis Players (Neuer Sportverlag, 2013) that was included in Books and Recordings in the March-April issue. Letteron edited the book by tennis coach Edgar Giffening, who wrote it to help tennis players of all levels improve their game. We also misstated Letteron’s class year in the description. He’s a member of the Class of 1955.


Review welcomes letters and will print them as space permits. Letters may be edited for brevity and clarity. Unsigned letters cannot be used. Send letters to Rochester Review, 22 Wallis Hall, P.O. Box 270044, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY 14627-0044; rochrev@rochester.edu.