Westmont has suddenly emerged as a leader in wireless technology, becoming the only school in the country to completely move to an 802.11n wireless network that creates a wireless cloud over the entire campus. This computing technology, which the college began installing in August, offers many benefits to faculty, staff, students and visitors, who are increasingly using laptop computers and handheld, Internet-based devices such as an iPhone or Palm Pre. more
Yearly Archives: 2009
Westmont Wired(less) – First on Country
October 23, 2009 | Posted in Planet Santa Barbara
Gerald Carpenter: Westmont Theatre Stages ‘Bald Soprano’
October 22, 2009 | Posted in Santa Barbara's Noozhawk
Playwright Eugène Ionesco thought he was writing a ‘tragedy of language,’ but the joke was on him. The Westmont College Theatre Arts Department will present Eugène Ionesco’s landmark theater piece The Bald Soprano at 8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and Oct. 29-31 in Westmont’s Porter Theatre. more
Spinners raise funds to aid Cambodian village
October 22, 2009 | Posted in Santa Barbara Daily Sound
An indoor cycling fundraiser, called “Spin for Cambodia,” is planned this weekend at an upper State Street business to help 12 area volunteers perform humanitarian work in that ravaged Asian nation. The fundraiser will be from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday at the Spectrum uptown gym, 3908 State St., Santa Barbara. Cyclists will be asked to donate $20 per hour of participation for a at least one hour and up to six hours. more
THE POWER OF TWO
October 22, 2009 | Posted in Santa Barbara Independent
Emma Lou Diemer has been a significant musical Santa Barbaran for decades, in various contexts. Her latest album, Summer Day: The Complete Works for Violin & Piano—to be released next week—gives voice to another facet of her musical being. The Yale-trained keyboardist, composer, and educator taught at UCSB for two decades, including involvement in the early stages of the university’s electronic music department, and has a national reputation as an organist and organ music composer. On the new CD, Diemer documents an intriguing and intimate side channel of her writing, with works dating from 1988-2008, and recently occasioned by a duet partnership with violinist Philip Ficsor, a Westmont teacher who plays beautifully. more
ON STAGE : 'The Bald Soprano'
October 21, 2009 | Posted in Santa Barbara News Press
What they have here is a failure to communicate. That’s the basis for the comedy “The Bald Soprano,” which Westmont College students will perform at 8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and Oct. 29-31 at the college’s Porter Theatre. “In an age of Twitter, sound bites, e-mail and Facebook, I think the question of how we communicate and whether we are really saying anything at all is incredibly relevant, and happens to also be funny in (playwright Eugene) Ionesco’s play,” said theater arts professor Mitchell Thomas in a news release. more
Opinion: VOICE FROM SANTA BARBARA: Passing along secrets of the tribe
October 21, 2009 | Posted in Santa Barbara News Press
The frustration and confusion we have seen displayed in recent town meetings across our country cannot be understood on the basis of a single issue. Whether left or right, Democrats or Republicans, people are frightened, bewildered, lost. It is hard to find a national consensus, about almost anything. When we disparage our own culture and heritage, we eliminate the basis for consensus and shared values. Dr. David Winter served as president of Westmont College from 1976 until 2001. He is now headmaster at Providence Hall High School in Santa Barbara. more
Claire Jeanne Sangster: 1958 – 2009, Goleta
October 20, 2009 | Posted in Santa Barbara Independent
Earlier this year, Claire died suddenly of natural causes in Goleta. She was a Santa Barbara native, graduating at the top of her class at Santa Barbara High School and then attended Westmont College on a merit scholarship, graduating with a B.A. in Psychology. She earned a Master’s in social work at San Jose State and lived in Austin, Texas for a few years. more
SOMETHING TO SING ABOUT
October 20, 2009 | Posted in Santa Barbara Independent
Westmont College’s Theatre Arts Department premieres its production of The Bald Soprano this Thursday, October 22, in Porter Theatre (955 La Paz Rd.) at 8 p.m. The comedy, originally written by Eugène Ionesco, will feature eight student actors in various roles. Call 565-7040 for tickets and show times. more
ON STAGE: Pianist, violinist to mark CD release
October 20, 2009 | Posted in Santa Barbara News Press
Pianist Emma Lou Diemer and violinist Philip Ficsor, both from Santa Barbara, will perform at 3 p.m. Sunday at First Presbyterian Church, 21 E. Constance Ave. The free concert will feature Ms. Diemer’s compositions from her new CD, “Summer Day: The Complete Violin Works of Emma Lou Diemer,” on which she plays piano and Mr. Ficsor the violin. At the concert, Ms. Diemer, an emeritus UCSB professor of composition, and Mr. Ficsor, a Westmont College violin professor, will play Aria, Scherzo, Suite (“Summer Day,” “Elegy,” “Jazz Romp”), “Before Spring,” “Homage to Paderewski” and “Catch-A-Turian Toccata.” more
Dairyville event provides scholarships for 100
October 19, 2009 | Posted in Daily News: The Voice of Tehama
Behind 70-odd booths, less audible than Jonathan Skillman’s team of family- fiddlers, less tasty than the hot dogs, are $86,000 worth of scholarships. … Amanda Wigno used her scholarship to obtain a communications degree from Westmont College in Santa Barbara, and got a job almost immediately back at home. Today, she works for Garcia at the Tehama County Job Training Center in Red Bluff, and on Saturday, she was volunteering alongside her weekday boss. more