September 7, 1998

Community Chat

Community Chat spotlights the community activities and personal milestones of staff, faculty, and students. Send Community Chat items to Mary Ann Dewey (dewey@cats.ucsc.edu).

Anthropology graduate student Kristen Cheney's photographs of Africa and the Monterey Bay Area are being exhibited at Louden Nelson Community Center through October 1. Cheney, a travel agent and former Peace Corps volunteer, spent several years living in Africa and was given the name "Nakalanzi" by some friends from Uganda. It is Kiganda for "One who tells what she knows."

On Tuesday, September 15, from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m., Cheney will present a slide show and discuss travel possibilities in Africa. If you are curious about Africa's people, cultures, and landscapes, come see this slide show and plan to stay afterwards for a short discussion about travel opportunities in Africa. Cheney is coordinating a group trip that will be less expensive than booking individual tours.

A closing reception will be held on Sunday, September 27, from 6 to 8 p.m. Refreshments will be served, and Cheney will be available to answer questions.

The exhibit and activities are free and open to the public. The Louden Nelson Center is on the corner of Laurel and Center streets in Santa Cruz.

Katherine Spilde, the third student to graduate from UCSC's new anthropology Ph.D. program, wrote her dissertation on Indian gaming and has landed her "dream job" in Washington, D.C. She was recently appointed policy analyst/writer on the national Gambling Impact Study Commission. She is in charge of writing the section on Indian Gaming for the commission's report, "Gambling in America," which will be presented to the president next June 20. The report will provide the basis for future gambling policy, as well as federal Indian policy relating to gaming. One function of the commission is to hold hearings around the country for people to testify to us about the impact of gambling in their location, so she's off to Mississippi, New Orleans, and Las Vegas in coming months. Spilde writes that she is "feeling overwhelmed and thrilled" and has a sense that anthropology "really can lead you anywhere you want to go."

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