April, 1990 — LION’S EYE — Page 3 Kenya Native N amed Retention Specialist by Jill Rhodes You may have wondered who the woman is with the beautiful, colorful dresses, the exotically cornrowed hair, and the beautiful melodic voice, newly arrived in Room 106 Main as campus retention specialist. Her name is Wan- jiru Kamau, from Kenya, in East Africa. Ms. Kamau grew up the youngest of three girls, in the rural area of Kenya, which has 42 different ethnic groups, each with its own language and culture. As a child she was taught to ‘“‘cope and interact with nature, something you miss when a country is industrialized. There is harmony with nature — animals, people, vegetation — the total environment, which I sometimes miss.” In 1960 Kenya gained freedom from Great Britain. The people were not prepared to manage the government for themselves. They had 36 doctors, 10 electrical engineers, 17 university pro- fessors, and 7 economists in the entire country. U.S. President John F. Ken- nedy gave 900 scholarships to the people to teach them about managing themselves. Wanjiru was one of ninety woman chosen out of the total nine hun- * dred. She studied counseling in Califor- nia and then she went back to Nairobi and became Assistant Dean of Students at the University there. As it happens, Penn State has an exchange program with the University of Nairobi for both students and staff. She decided to take advantage of the program and came here to Delco. She recently completed her Masters in Education at Penn and is cur- rently working on a doctorate. Her expectations for the United States were high. She wanted to get superior training in counseling and be able to exchange theories about it in a free world. “We are fortunate to be able to communicate freely because it pro- motes academic growth.” Her job here as Retention Specialist is a varied one. “‘I direct students through the progress of academic discipline, utilizing concentrated advising, counsel- ing, tutoring, and support to gain the result of the grade point average re- quired to gain and maintain their posi- tion in the college of their choice.” She feels that it is very important for students to be able to come to the facul- ty and staff with any kind of problem.” There is no reason for them to feel left out because there are so many offices here to help out with their goals.” There are many differences between young people in the United States and Kenya. Education is taken very serious- ly there because it used to be something they never had. Now Kenyans must pass an exam to go to high school, and another one for the university. All of the university students are there on govern- - ment scholarships. Higher education is a privilege. Ms. Kamau’s plans for the future are to gain professional experience in a developed country, study our culture, and to compare the different institu- tions to which she has had access. Her biggest interest is youth. She wants to understand them and help them cope. She says that young people, in any coun- try, ‘need someone to share inner con- flicts and someone to listen.” In Nairobi this is a very important thing. She believes that by studying their youth, Kenyans can ‘breech the generation gap in a country that is changing very fast.” To help them understand things, they must be aware. Poverty of the mind and material things have always haunted me. Therefore, I have done a lot to improve people’s social and political consciousness.’ Look for the Last Issue of The Lion’s Eye During Exam Week For a Spring Sports Wrap-up and a Review of the 89 - '90 ~~ School Year! Delco Composes Composite Woman Continued from Page 2 the African nations and from Eastern Europe. Other countries represented are France, Sweden, and Switzerland. FEMINIST PIONEERS There are many ‘‘firsts’’ among us. Virtually every one of us has been the first woman in her family to do something significant: complete high school or college, earn a graduate degree, divorce or remarry, work outside the home, travel abroad, live away from her home town. We are the first woman in BOOKS modes. — HOT TOPICS — prepared by Anne Pilgrim Library Assistant GENE-SPLICING Books can be located by searching LIAS using the headings: RECOMBINANT DNA, BIOETHICS, BIOTECHNOLOGY, and GENE THERAPY, and subheadings under those headings. For a complete list of books available, check these headings using LIAS in both the ‘lib de’ and “lib all” MAGAZINES AND JOURNAL ARTICLES Business Periodicals Index ENCYCLOPEDIAS (Ref. QH332.E52) NEWSPAPERS The following periodical indexes are on the Index Tables: Readers’ Guide to Periodical Literature under “GENETIC RESEARCH” and subheadings under “RECOMBINANT DNA” and “GENETIC RESEARCH” PAIS (Public Affairs Information Service Bulletin) under “GENETIC ENGINEERING” and “GENETIC RESEARCH” Encyclopedia of Bioethics 4v. New York: Free Press, 1978 under “GENETIC ENGINEERING” and “GENE THERAPY” New York Times Index (Microcomputer Area) under the heading “GENETIC ENGINEERING.” Back issues of the New York Times newspaper are available on microfilm. A microfilm reader-printer is also available. GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS There are a number of government publications on this topic which can be iden- tified by using Public Affairs Information Service Bulletin and the Monthly Catalog of United States Government Publications (on the index tables). The documents identified using these publications will have to be obtained from University Park or other government depository libraries. FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, ASK A LIBRARY STAFF MEMBER FOR HELP. our families to run a marathon, hold political office, join the national women’s movement, use a computer, become a nurse, go to Penn State, play the saxaphone, refuse to garden and can, climb a mountain, hitchhike around Europe, be born in five generations] TALENTS Our self- -proclaimed sriceial talents in- clude singing, camping, reading poetry, scuba diving, writing poetry, motivating students, sightseeing, hairstyling, ceramics, mothering, sewing, being a good friend, doing a job well, handbell ringing, dancing, opening people's minds and hearts, working with animals, playing the cello, planning complex stuff, baking, painting, biking, photography, and talking to the family. Words with which we describe ourselves fall within six categories: 1) passionate, intense, determined, persistent, and even particular; 2) considerate, generous, caring, sen- sitive, emotional; 3) energetic, lively, fun-loving, good humored; 4) hardworking, ethical, professional; 5) optimistic, idealistic, hopeful; 6) intelligent and aware. A few adjectives from those who fall to the right or left of this mid-point: closet radical, impasient/patiens, volup- tuous. What do we do when we are not work- ing? “Work!” (It never ends.) ACCOMPLISHMENTS For a group of well-educated, talented women who have been successful in the academic and business worlds, we sur- prisingly responded, by a large majority, that we are most proud of raising our families and being part of a family. We added that we are also proud of our work and our own accomplishments. If we had it to do over again, most of us would keep our lives the same. We would not change a thing! But some of us said we would start our post- secondary education earlier, or wait longer to marry and have our children. SOME SHARED WORDS OF WISDOM ‘““Women should learn to love themselves half as much as they love others.” “If it won't matter in a year or two, don’t make it an issue now.” “Be an individualist and strive to make a constructive difference.” “Women should appreciate one another more fully and network to assist each other.” “Whatever you choose to be, be the best you can be, and be proud of it.” ‘““Keep life interesting; don’t stagnate.” “Go after what you want in this world; there is nothing holding you back anymore.’’ “The main obstacle to our achieve- ment is often our own lack of trust in ourselves.” A SUMMARY To summarize, we are intelligent, tireless professionals, dedicated and commited to what we do. We have con- victions and the determination to honor them. We carry out and carry on with these intitiatives with dignity and com- passion, perhaps even for those who do not share our views. Finally, we are eter- nally hopeful. And so we believe that what we endeavor to do will make a dif- ference, or at the very least will ‘come to bear.” Our Composite Woman is distinguish- ed and deserving of recognition. She is pivotal to the campus. She takes her work seriously. She works hard, and she does so unselfishly with style and vision. PA Spending On Education Ranks Low Pennsylvania ranked 27th in the na- tion in total revenue per capita in 1988, says the U.S. Census Bureau. That was far behind eighth-ranked New jersey and fifth-ranked Delaware, according to ‘‘State Government Finances in 1988.” Much of the 1988 spending by state governments went to education and public welfare, the report noted. Delaware ranked second in the nation in per capita spending on higher educa- tion. Both Pennsylvania and New Jersey were far behind in such spending, ranking 45th and 48th respectively.
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers