OSWEGO, NY — Visiting retired professor Ann Callaghan Allen made an appearance on campus to educate students in a public lecture on one woman who broke the boundaries of gender expectations. The Gender and Womens’ Studies program director, Professor Joanna Goplen, served as the head of the event, and is hopeful that the message of appreciation for women in history resonates with SUNY Oswego students.

“I think it’s really helpful for students to see examples of women in history who have accomplished things and may not have gotten the credit that they were due,” Professor Goplen said. “The connection to the Oswego community, I think,  is also interesting, so hopefully they’ll pull away some local history as well.”

“The Madame’s Business” follows the true story of Malvina Guimaraes, a businesswoman pressing against the conventional roles of women in society, and the subsequent inventor of the sewing machine. Professor Allen reflected on her research and admires Guimares’ bravery and perseverance.

“I know that people who grew up in Oswego or people who come here for school really aren’t exposed to the history of this city, it’s got a remarkable history, really,” Professor Allen said. “If people can be engaged in the life of Oswego in the nineteenth century, I feel as though I’ve accomplished something.”

Professor Allen’s book is available for purchase locally at Oswego’s River’s End Bookstore and online at riversendbookstore.com.

OSWEGO, NY — The Marano Campus Center at SUNY Oswego held a recent screening of “Human Again,” a filmed documentation displaying the power of theater on prison inmates. The showing of the film was open to the public, and a discussion panel consisted of professors in various fields of study, such as Criminal Justice, Psychology, Creative Writing and, of course, Theater.

Professor Kristen Eichhorn, the Dean of Graduate Studies at SUNY Oswego, served as the head of the event, and has hopeful feelings on the film’s heartwarming message.

“I think it’s a really interesting topic from a lot of different perspectives, and I hope that students take away a heightened consciousness of prisons and the prison systems,” Professor Eichhorn said.

The discussion panel also included Cornell professor Bruce Levitt, the facilitator of the Phoenix Players Theater Group, which is centered within the Auburn Correctional Facility.

“These people who are incarcerated are human beings and have qualities. They are not a stereotype,” Professor Levitt said. “We start the film with a mug shot, which is the most stereotypical image of someone who’s incarcerated. And then, you get to know them through the course of the film as human beings, and so we’re hoping to push against that stereotype.”

The Phoenix Players Theater Group has continued to operate inside the correctional facility with new members since the film was produced,. For more information, visit www.phoenixplayersatauburn.