UpDate - Vol. 12, No. 2, Page 7                                
September 10, 1992                                             
'Finding the Americas' topic of Columbus conference            
                                                               
     Commemorations of the Columbus quincentennial have aroused      
controversy, as well as interest in historic events and their        
influence on the present.                                            
     A one-day conference, "Finding the Americas, from 1492 to 1992,"
sponsored by the Delaware Heritage Commission, will examine ideas and
culture in the Americas and Europe in the 15th century, and will also
look at modern Hispanic culture.                                     
     The conference will be held from 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m., Monday,   
Oct. 12, at Clayton Hall. Cost is $20, including workshops and lunch.
Scholarships based on need are available for University students. The
deadline for registration is Sept. 30.                               
     In addition to discussions and lectures, activities, such as a  
performance by the Latin American Community Center folk dancers and a
concert/demonstration of Latin American music by the Flor de Cana    
(Sugar Cane Flower), a bilingual, bicultural Latin American group from        
the Boston area, will be held. A workshop will focus on Hispanic folk
tales.                                                               
     "This conference is designed to combine scholarship,      
entertainment and education in appreciation of Hispanic culture within        
the framework of the quincentennial," Haskell said.                  
     The University of Delaware has been instrumental in organizing  
the conference.The departments of Anthropology, Foreign Languages and
Literatures and Physics and Astronomy, the Office of Women's Affairs 
and the Black American Studies Program are among the co-sponsors.    
     The event will feature a talk on "A Vision of the Americas" by  
William S. Reese, president of the National Association of the       
Partners of America. The noontime speaker is Fred Krapf, Delaware '44,        
a navigation expert and officer of Krapf Construction Co. of         
Wilmington, who will talk on "Where Did Columbus Land?"              
     The day will begin with a panel discussion of "What It Means to 
be Hispanic," with panelists from Panama, Puerto Rico, Colombia, Cuba,        
El Salvador and Spain. Two sets of morning workshops will follow,    
focused on historic European and American cultures.                  
     Afternoon workshops will look at modern Hispanic culture. A        
reception and concert by Flor de Cana will conclude the day's        
activities.                                                          
     Workshops by Delaware faculty include:                          
                                                               
   - "The Language of Columbus,"  Thomas Lathrop, foreign languages  
       and literatures;                                              
   - "Lives of European and American Peoples at the Time of Columbus 
       (Circa 1492)," America Martinez-Lewis, foreign languages and  
       literatures;                                                  
   - "A View from the Jungle: The Amazon and Contact," Peter Roe,    
       anthropology;                                                 
   - "The World of Astronomy at the Time of the Voyages," Harry      
       Shipman, physics and astronomy;                               
   - "Columbus in Renaissance Epic Poetry," Michael Cotsell, English;
   - "The Huarochiri Manuscript: Early Andean Cosmology, History and 
       Views of the Spanish Conquest," Millicent Bolden, foreign     
       languages and literatures;                                    
   - "Presenting the Facts of Columbus in the Classroom,"Judy McInnis,        
       foreign languages and literatures;                            
   - "The First Point of Contact, The Lucayans of the Bahamas," Howard  
       Johnson, Black American Studies Program;                      
   - "Leonardo da Vinci and Art at the Time of Columbus," Maurice    
       Cope, art history; and                                        
   - "Contemporary Latin American Women Writers," Alvina E. Quintana,
       English.                                                      
                                                               
     The program has been partly funded by a grant from the Delaware 
Humanities Forum, in cooperation with the National Endowment for the 
Humanities.                                                          
     Schedules of the day's events and registration forms are        
available at Clayton Hall. To register, call 831-1259 or 577-2144.   
                                        -Sue Swyers Moncure