Something Extra

Broadway Bound?

n his career at the Troy-based Simons, Michelson
Zieve Advertising, Mort Zieve of Bloomfield
Hills has written memorable advertising jingles
performed by Louis Armstrong, Ethel Merman,
Rosemary Clooney and other international stars.
Now the SMZ chairman has turned his attention
to the stage, with a musical based on
the life of Civil War hero Colonel
Thomas Wentworth Higginson. A
minister by training, Higginson led
the Union's first black army regiment
and went on to champion civil rights
and women's rights.
Writing libretto and lyrics for the
as-yet-untitled musical is former
Mort Zieve
Wayne State University playwriting
professor E.M. (Esther) Broner,
author of 10 novels and numerous plays and non-
fiction.
Zieve is no newcomer to the theater. While an
undergraduate at WSU, he won the university's
Humanity in Arts Award for his musical How
Many Minutes To Midnight, and he continued to
compose as a graduate student at Stanford
University. Later, his musicals were produced at
Equity professional theaters in Detroit and
throughout Michigan.
"Since I'm still working full-time at SMZ, most
of my composing is done at night," Zieve said.
"Fortunately, my wife, Mary Lou, tolerates me
playing the piano, usually quite loudly, as late as 3
,,
a.m.
Zieve anticipates a reading of the musical in New
York this fall.
— Diana Lieberman

I

Seeking Advice

he Farmington Public Schools is seeking
community volunteers for a new representa-
tive group to be known as the Citizens
Advisory Committee.
A press release from the 12,000-student district
quotes Superintendent C. Robert Maxfied as saying
committee members will "advise our staff on ways
to engage students throughout their high school
career in the continued study of American govern-
ment as well as encouraging them to participate in
the governmental process.
"This committee also will be invited to serve in
an advisory capacity as new elective courses are
developed to meet the international studies gradua-
tion requirement."
The Citizenship Advisory Committee will be
facilitated by Jerry Fouchey, the district's director
of curriculum and staff development.
A group of community members known as the
Farmington Public Education Network (F-PEN)
last month issued a statement of five principles to
improve parent participation in the district. Among
those principles is "participation in the process of
curricula development and evaluation."
Although the new committee seems to answer

T

8/ 1
2003

14

WSU Fund Honors Son

ast December, more than 500 friends and
family members gathered to mourn the
death of 25-year-old Dustin Rose, killed
when a driver who authorities say is mentally ill
ran a red light at Long Lake and Crooks roads in
Troy, crashing into Dustin's car and two other
vehicles.
This week, the Rose family gathered in an
Oakland County Circuit courtroom to hear Joel
Pudell, the man who drove the car, plead not
guilty by reason of insanity to the charge of first-
degree murder and three counts of assault with
intent to kill. This terminates the criminal prose-
cution.
According to Oakland County Assistant
Prosecutor Marc Barron, three separate psychiatric
evaluations found that Pudell met the legal defini-
tion of insanity, which requires that the individual
either can't distinguish right from wrong or that he
cannot control his conduct to conform with the
law.
Pudell, who had a prior history of mental illness,
will be sent to the Center for Forensic Psychiatry,
a facility run by the Michigan Department of
Mental Health, where he will remain for treatment
until his mental health is restored to a level where
he is no longer a danger to himself or others, said

L

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this request, F-PEN member Don Cohen said it
does nothing to correct the lack of across-the-board
community participation that led to the adoption
of a new international affairs curriculum and the
cancellation of the requirement that all 12th-
graders take American government.
"We would like those two issues opened up
again," Cohen said.
Because there was never an open discussion of
those two issues, Cohen said, "they are still in vio-
lation of their own procedures."
The Citizenship Advisory Committee will hold
its first meeting in September. To volunteer, call
the Farmington Public Schools, superintendent's
office, at (248) 489-3338.
— Diana Lieberman

Brick By Brick

eshivat Akiva, which first opened its
doors in September 1964, begins its
40th-year festivities with the construc-
tion of a "path of honor" around its Southfield
campus.
The path will lead up to the school's main
entrance, winding around the building to
the newly completed gymnasium. Granite
stones and brick pavers of various sizes will
be engraved with names and messages.
Inscriptions can be in English, Hebrew,
or a combination of the two.
"What better way for the children to
remember their bubbie and zaydie than to

y

his attorney, Martin Baum of Bloomfield Hills.
"Sick or not sick, he's still a killer," Ed Rose,
Dustin's father, said. "He killed my son, and I
hope he never sees the light of day. I just don't
understand why he was driving a car."
Attorney Baum said the Pudell family, who
attended Dustin's memorial service, had rachmones
(compassion) for the Roses.
Ed and Lynn Rose, who live
in Orlando, Fla., with their
daughter Morgan, have estab-
lished a scholarship fund in
their son's honor at Wayne State
University, where Dustin was an
English major.
Ed Rose expressed his grati-
tude to those in the Detroit area
Rose
who have shown their support
since the tragedy occurred.
"People don't realize how much their phone
calls and letters and notes really meant," Rose
said, "but that's what helped us get through this
whole thing."
Anyone wishing to contribute to the Dustin
Rose Memorial Scholarship Fund may contact
Wayne State University, c/o the English
Department, 51 W. Warren, Detroit, MI,
48201.
— Ronelle Grier

see a brick with their names on it every day as
they walk into their school," said committee
member Ariella Nadel of Southfield.
The project is underwritten by Friends of
Akiva. Its inaugural pavers will be installed this
fall. Prices start at $180 for a brick paver measur-
ing 4 inches by 8 inches. A memorial wall also
will be constructed.
Along with the individual inscriptions, the
Modern Orthodox day school is planning one
large brick honoring alumni.
The project will be ongoing, Nadel said, but, to
be included in the inaugural path, reservations
must be made by Aug. 26.
Contact Akiva at (248) 386-1625.
— Diana Lieberman

Don't Fault Israel

ast week's Jewish.com survey question asked:
In light of the killing of Saddam Hussein's
sons, was the United States wrong in criticizing
Israel for targeting terrorist leaders? Of 215
respondents, 177 (82%) said yes and 39 (18%)
said no. •
Next week's Jewish.com question: Can
Israel trust President Bush as talks with
the Palestinian prime minister intensify?
To vote, click on Jewish.com
— Vilna Greenberg