THE BUZZ YOU HEAR . . . Chicago Sun-Times columnist Michael Sneed said what’s been on most everyone’s
mind last week when she asked why the Abraham Lincoln Presidential
Library and Museum hasn’t hired a replacement for former
executive director Richard Norton
Smith, who recently departed for the
world of academia. Is it because those who want the job are
unqualified, because those who are qualified don’t want the
job, or because Springfield power broker Julie Cellini, who chairs
the board of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, considers
herself the museum’s queen bee? We put the question to Cellini, who, judging
from her answer, should run for office. “Queen bee?”
she writes in an e-mail. “Not sure what that means. But if I
had to identify with the insect world, I’d say I’m a
worker bee.” That’s an interesting parallel,
considering the power structure at the museum — and in the
hive. As any beekeeper can tell you, the world of
bees is dominated by females. Males are barely tolerated —
can’t sting, don’t work, can’t collect pollen.
Come fall, once they’ve served their biological mission,
they’re kicked out. Similarly, the library and museum are
dominated by women. Besides Cellini, there’s Susan Mogerman, chief
operating officer of the museum foundation, and Estie Karpman, the
foundation’s development director. Deputy director Jennifer Tirey is
second in command at the library and museum. The top guy, executive
director Thomas Schwartz, has “interim” in his job title. Male bees have a life span of three months.
Schwartz started as interim director just a couple of weeks ago. We
wish him the best. SNEAK PEEK After being convicted of murdering his
ex-girlfriend and spending more than three years in a Wisconsin
prison, where he suffered a stroke, Evan
Zimmerman got a second day in
court — thanks to the Wisconsin Innocence Project. Zimmerman’s story is the subject of a
documentary airing June 5 on the A&E Network, but Springfield
residents can get a free sneak preview of the film — thanks
to the Downstate Illinois Innocence Project. The documentary will
be screened at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 25, in room 2008 of the
University Hall classroom building, just south of the Public
Affairs Center, on the campus of the University of Illinois at
Springfield. Zimmerman and his lawyers will be present at
the screening, as well as several of the filmmakers. CLOCK’S TICKING You can gripe later when you get your light
bill. Or you can do something now. Friday, April 21, is the last day that folks
can give a — symbolic, at least — yeah or nay to City Water, Light & Power’s proposed 250 megawatt coal-fired power plant. Environmentalists have objected to the
plant’s use of coal, while CWLP officials maintain that the
new facility features more environmental safeguards than the
existing plant, which they also say is outdated. Comments should be sent to the Illinois
Environmental Protection Agency, 1021 N. Grand Ave., P.O. Box
19506, Springfield, IL 62794, and must be postmarked by midnight.
This article appears in Apr 13-19, 2006.
