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Past News from BU Today

Monday, March 31

Spectrum staff judge newspaper contest

For the third year, the staff of Spectrum magazine were the judges for the Editorial and Advertising divisions of the annual contest sponsored by the Mid-Atlantic Community Papers Association (MACPA). The Association represents 52 publishers and 352 newspapers in Pennsylvania, Ohio, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, West Virginia, Virginia and Washington, D.C. In the Editorial division, the students judged the categories of news, features, editorials, columns, and community service pages/sections. In Advertising, the students judged special sections and individual ads (black and white, and color). The students also determined the top five newspapers in general excellence.

"We selected the Spectrum staff because of the excellence of their publication," said Alyse [cq]Mitten, MACPA executive editor, "and Walt's (Brasch) high reputation within the journalism community." Brasch is professor of mass communications. "Using college journalism students as judges for professional publications is risky-and almost never done," said Mitten, "but we have been pleased with the rigor and professionalism of the students and their teacher." The students are paid in pizza and free registration at the Association's annual conference.

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Friday, March 28

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Wednesday, March 26

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Tuesday, March 25

BU Eco-Tip: Recycle Used Cell Phones

Old cell phones can be recycled or donated to the Women's Center in Bloomsburg. They use them for emergency packets for abuse victims. Cell phones contain toxic metals that can pollute the environment and threaten human health. When recycled responsibly, the metals can be put back into circulation, decreasing the need for new metal mining.

Eco-Quiz: Q: According to the U.S. Geological Survey, in 1998 the nation consumed how many billion gallons of water each day for all its uses. Email answers to stvolser@bloomu.edu. The answer to last week's question: "Over 17 billion catalogs are mailed out each year. What percent of those catalogs are actually looked at?" is approximately 5 percent. The winner was Samantha Dragon.

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Friday, March 21

O'Brien wins oratorical contest

Kaitlin O'Brien, a BU junior communication studies major, won the local Women's Christian Temperance Union Oratorical Contest held Monday at BU. O'Brien spoke about the evils of alcohol and drug abuse in her speech and won a cash prize. She will represent Bloomsburg University at the State Competition to be held in McVeytown on Tuesday, April 8th. The Bloomsburg University Forensics Team has hosted the WCTU Speaking contest every year for more than 20 years. Neil Strine, Political Science, is the Director of Forensics at Bloomsburg University.

'Jared Box' collection to raise spirits of ill children

Residence Life is sponsoring the Jared Box project in memory of a little boy who battled and lost a fight to cancer. Designed to lift the spirits of chronically ill children, the Jared Box project was started in honor of Jared in 2001 by classmates at Our Lady of Victoria School in State College.

At BU, the project runs from March 26 through March 30. A Jared Box is a shoebox size plastic storage box decorated and filled with small gifts, toys (no food), cards and games. The box should contain items that are age and gender specific. Age ranges are: under two, two to four, four to eight, eight to 11 and 11 and up. Boxes can be dropped off at the front desk of Lycoming Hall, or by contacting a community assistant. Boxes will be delivered to the Geisinger Medical Center. For information, contact Marie-Pier Gascon.

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Thursday, March 20

Public meeting on BU hazard mitigation plan

Area residents and members of the campus community are invited to attend a meeting on Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania's Disaster Resistant University (DRU) Grant Project Wednesday, March 26, at 8:30 a.m. in the Andruss Library, Schweiker Room. Details.

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Wednesday, March 19

Speed bumps ahead in McCormick lot

Speed bumps will be installed in the parking lot behind McCormick and Bakeless centers, tomorrow, March 20. The speed bumps are intended to slow traffic and make the area safer.

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Tuesday, March 18

BU Eco Tip: Avoid disposable products

Use refillable coffee mugs, reuse shopping bags or buy a canvas one. Remember to avoid plastic and Styrofoam cups, as well as paper plates. This simple yet effective practice will reduce landfill waste significantly.

Eco Quiz Question: Over 17 billion catalogs are mailed out each year. What percent of those catalogs are actually looked at? Email answers to tvolser@bloomu.edu.

The answer to the last question, "Americans throw away enough wood and paper every year to heat five million homes for how many years?" is 200 years. The winner is Katie Goldin, she can pick her prize up at the SOLVE Office, 224 Warren Student Services Center.

Faculty, staff encouraged to register for notification

BU faculty and staff may now register for the university's emergency notification system.

The student notification system is currently in place and, in case of a life-threatening emergency, BU students can be contacted immediately via e-mail, voice mail and text messages. Students could sign up beginning in August 2007 when they registered electronically for classes, according to Jim Gessner, director of applications development and operations, and can update their contact information anytime using STINF.

Registration is different for faculty and staff, Gessner said. In a process that takes less than 30 seconds, all faculty and staff with a university e-mail account may register to receive emergency notification by e-mail, with the option of adding text messaging and voice mail. The information may be updated at any time.

Gessner stressed that the emergency notification system will be used only in case of extreme emergency. To register, go to ot.bloomu.edu/bualert. Look for information updates at www.bloomu.edu/today. The system will be tested in early-April.

Institutions of higher education across the country took steps to enhance campus security and communication following last spring's tragedy at Virginia Tech. In addition to the new emergency notification system, BU will continue to post information on the Web site, www.bloomu.edu/today; the BeSAFe Hotline, (570) 389-2723; and on these local radio and TV stations: WNEP-TV (16), WBRE-TV (28), WYOU-TV (22), WFYY-FM (106.5), WHLM-AM (930) and WKOK-AM (1070).

Six students to participate in printmaking festival

Six BU students will accompany Marilee Salvator, assistant professor of art and art history, to the Southern Graphics Printmaking Conference held at Virginia Commonwealth University from March 25 to 28. These students are highly grateful for this extra intense work session to finish up their portfolios. The students are Sarah Martz, Brock Dent, Nemi Moyer, Mike Iannatto, Becky Rugg and Lisa Neese. They will display their works during the conference as well as participating in a portfolio exchange with other conference attendees. This conference is the largest one of its kind in the world. The trip is made possible by a President's Fund Academic Initiative Grant.

Salvatore recently held a 24-hour print-a-thon. Thirteen students from her intermediate and advanced printmaking classes, as well as herself, stayed in the printmaking studio for 24 hrs working on their art. Becky Rugg is shown at the event at about 5 a.m.

Employee training programs

Employee training programs are being offered in the coming weeks on the following topics: Adult CPR/AED, Campus Information & Resources, Resolving Conflict, Excel 2007, PowerPoint 2007 and PASSHE Benefits. Details.

Revised smoking policy passed

A revised smoking policy was passed by the University Forum at its meeting Feb. 27. The main change to PRP 5253 is to prohibit smoking in the academic quad area. Details.

Recent personnel actions

A variety of personnel actions were announced at the Council of Trustees quarterly meeting Feb. 27. Details.

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Monday, March 17

BU plans math, science summer camps

Middle and high school students who are interested in math and science can attend a week-long summer experience through BU's Math and Science Resource Center. Students entering grades 6, 7 and 8 can attend the Math and Science Summer Experience, and students entering grades 9, 10 and 11 can attend the CSI (Crime Scene Investigation) Summer Experience. Registration is open now for the programs, which run Monday to Thursday, July 14 to 17, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily. Details.

Staff collecting items for veterans' hospitals

BU's chapter of AFSCME (American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees) is collecting lounge pants, shirts and socks for area veterans' hospitals. E-mail Frank Michaels or Mike Krolikowski for pick up. More things to remember.

Committee OKs room use changes

The Planning and Budget Committee agreed during the Thursday, March 6, meeting to changes in the use of two rooms on campus. Members returned Andruss Library, room 134, to its original function as a study room; it previously was part of the Andruss Cafe. They also agreed to change Hartline Science Center, room 74N1 (G46), from a research space to a temporary administrative office for the radiologic assistant program.

During his report, admissions director Chris Keller said applications for fall 2008 totaled 10,307 as of March 6, up from 9,366 in early March 2007. Applicants' average SAT scores have increased over the past year from 1055 to 1066. A total of 1,689 freshmen are expected to enter BU this fall, he said. Details.

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Wednesday, March 12

Student exhibits: 'Text as Texture' and 'Web Animation'

Arts students are exhibiting two collections of work in the Old Science Lobby, "Text as Texture" and "Web Animation." The works were created in Computer Art Graphics and Intermediate Digital Art courses taught by Sue O'Donnell, art and art history. The works will be shown hrough March 16.

"Text as Texture" series consists of a five-part series in digital exploration using text. Students were asked to look at the text through unconventional and abstract way to create a series that intrigued onlookers to "read" the visual texture instead of the words. While working abstractly, students were challenged to create a series that represented unity.

"Web Animation" series of still frames that are captured from "splash" page animations that were designed by students in the Intermediate Digital Art course. The short text animations were created using Photoshop CS3 and Dreamweaver CS3, which allowed the Students learned how to create a web site from scratch. View the animations.

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Tuesday, March 11

Parking lot between Haas and Columbia to close for construction

The short break from construction that the campus has enjoyed recently is about to come to an end. A project to renovate and add an addition to the Haas Center for the Arts is expected to begin the week of March 10th, which will require the parking lot between Haas and Columbia to be closed. Approximately 30 parking spaces in the lot will remain closed until August. To help mitigate the loss of parking, some parking in the hospital lot will be designated for faculty and staff. Open faculty and staff spaces are also typically available in the parking lot between Waller and Buckalew, in the Centennial lot and in the tri-level. Additional parking for commuter students is available in the First Street lot around the corner from the hospital lot.

Although the parking lot will be closed, a temporary connection between the driveway in front of Columbia and Osuna Drive will keep the road open to traffic leading down to Old Science. While the Haas addition will be in the footprint of the existing parking lot, the project will add an additional 12 spaces to the area when completed.

Thursday, March 6

Tell your SECA story

Have you been assisted in some way by a agency affiliated with the State Employees Combined Appeal (SECA)? Do you volunteer for a SECA agency? Would you like to tell your story? Here is your chance. BU's SECA committee is looking for volunteers to tell their stories of hope on video to be shared with the campus and surrounding communities. Interested individuals should contact Kristina Wood at 389-4414 by March 31. 2007 SECA information and campaign results.

Mong named Student Employee of the Year

Lynette Mong, a senior English/creative writing major from Kennewick, Wash., has been named BU's 2007-08 Student Employee of the Year from 25 nominations submitted by university supervisors. A recent "Rising Star" (December), Mong works as a communications assistant in BU's communications office. She receives a $500 scholarship funded by the Bloomsburg University Foundation.

Mong has been an integral part of the communications office since her freshman year, writing press releases and stories for Bloomsburg: The University Magazine, as well as editing and proofreading copy for the magazine and other university publications. She was one of two BU honors students chosen for an all-expense-paid trip to study the Renaissance and Reformation in five European countries last summer. Also the editor of the university's literary journal, Warren, she plans a career in book or magazine editing and publishing.

The second-place finisher is William Katsak, a senior computer science major. Katsak is a system administrator for the department of mathematics, computer science and statistics. As runner-up he receives a $200 gift card compliments of the University Book Store. The complete list of nominees.

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Wednesday, March 5

Wasting away the competition

Bloomsburg has been actively participating in the national competition, Recyclemania, since Monday, Jan. 28, and is halfway through the 10-week project. Recyclemania is a competition held on campuses to promote student awareness of the importance of recycling and the minimizing waste. Universities and colleges around the country are also contributing to the cause, including our top competitors: Shippensburg, Slippery Rock and Bucknell. In February 2007, Bloomsburg recycled 6,980 pounds of trash and in February 2008, the campus community recycled 9,570 pounds. Although this is a 37 percent increase, BU can do much better. With the goal to increase the amount of waste recycled on campus, BU has taken numerous steps to aid the cause by recycling mixed office paper, glass, plastic, aluminum cans, cardboard and newspaper.

In addition to these recyclables, Bloomsburg has added fluorescent lamps, electronic equipment, scrap metal and printer cartridges to the ever-growing list. Currently, Bloomsburg only recycles 5 percent of the total output. Recycling stations are located campus-wide and in every academic building. To help the cause even further and to get ahead in the competition, think twice before chucking that empty soda bottle in the trash, and recycle. For more information, visit www.recyclemania.com or e-mail Claire Lawrence.

Scholarships available for students with Schuylkill County ties

BU students who have completed two years of study at Lehigh Carbon Community College or who are residents of Schuylkill County are invited to apply for scholarships available thanks to the John E. Morgan Charitable Trust. Five years ago, the Morgan Trust established the community college's Tamaqua campus and, each year, the fund provides scholarships for Tamaqua Area Senior High School graduates who attend the community college. Details.

BU Eco-Tip: Carpool, or take the shuttle

Biking, walking, and carpooling are great ways to reduce CO2 emissions into the atmosphere. Not only is it environmentally friendly, but it is economical and a great cardio vascular workout as well. An average car that gets 20 miles per gallon produces one pound of CO2 for every mile it is driven.

This week's eco quiz: Q: Americans throw away enough wood and paper every year to heat five million homes for how many years? E-mail answers to stvolser@bloomu.edu .

Megan Stout, was the winner of last week's quiz that asked "The typical American household does 400 loads of laundry a year, this uses about how many gallons of water a year?" The answer is 16,000 gallons. Stout can pick her prize up in the SOLVE Office.

Scholarship and Recognition

Faculty members Vince Hron from art and art history and Stephen Wiist from Andruss Library have been awarded grants. William Calhoun from mathematics, Stephen Whitworth and Mark Noon from Englis, Swapan Mookerjee of exercise science and athletics, David Minderhout from anthropology, and John Okpara and Pamela Wynn from management have published and presented research. Details.

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Monday, March 3

Fund established to help employees deal with tragedies

A fund designated as the BU Employees Relief Fund has been established to assist university employees following unexpected tragedies. The fund, established under the direction of the executive board of AFSCME Local 2361, is designed to provide financial assistance to any BU employee suffering from a personal tragedy, such as floods, fires and other natural disasters.

"This fund will allow us to immediately help each other in times of need," said Ronnie Breisch, president of the local union. "When one of our BU family members experienced a personal tragedy in the past, individuals and groups would provide assistance, but there was a delay as they organized the efforts to raise funds. The BU Employees Relief Fund will allow financial assistance to quickly reach those in need and allow anyone who wants to help an avenue to do so."

Employees wishing to donate to this fund can do so with checks payable to the Bloomsburg University Foundation designated for the BU Employees Relief Fund or through the faculty staff payroll deduction option currently being distributed by the BU Development Office.

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