Past Issues

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1. Top Stories

PAY PLAN MEMOS for Civil Service members, Teamsters, and AFSCME Units 4, 6, and 7 are now available online at http://www.umn.edu/ohr/ohrpolicy/Compensation/Payplans/0304/index.htm

THE U ONLINE STATIONERY ORDERING SITE has been upgraded, requiring departments and individuals who wish to order business cards and other stationery to reenter their information into the database. The change is part of a larger redesign of the Printing Services Web site, which now includes online printing estimates, online order submission, a large database of resources for designers and print buyers, and detailed instructions for printing directly to any Printing Services Copy Center on campus. For more information, see http://www.printing.umn.edu/home.htm

THE CUFS FINANCIAL SYSTEM will be down on Jan. 1 and 2 due to the U holidays.

2. News and Announcements

PIERRE ROBERT, founder and director of the U’s Precision Agriculture Center and professor in the Department of Soil, Water, and Climate, died Dec. 12 after being struck by a vehicle in Champaign, Ill., where he was attending a professional conference. He was 62. Robert was widely known for his expertise in precision agriculture, an information- and technology-based management system that allows farmers to identify, analyze, and manage fine-scale variability in fields and crops. A memorial has been established in Robert’s name; donations may be sent to the U of M Foundation, c/o Department of Soil, Water, and Climate, 439 Borlaug Hall, 1991 Upper Buford Circle, St. Paul, MN 55108.

SHARON DZIK has been appointed director of Student Judicial Affairs and the Office for Student Academic Integrity beginning Jan. 20. Her position is responsible for overall administration and management of campus-wide student discipline. She held similar positions at Sonoma State University and the Devry Institute of Technology.

BOB JANOSKI has been appointed director of Central Security, where he currently serves as interim director. Janoski has been with the U since 1984 and formerly worked as a program director for the U Police Department.

100 MATCHING STEELCASE CHAIRS ARE AVAILABLE to U departments at no cost from the ReUse Program. The chairs were received via a corporate donation. To claim the chairs, stop by the ReUse Program Warehouse at 883 29th Avenue S.E., Minneapolis, on any Tuesday or Wednesday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. The warehouse also has a large selection of five-foot desks and tables. For more information, see http://www.umn.edu/reuse.

3. Campus Events and Information

U-wide event:
FORMER WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF LEON PANETTA will address the impact of tax cuts, the growing federal deficit, and the politics of the budget process at a public luncheon Jan. 7, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., Humphrey Institute. Admission is $25, which includes lunch. To register, contact Liz Marquez at emarquez@hhh.umn.edu or 612-625-8330.

Morris:
AREA POETS ARE INVITED TO PARTICIPATE IN POETRY FEST on Feb. 11, 1 p.m., at the Morris Senior Center. Submission deadline is Feb. 2. Poetry Fest is one of the monthly presentations at the center offered by Learning Unlimited (LU), led by UMM professor emeritus Fred Farrell and supported by organizations including the U and Morris Retirees Association. To register as a participant or to submit poetry, contact Anne Schwaller, LU coordinator, at 320-589-4394.

THE COUGAR SOCCER TEAM has been recognized for a 3.06 team GPA, earning the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Team Academic Award for the fifth straight year. Awards will be presented at the college coaches luncheon Jan. 15 as part of the 57th annual NSCAA convention in Charlotte, N.C.

" EXISTENTIAL ISSUES: IDENTITY, SELF, AND COMMUNITY" brings together the work of three artists who share similar concepts. Mike Stephens, Becki Smith, and Anthony Peruzzo, who look at life experiences as a human source for the production of their prints, sculptures, and drawings, will exhibit in the Humanities Fine Arts (HFA) Gallery Jan. 15 through Feb. 6. A public reception to open the exhibit will be held Jan. 15, 6:30-8:30 p.m., with a lecture by Peruzzo at 7:15 p.m. in HFA Room 2.

Twin Cities:
THE GOPHER FOOTBALL TEAM will play the Oregon Ducks in the Sun Bowl in El Paso, Texas, on Dec. 31, 1 p.m.

THE GOPHER WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TEAM will open 2004 with a home game against Michigan on Jan. 1, 7 p.m., Williams Arena. Led by senior All-American guard Lindsay Whalen and junior center Janel McCarville, the Gophers are off to a 10-0 start and already have won three tournaments, including the Virginia Cavalier Classic on Monday. They are now ranked sixth in the country, the highest ranking ever attained by a Gopher women's basketball team. Tickets for the Jan. 1 game are $4.

SEASIDE, A FRENCH FILM about a small beach town in Brittany, France, will be shown Jan. 2 through Jan. 8 at 7:15 nightly, with an additional 5:15 showing on Jan. 3 and 7, at the Bell Museum. Tickets are $6 for the general public and $5 for students and seniors. The film, called a "living instrument of cinematic humanism." by The Village Voice, won the 2002 Camera d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival. For more information, call 612-331-3134 or see http://www.ufilm.org

THE ART OF CATS EXHIBIT at the Bell Museum will close Jan. 4. For more information, see http://www.bellmuseum.org or call 612-624-7083.

STEVEN STROGATZ, professor of theoretical and applied mechanics at Cornell University, will speak on "Sync: The Emerging Science of Spontaneous Order" on Jan. 7, 7 p.m., 100 Smith Hall. MORE: http://www.ur.umn.edu/unsreleases/find.php?ID=1090

SEE MORE TWIN CITIES EVENTS ONLINE at http://events.tc.umn.edu

Brief is compiled by University Relations at the University of Minnesota. Please send comments, questions, or submissions to Jason Sanford, editor, at sanfo012@umn.edu All Twin Cities event submissions are handled through the events calendar at http://events.tc.umn.edu

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