Posted on Nov 20, 2007

CSUMB hosts chemistry competition
• A team from Alisal High School placed first in the recent Monterey Bay Titration Competition sponsored by the Division of Science and Environmental Policy and the American Chemical Society (ACS) and hosted by CSUMB's Science Club. The competition was held to celebrate National Chemistry Week.

More than 50 students from Alisal, Gonzales, Monterey and Seaside high schools as well as CSUMB competed in the event, in which titration skills were used to determine the concentration of acetic acid in vinegar. CSUMB finished second.

All participants were treated to lunch and were entered into a raffle for an iPod, a beach towel of the periodic table and other items donated by the ACS.

CSUMB plans to make the competition an annual event.

From left: Vanessa Robinson, Louie Okamoto and Garret Thomas compete for CSUMB

CSUMB participates in national 'Focus the Nation' event
• Professor Dan Fernandez and Associated Students Environmental Senator Mary Berube are planning a daylong sustainability conference on campus for Jan. 31as part of the "Focus the Nation" campaign. Focus the Nation is coordinating teams of faculty and students at over 1,000 schools to collaboratively engage in a nationwide, interdisciplinary discussion about global warming solutions for America. The intent is to focus the growing concern in the country about global warming, and to create a serious, sustained and truly national discussion about clean energy solutions, linking students and citizens directy with our political leaders. Local elected officials have been invited to join the campus and the community at this event. To learn more, click here.

On the RISE
• The American Honda Foundation, a non-profit philanthropic organization headquartered in Torrance, has made a $22,000 pledge to support the Recruitment in Science Education Program, which encourages underrepresented high school students from Marina and Salinas to expand their interest and skills in science and provides the tools and inspiration to attend college. Thanks to this generous support, the RISE program will continue to serve local high school students with a mission of enhancing diviersity in the sciences.The foundation makes grants to worthy non-profit causes, programs and organizations in the areas of youth education and scientific education. Since its inception, it has provided more than $20 million in grants. To learn more about RISE, click here.

Students provide Thanksgiving dinner for 60 families
• As part of Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week, CSUMB's Student Leadership in Service Learning team organized a meal points collection drive. Meal-point dollars donated by students will provide Thanksgiving dinners for 60 families in collaboration with the Alisal Community Healthy Start Family Resource Center and Sodexho. On Monday, students sorted bulk food into family-size portions, then
packed and delivered the bags. Each bag contained flour, sugar, canned goods, beans, rice and tortillas. Each family also received a turkey. This is the seventh year CSUMB students have provided Thanksgiving dinners to members of the community.

Inter-Garrison Road closed for construction work
• Underground hot water lines continue to be installed to distribute heat to campus buildings. When the work is finished, dozens of old boilers will be replaced by two new ones located in the Central Plant that is currently under construction next to the VPA buildings. This will result in energy savings for the campus. The installation work along Divarty Street has been completed and the street is now open. Work crews have moved to Inter-Garrison Road, starting at the intersection with Fifth Avenue. Inter-Garrison is currently closed from Sixth Avenue to the entrance to parking lot 12. Work will continue west on Inter-Garrison to Gen. Jim Moore Boulevard. Please follow the signs and look for updates as the work progresses.

Truths worth telling
Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg visits campus Nov. 28
• The President's Speakers Series concludes this semester's presentations with a Nov. 28 visit by Dr. Daniel Ellsberg, the RAND[Image:103007_112214_1.png] Corp. analyst who, in 1971, leaked the classified Pentagon Papers to the New York Times. The documents revealed the U.S. government had engaged in a pattern of deceiving the public about the number of Vietnam War casualties and the nation's ability to win the war. And they instantly validated the antiwar protest movement. He'll be talking about his book, "Secrets: A Memoir of Vietnam and the Pentagon Papers," copies of which will be available for sale. To reserve a seat for the free event, click here. To read more about Dr. Ellsberg, click here. The lecture will be broadcast on campus cable channel 71.

Txt Msgs Alert U
Cell phones transmit safety alerts at CSUMB
• Cell phones - a convenient way to send greetings to friends and family via text messages - have been transformed into campus communications vehicles. At CSUMB, the service is called - what else? - OTTERalert. They blast out campus-wide security and emergency communication alarms - a service that has been getting a lot of attention since the tragic shootings at Virginia Tech.
The campus community can rest assured that OTTERalert is for emergency alerts only; those who sign up will not receive spam. Privacy is protected, and only campus administrators and members of the University Police Department can originate the messages. To read more, click here.

Wednesday, Nov. 28: The President's Speaker Series concludes with a talk by Daniel Ellsberg, 7 p.m., World Theater. Free, but reservations are encouraged and can be made by calling the World Theater at 582-4580.

Upcoming
• Sunday, Dec. 2: Winter Concert put on by the Music and Performing Arts Department, free, 3-5 p.m., World Theater
• Thursday, Dec. 6: Osher Lifelong Learning Institute's faculty research speaker series continues with a talk by Professor Johanna Poethig, "Creative Interventions in Public Space/Public Mind," 11 a.m.-noon, Alumni and Visitors Center
• Saturday, Dec. 8: Volunteers are needed to plant natives in Natividad Creek Park from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Information: watershed.csumb.edu/ron

ONGOING
• Through Nov. 26: Works by students in VPA 347 Chicana/o Black Art taught by Dr. Amalia Mesa-Bains and Professor Stephanie A. Johnson is on display in the library. Based on the Spanish Castas paintings of the 17th and 18th centuries which categorized the mestizaje or "mixed race" people into socially stratified positions, the students' "remix" focuses upon narratives of familial legacy, ancestral exploration, and personal cross-cultural negotiation. Using the original paintings as a background with strategic alteration and addition of elements, these modern pieces counter the divisions, legal inequities, and fears promoted by the historical Castas paintings. The students developed their own narratives and reflections of hope in the new Castas images.

The fall issue of Campus Chronicles is now available  online. Read about:

• Marian Krause makes CSUMB's largest single-family gift in history
• Library to usher in new era of learning
• Community provides major support for the campus
• Dedication to students makes a difference
• CSUMB receives prestigious McNair scholars grant
• CSUMB helps migrant students attain college dream
• School's never out for lifelong learners

 

• A reminder: Fourth Avenue (the street behind the Alumni and Visitors Center) between Divarty Street and Inter-Garrison Road is ONE WAY southbound. There are no plans to make the street two-way, even during the construction work in the area. It's a safety issue - the street is too narrow to safely accommodate two-way traffic and parking.

• Divarty Street is now open.

• Inter-Garrison Road is closed from Sixth Avenue to the entrance to parking lot 12. Fifth Avenue is closed from Inter-Garrison to the entrance to parking lot 12. The VPA buildings are accessible via parking lot 71. Parking lot 12 is accessible from A Street and Divarty Street.

• Our campus is under construction. Please be cautious around construction areas. We invite you to view this short slide show created with yoursafety in mind.

Name dropper
Michael W. Mahan has joined CSU-Monterey Bay as executive director of development. He will oversee the university's fundraising efforts and alumni relations. Mahan joins the campus from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, where he had been the chief fundraising executive since 1995.
- Monterey Herald, Nov. 19, 2007

OTTERalert gets tested
Cal State Monterey Bay is making sure students are well informed in case of an emergency. The university tested out its emergency response system by sending out text messages to students and staff who have signed up. After the tragic school shooting at Virginia Tech, CSUMB is stepping up its policies to make sure students know what's going on in case of an emergency.
KION-46, 5 p.m. broadcast, Nov. 14, 2007

Faces of the Homeless
Students in the university's Service Learning program hosted a panel discussion with members of the Soledad Street community to commemorate National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week.
KSMS-67, 11 p.m. broadcast, Nov. 14, 2007

Shantytown builds awareness - CSUMB students shed light on homelessness
A group of students at California State University, Monterey Bay will camp out at the school this week to bring attention to homelessness. A "shantytown" was set up Wednesday in the university's Main Quad to illustrate living conditions and statistics relevant to homelessness, poverty and inadequate housing in Monterey County. The display is part of CSUMB's week of activities to commemorate National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week, which began Tuesday and runs through Monday.
- Salinas Californian, Nov. 15, 2007

For campus news, activities and events, please visit our news website.

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