The 18th annual Little Shop of Physics Open House is set for Saturday, Feb. 28, at the Lory Student Center Ballroom on the Colorado State University campus. The open house, which is free and open to the public, is from 10 a.m.-6 p.m.

More than 250 homemade experiments will be on display. About 100 tie-dye T-shirt-clad volunteers – CSU students, community members, high school students and CSU staff – will be on hand to assist. Last year, more than 6,000 people showed up for this once-a-year festival of hands-on science.

For more information, please visit http://www.today.colostate.edu/story.aspx?id=655

Colorado State University Interim President Dr. Tony Frank is this week’s guest on CSU One-on-One.

Effects of national recession on CSU

Dr. Frank sits down with host Kimberly Sorensen and discusses the effects of the national recession on CSU and the current economic outlook for the University.

CSU One-on-One airs at 7:30 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays throughout the month of February.

The Corporation for National and Community Service on Monday honored Colorado State University by naming the institution to the 2008 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll “with distinction.”

The federal award recognizes Colorado State’s efforts to promote and engage students in community service and service-learning opportunities, particularly through the Student Leadership, Involvement, and Community Engagement (SLiCE) office and the Office of Service-Learning in The Institute for Learning and Teaching.

“This, along with the university’s selection as a 2008 Carnegie Community Engagement university, is a tribute to the great work Colorado State is doing to serve and improve the welfare of the larger community and to provide students with experiential, community engagement opportunities that deepen their civic skills and commitments and extend their professional experience and preparation,” says Mike Palmquist, associate vice provost and director of TILT.

About TILT and SLiCE

TILT fosters connections among learners and teachers throughout the university, across program and disciplinary boundaries and in the broader community. Its mission is to develop a universitywide learning and teaching environment that values and rewards excellence.

SLiCE brings together student organizations, student leaders and student volunteers to make the CSU campus a better community and a more involved environment. Being involved in SLiCE programs allows students to enrich their academic and social experiences at CSU.

More information

For more information about these programs, visit http://www.slce.colostate.edu or http://tilt.colostate.edu.

In these difficult economic times, colleges and universities are seeing more students who need financial aid while, at the same time, higher education institutions are seeing their own finances squeezed. 

In a recent Wall Street Journal article, Anne Marie Chaker writes: “The University of Washington has had 3,663 requests for additional aid so far this academic year, already surpassing the 3,121 requests for all of last year. Chapman University in Orange, Calif., increased aid for 2,200 families by January, compared with 1,200 for the same period a year ago. And Syracuse University reports a 30 percent increase in financial-aid appeals that it has granted over the same period.” 

There are some options for families, Chaker writes: “Families who feel they’ve been shortchanged by their school’s financial-aid office — or whose circumstances have changed — can apply for a so-called professional judgment review in order to receive more aid. Apply for a review by writing to the office and attach any supporting documents. Options for families seeking more help may include one or more of the following federal loans available to undergraduates:” 

Source: WSJ research

More than 500 colleges and universities are competing in RecycleMania 2009, the most in the competition’s history. Of those schools, 333 have registered for the Competition Division (the whole campus division), and 177 have registered for the Benchmark Division (partial campus division).

Institutions from small two-year community colleges to Ivy League universities will vie for the 2009 recycling champion title. The competition runs through March 28, 2009.

Think before you toss!
Did you know that CSU has single stream recycling, which means that all your recyclable items (from paper to cans to cardboard) can be placed in your recycling bin?

Review the complete list of acceptable and unacceptable items.

RecycleMania competition
Contests as part of the competition include:

Per Capita Classic (collecting the largest amount of recyclables per capita)
Gorilla Prize (the largest amount of total recyclables)
Waste Minimization (the least amount of trash per capita)
Grand Champion (the highest recycling rate).
The National Recycling Coalition as well as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sponsor RecycleMania, which began in 2001. This is CSU’s fifth year in the competition.

CSU previous finishes:

2nd overall in 2008
9th overall in 2007
4th overall in 2006
7th overall in 2005
Follow the competion and Colorado State’s progress by visiting The Green University.