Daily Brief

A few more staff ushers are needed for the undergraduate commencement ceremony on Dec. 19. Reimbursement for the hours worked is based on your bargaining unit. Please contact Cindy Yaskowski at ext. 3-1505 in the Administrative Services Office by Dec. 4 with your interest.

The Community Outreach Center is joining the Friends Inc. Annual Christmas Cheer Campaign. Through Dec. 15, we will hold our holiday food box collection for Friends, Inc. We would like your office to join us in providing food donations to help families in need. Our goal for KU is to complete 75 boxes of 150 total.

All boxes may be wrapped with Christmas wrapping around the outside of box – please do not wrap the top. (Simply fold down the flaps or use a “copy paper” box with removable lid). Please label it with “Kutztown University and the name of your office.”

All boxes may be dropped off at the Community Outreach center in room 281 McFarland Student Union. Arrangements can be made for them to be picked up if needed. Please call the office at ext. 6-4127 if you have any questions.

All AFSCME Local 2234 members – On Friday, Dec. 11, we will be voting to fill the three open executive board positions. Voting will take place from 7 a.m. to 8 a.m., 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., and 2:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. in the main lobby of Old Main. Members running for these positions are Tracy Reidenhour, Ron Merkel, Gina Andersen, Eric Furst, Cheryl Faust and Dave Phillips. Please take the time to vote. The following people were the only ones nominated for their positions: Ray Dunkle, president; Chris Ferris, vice president; Annette Christman, treasurer. There were no nominations for the recording secretarial position so Annette and Chris have agreed to fill this position jointly.

Effective Wednesday, Nov. 25, the following offices will be located in the Education House: University Relations (media relations, Web content, publications, periodicals, sports information, university switchboard); Conference Services; Community Relations and Government Affairs; Associate Vice President for University Advancement, Marketing and University Relations. The Education House is on the North Campus side of Kutztown Road adjacent to Admissions. Phone extensions for the offices remain the same.

Join us for the Nutcracker Ballet in Schaeffer Auditorium, Dec. 12, 3 p.m.; Dec. 13, 7:30 p.m. The Kutztown University Orchestra under the direction of Willis Rapp in collaboration with Marilyn’s School of Dance combine to present a fully-staged performance of Tchaikovsky’s beloved seasonal ballet. Admission: $10, call 610-683-7725 or email marilynsdance@aol.com for tickets.

Christine Quinter, secretary, Music Department

Women’s Basketball vs. University of California, Pa., at 6 p.m. in Keystone Arena

KU summer study in Munich and Austria 2010. There will be a general information meeting for all students interested in participating in this exciting KU summer program in Europe. Spend May 30 to June 23 in Munich and the Austrian Alps. Courses offered by KU faculty include: GER 104—Intermediate German IV; GER 360—Study Abroad Experience-learn about German, Austrian and Swiss Culture, (taught in English); HIS 227—History of the Holocaust; and GEG 372-Mountain Geography.

Meet Thursday, Dec. 3 at 11 a.m. in DeFrancesco 114. Enjoy a slide presentation of the sites you will see in Germany and Austria given by former program participants! Information brochures and applications will be available.

Please note the updated schedule: The search committee for the Director of Annual Giving position invites faculty and staff to attend the following open forum sessions to meet the candidates. The 45-minute sessions will be held in South Dining Hall, Conference Room A.

Kutztown Christian Fellowship will be holding a seminar entitled, "Questioning Christianity: How Can God allow Evil and Suffering?" Tuesday, Dec. 1 at 7 p.m. in 145 Boehm. There will be a time for additional questions and answers as well. We hope you can join us!

Coming up at KU Presents! Cherish the Ladies: A Celtic Christmas on Wednesday, Dec. 2, at 7:30 p.m. in Schaeffer Auditorium. Get into the holiday mood with an Irish twist on holiday favorites!

Celebrated as best musical group of the year by the BBC, Entertainment group of the year by the Irish Voice Newspaper and voted the top North American Celtic act by NPR Radio’s “Thistle and Shamrock,” Cherish the Ladies will feature selections from “On Christmas Night,” which was chosen as one of the top Christmas albums of the year by the New York Times, Washington Post and the Village Voice.

Traditional Irish melodies and carols like "The Holly and the Berry" and "The Wexford Carol" are seamlessly woven together with well-known Christmas carols including "Ding Dong Merrily," "We Three Kings," "Angels We Have Heard on High" and "Silent Night." All of the arrangements in this holiday show use of the group's unique Celtic instrumentation of penny whistles, fiddles, accordion, concertina, piano, guitar, mandolin, banjo, flutes, with world-class Irish step-dancing.

KU Presents! will also feature pre-concert activities including an interactive panel discussion of Celtic traditions, arts, and culture led by KU English professor Donald McNamara. Joining him will be local artisan Tess Doran and communication design professor Kevin McCloskey. The discussion will start at 6:15 p.m. in Schaeffer Auditorium. Other pre and post concert activities include caroling and free homemade Irish and holiday treats in the lobby.

For tickets and more information, please visit www.Kutztownpresents.org or call the box office at 610-683-4092.

Kutztown University’s newly expanded theatre season continues with Beth Henley’s Broadway hit “Crimes of the Heart” playing from Tuesday, Dec. 1 through Sunday, Dec. 6, in the Rickenbach Theater. Performances are at 8 p.m. daily with a 2 p.m. matinee available on Sunday.

Crimes of the Heart opened on Broadway in 1981 and had won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama by the end of the year. Critics have applauded the remarkable balance of warmth and humor through lonely birthdays and attempted murders.

The play will be directed by new faculty member and assistant professor Guy William Molnar. The set design will be done by Broadway veteran William Moser, also new to KU’s faculty this fall, with lighting designed by Department Chairperson Robert Lewis Smith.

Tickets are $15 for reserve seating; $10 students in advance and $15 for all tickets at the door.

For more information, please contact Daniel Wynne at wynne@kutztown.edu or 484-646-4337. For information on credit card sales, please call 610-683-4092.

Working with the Blackboard Discussion Board Workshop- Tuesday, Dec. 1 from 11 a.m. - noon in RL30

Faculty, are you interested in using the discussion board tool in Blackboard? Attend this workshop to learn how to configure and manage asynchronous, online discussions in Blackboard. Looking for a streamlined alternative to the Blackboard discussion tool? Consider using a Blog. In addition to the discussion board, we'll also demo Blackboard's blogging features at this workshop.

To register, please contact Will Jefferson, Learning Technologies Center Coordinator at ext. 3-4757 or wjeffers@kutztown.edu.

Thanksgiving takes on a new meaning this year for my family and me: I am very thankful to you, my “Kutztown Family”, friends and colleagues alike, for your support, sympathy and encouragement, upon the passing of my mother, Mary Jane Lynch. Thank you for your kind words, thoughts, and prayers! They nourish the spirit and remind me of the importance of community!

Kathy M. Lynch and family

To submit items for the Daily Brief, please e-mail dbrief@kutztown.edu (no attachments) to the University Relations Office by 2 p.m. on the day prior to publication.

Persons with a disability and who require accommodation should notify the KU Disability Services Office two weeks prior to the event at 610-683-4108 (TDD: 610-683-4499) or e-mail accommodation@kutztown.edu in order to discuss accommodations. Every effort will be made to provide reasonable accommodations.