Daily Brief

Come Speak at Ignite Kutztown

We are seeking speakers for Ignite Kutztown. What is Ignite? It's a speaking event that follows a specific format (more on that below). This semester's Ignite is 7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 25, 135 Rickenbach, so mark your calendar to at the very least attend and see what this is all about. The basic idea behind Ignite is - what’s the nerdy passion you want to share with other people? Make a five-minute speech about it, with 20 slides that advance automatically every 15 seconds. This doesn't need to be about what you teach about at all, but it could be, as long as you can cover it in five minutes. It can be anything you're passionate about, really – from a hobby to a research subject to a general interest. Thus far, we've had topics ranging from The Last of Us, to Apples, to Playing with Action Figures as an Adult, and many others. Here’s a great video, Why and How to Give an Ignite Talk. If you're stumped for topics, there are many YouTube videos of Ignite talks from around the country. Contact cripe@kutztown.edu for more information.

Emily Cripe, Communication Studies

Valentine's Day Sale

The KU Campus Store has a sale Feb. 10-14, in store and online. Save 25% off pink, red and purple gift and apparel, along with Reppert's chocolates.

KU Campus Store

Kyle Rex, KU Campus Store

February AFSCME Membership Meeting

Plan on attending the AFSCME 2234 monthly membership meeting 5 p.m. Monday, Feb. 16, 203 Academic Forum. Dinner will be provided.

Christina Ferris, Biology/AFSCME

Your Marketing Help Desk: Live Q&A Session

Are you ready to take your marketing to the next level? Join us for this free weekly session noon Tuesday, Feb. 17, via Zoom, where small-business owners and entrepreneurs can bring their questions about digital marketing, social media strategy, Canva and branding and get expert answers in real time. This interactive “help desk” format provides practical insights, tools and strategies to strengthen your brand and grow your business in today’s digital marketplace.

Register

Rachael Wolfe, KU SBDC

Micro-Internship Program

Have you heard about the micro-internship program that the Career Development Center is rolling out on campus? Micro-internships are short-term, paid experiences that give our students project-based work to build their skills and resumes. We would love to chat more with you about any possible projects you might have that can be a micro-internship. Learn more by visiting KU Micro-Internship Program or email careerhelp@kutztown.edu with questions.

Jenelle Henry, Career Development Center

KU Early College Academy Highlighted for Community Partnerships in BBEC Podcast on BCTV

Kutztown University’s Early College Academy for Education was recently featured on a Berks Business and Education Coalition podcast produced through BCTV. The episode spotlights KU’s deep partnerships with nearly 30 school districts across five counties. The conversation highlights how KU is leading the way through community‑engaged collaboration that supports high‑quality internships, experiential learning and a strong college‑to‑career pipeline. The Early College Academy continues to grow in response to district demand by serving 39 students in 2024-25 with a 95% retention rate and expanding by 85% in 2025-26 to 73 students (43 in Education and 30 in Exploratory Studies) with a current 98% retention rate. Outcomes from the first cohort also reflect a strong recruitment pathway to KU, with a 60% overall conversion rate and a 73.3% conversion rate among students who applied to KU. Together, these results reflect the regional impact of KU's partnerships in strengthening the local talent pipeline and aligning educational pathways with workforce and community needs across multiple counties. More to come as the KU Early College Academy continues to expand its reach and pathways, strengthening KU's leadership role in our backyard by responding to regional education and workforce needs through intentional partnerships with aligned internships.

Rebecca West Burns, Dean, College of Education

Spring 2026 Attendance Verification

Attendance Verification, required federally for awarding financial aid Policy ACA-090, is available until 3 p.m. Friday, Feb. 13. Faculty should indicate whether students have attended or never attended by utilizing one of two flags. Please be sure to verify attendance status for every student. Students who have just added a course, but a meeting has not yet occurred since that change, should be marked as attending. For additional assistance, please visit Starfish in D2L, email starfish@kutztown.edu, call 610-683-4106 or attend a Starfish Express Workshop: 
- 3-3:30 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 10, Zoom
- 11-11:30 a.m., Thursday, Feb. 12, Zoom
- 3-3:30 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 17, Zoom

Starfish Faculty and Staff Resources

Nancy Brynildsen, Center for Student Success and Academic Excellence

Undergraduate Research and Creativity Spring 2026 Announcement Bulletin

In this issue:
- Spring workshop series for students starts Thursday, Feb. 12
- UGRC website
- Conference funding for students
- Spring conference opportunities: KU Composition Conference April 13, KU Inspires April 16, HECBC Undergraduate Research Conference April 25
- UGRC Faculty Mentorship Award
- KU BEARS Grant deadline Feb. 23

UGRC Spring 2026 Announcements

Lynn M Kutch, Undergraduate Research and Creativity