09-08-04

With the second major hurricane to hit Tampa Bay in less than two weeks, essential USF St. Petersburg staff members worked quickly to prepare for Hurricane Frances. Thanks to their hard work and dedication, our campus was able to successfully implement the Campus Disaster Plan and coordinate all necessary campus procedures.

There will be major changes in the State Group Insurance Program for the 2005 plan year. The Information of Note (see below) describes the major changes. This will be included in the Open Enrollment package that will be sent to all benefit eligible employees by People First prior to the start of Open Enrollment.

2005 Open Enrollment is Sept. 15, 2004 to Oct. 15, 2004. The USF St. Petersburg Benefits Fair is Wednesday, Oct. 6 in CAC from 9 am to 4 pm.

For more information or if you have additional questions, please call Michele Holton at 553-4105.

Photo of Student looking at Honors Program Information

Last week's Campus Showcase on the Harborside Lawn gave hundreds of USF St. Petersburg students the opportunity to learn about student organizations and academic departments as well as campus programs and services. Participating organizations included Student Government, Criminology Student Association, Crow's Nest, Law Society and the USF Pinellas County Alumni Association.

"This was a great event because all of the clubs and organizations had the chance to get their name out," said Tom Piccolo, student government president. "Hopefully this event will increase club activity and memberships."

The Volunteer Fair also provided students, faculty and staff opportunities to get involved in the community. Participating organizations included: National Conference of Community and Justice, Habitat for Humanity, Hospice and the Academy Prep School. If you are interested in volunteering, contact Barry McDowell at 553-4990 or mcdowell@stpt.usf.edu.

Prospective students are invited to the USF St. Petersburg Fall Open House Saturday, Oct. 23 from 10 am to 2 pm in the CAC. This is an excellent opportunity to showcase the campus and give prospective students and their parents an opportunity to meet faculty and staff.

Students can get admission information, financial aid and scholarship information and academic program information. Students may also visit with admission counselors, financial aid representatives, and academic advisors. Tours of campus will also be available.

If you would like to reserve a table for your college, department or program, contact John Vassel, director of prospective student outreach at 553-4002 or vassel@stpt.usf.edu.

Town & Gown's first event of the year, "Musical Conversations," is a musical extravaganza featuring a performance by Dr. Karen A. White, USF St. Petersburg regional chancellor, Wednesday, Sept. 29 at 7:30 pm.

The event, free and open to the public, will be held at the Palladium Theatre located at 253 5th Ave. North and will also feature Kay Lowe on soprano and James Johnson on piano. Town & Gown was established in 1999 to promote understanding and friendship between the university and the community.

The executive board of Town & Gown are extremely enthusiastic to host Dr. White's recital and we are privileged to be honored by this presentation, said Judy Altenhoff, Town & Gown president.

If you are interested in volunteering for this event, please contact Judy Altenhoff at Norm1040@aol.com or Sudsy Tschiderer, USF St. Petersburg special events coordinator, at tschider@stpt.usf.edu.

To honor his contributions to the field of psychology and to the community, the Psychological Science Program presents, "The Scholar-Practitioner: A Tribute to the Career of David Stenmark," a memorial colloquium Thursday, Sept. 30 at 4 pm in DAV130. The colloquium is the first of the psychology department's 2004-05 colloquium series and will include presentations by former students and colleagues.

Stenmark was a professor of psychology at USF from 1974 to 2003. He served as director of the doctoral program in Clinical/Community Psychology at USF Tampa, was a Fellow in the American Psychological Association and recipient of USF's 1987-1988 Outstanding Teacher Award.

As the first coordinator for USF St. Petersburg's new Office of Multicultural Affairs, Monica White relocated from the chills of snowy Buffalo to the sun of tropical Florida. While the landscape may be new for White, she's come to Florida with a lot of experience in multicultural affairs and higher education.

A Buffalo native, White previously served as director for multicultural affairs at SUNY at Fredonia for four years. She earned her bachelor's in Health Care Administration at SUNY at Fredonia and her master's in College Personnel Administration from Buffalo State College. She also was involved with Life Long Learning/Continuing Education, International Education/Studies Abroad and in Health Education at SUNY at Fredonia. All of these attributes made White the idea choice to lead USF St. Petersburg's new program.

White saw USF St. Petersburg's new Office for Multicultural Affairs - and its Multicultural Center - as a unique opportunity to leave her own thumbprint on the program. This imprint would include an "emphasis on character, respectfulness, and teamwork," she said.

As part of the Florida Coastal Cleanup, USF St. Petersburg will be cleaning the Tierra Verde bridge beaches Saturday, Sept. 18. The clean-up is 9 to 11 am. For more information, contact Barry McDowell at 553-4990 or mcdowell@stpt.usf.edu.

The USF Web Calendar of Events can advertise to campus-wide faculty, staff and to the general public. Events may include lectures, conferences, ceremonies, concerts, sporting events, scholarship events, fundraising events and exhibits. The best way to submit your event is to use the central news, events and announcements submission form located here: http://www.stpt.usf.edu/news/submissions.htm


Dateline USFSP: Thursday, September 9, 2004	Volume 2, Issue 50