Talking Points

Campus meetings to explain July 1 ban on tobacco use

A series of open meetings to explain the campus’s plan to prohibit tobacco use starting July 1 will begin later this month, according to Associate Chancellor Susan Pearson.
 
In a Feb. 12 broadcast e-mail to the campus, Pearson said the ban, which was approved by the Campus Leadership Council and the Faculty Senate in 2011, applies to everyone on campus, including students, staff, faculty, contractors and visitors and covers all buildings and grounds as well as vehicles. All tobacco products and electronic cigarettes will be prohibited.
 
“In doing so, the campus joins more than 700 colleges

System research spending tops $597 million last year, reports Caret

Research spending for the five-campus UMass system has reached record levels, surpassing the $500 million mark for the third straight year, according to President Robert L. Caret.
 
Preliminary data compiled by the system’s Office of Institutional Research shows that research and development expenditures climbed to $597.5 million in Fiscal Year 2012 from $586.7 million in FY11, representing a 1.8 percent increase. The Amherst campus ranked second in the system with $194.8 million in research spending.
 
“We were pleased that in this fiscal environment we continued to grow our research

Nor'easter was storm of historic proportions, says Rawlins

Last week’s Nor’easter will go down in the record books as a once-in-a-lifetime event for residents across much of central New England, with record snowfall at locations from southern Connecticut to eastern Maine, says Michael Rawlins, manager of the Climate System Research Center.
 
Hartford’s total of 22.8 inches ranks second in the historical record, and the 28.2 inches recorded at Worcester is third. In Boston, the 24.9 inches reported by the National Weather Service (NWS) places the storm at fifth.

Anthropology graduate student awarded scholarship for research in Italy

Anthropology graduate student Johanna Mitterhofer has been awarded a $11,000 Postgraduate Research Scholarship from the Autonomous Province of Bozen in Italy. 

In her dissertation research, Mitterhofer plans to investigate how cross-border projects promoted by the European Union's InterReg policies are taken up by different groups within South Tyrol, an ethnically and linguistically diverse border region in northern Italy. 

Mitterhofer developed and initiated her research project as a student participant in the Department of Anthropology's European Field Studies program, as part of the

Undergraduate Commencement set for May 10 at McGuirk Alumni Stadium

Undergraduate Commencement will take place at McGuirk Alumni Stadium on May 10, according to Nancy Buffone, executive director of External Relations and University Events.
 
Although some construction work is scheduled at the stadium, Buffone says the ceremony will remain the same except the stage is being shifted to the south end of the field, a change that was already planned.
 
More details will be announced in the weeks before the ceremony. In the meantime, questions about Commencement can be directed to Buffone or External Relations and University Events at 577-1101.
 
 
 
 
 
 

New bike repair stands put cyclists back on the road

Aiming to make the campus more bike-friendly, Physical Plant recently installed bicycle repair stands at the bike shelters outside of the Student Union and Integrated Sciences Building.
 
According to Pam Monn, assistant director of Physical Plant for Building and Grounds Services, the repair stands were recommended last fall in a report by the League of American Bicyclists.
 
The Fixit Bike Repair Stands are equipped to hold a bike and are outfitted with various wrenches and screwdrivers and an air pump, all attached with sturdy cables and tamper-proof fasteners.

Biostatisticians identify genes linked to heart disease

Recently, large studies have identified some of the genetic basis for important common diseases such as heart disease and diabetes, but most of the genetic contribution to them remains undiscovered. Now campus researchers led by biostatistician Andrea Foulkes of the School of Public Health and Health Sciences have applied sophisticated statistical tools to existing large databases to reveal substantial new information about genes that cause such conditions as high cholesterol linked to heart disease.
 
Foulkes says, “This new approach to data analysis provides opportunities for developing new

Yearlong series of events, programs to mark campus' sesquicentennial

The campus' 150th birthday celebration features a yearlong series of events and activities that will reflect on the contributions of a once-tiny agricultural college that now enrolls 28,000 students and ranks among the nation’s top public research universities.
 
“UMass Amherst has been a driving force for individual opportunity and economic development dating back to the time of Abraham Lincoln and the creation of land-grant colleges,” said Chancellor Kumble Subbaswamy.

Rosenberg named Senate majority leader

State Senate President Therese Murray last week named alumnus Stan Rosenberg to the No. 2 spot on her leadership team, tapping the longtime Amherst Democrat as majority leader.
 
Since 2003, Rosenberg has served as president pro tem of the Senate, the first senator in the state’s history to hold the leadership position. He previously held several other leadership posts, including four years as assistant majority leader and three years as the first western Massachusetts legislator to chair the Senate Committee on Ways and Means.
 
“As a stalwart advocate for UMass Amherst and public higher

University Health Services earns reaccreditations

University Health Services (UHS) has been reaccredited by two independent national organizations recognized as standard-bearers for healthcare excellence.
 
The Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC) granted UHS a three-year term, the maximum possible as a result of the voluntary accreditation process. The UHS Laboratory was also reaccredited by COLA, a leading medical laboratory consultation, education and accreditation organization, for its maximum two-year term.
 
The AAAHC is the preeminent leader in developing standards which advance quality healthcare in ambulatory

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