G.I. Jobs Magazine Names UMass Amherst a 'Military Friendly School'

AMHERST, Mass. – The University of Massachusetts Amherst ranks among the 15 percent of schools that are the most “military friendly” in the country, offering the best education, value and welcome to service members and veterans, according to G.I. Jobs magazine.
 
Based on a survey of 12,000 universities, colleges and trade schools, the magazine selected schools that offer a range of academic programs, support services and policies that help veterans and their dependents achieve their educational goals.
 
UMass Amherst was cited for having full-time veterans counselors on staff, its Reserve

Prominent East German Movie Director Iris Gusner to Attend Film Retrospective in Five College Area

AMHERST, Mass. – East German filmmaker Iris Gusner will visit the Five College area from Sept. 25 through Oct. 1 for a retrospective of her films, including the premiere of the DVD release of All My Girls (1979) at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a special screening of her unique semi-autobiographical film Were the Earth Not Round (1981) at Amherst Cinema.
 
One of very few women to succeed as a filmmaker at DEFA, the East German state-owned movie-making powerhouse, Gusner was one of the first filmmakers to focus on the role and emancipation of women in East Germany.

Pulitzer Prize-Winning Poet John Ashbery Opens Visiting Writers Series Sept. 20 at UMass Amherst

AMHERST, Mass. – This semester’s Visiting Writers Series at the University of Massachusetts Amherst kicks off Thursday, Sept. 20 with Pulitzer Prize-winning poet John Ashbery reading from his work at 8 p.m. in Memorial Hall.
 
Other scheduled speakers include James Salter (Oct. 11), Alice Oswald (Oct. 30), Junot Diaz (Nov. 1) and Noy Holland (Nov. 15).
 
For nearly 50 years, the Visiting Writers Series has brought renowned and emerging poets and writers to UMass Amherst for public readings of new work. All readings are on Thursdays at 8 p.m.

EEE, West Nile Mosquito Threat Cancels UMass Amherst Sunwheel and Sky Watching Events on Sept. 22

AMHERST, Mass. – The threat of two mosquito-borne illnesses, Eastern equine encephalitis and West Nile virus, has led University of Massachusetts Amherst astronomer Judith Young to cancel sunrise and sunset events planned to mark the autumnal equinox at the UMass Amherst Sunwheel on Saturday, Sept. 22.
 
Young said she is honoring Chancellor Kumble Subbaswamy’s ban on dawn and dusk events to protect students and the public from gathering outdoors at times when mosquitos are most active. “The reality is that the sun will not quite have set by 6:30 p.m.

New Traveling Exhibition at UMass Amherst Libraries Tells the Story of African Americans in Baseball

AMHERST, Mass.– “Pride and Passion: The African-American Baseball Experience,” an exciting new traveling exhibition displayed on the Lower Level of W.E.B. Du Bois Library at UMass Amherst from Oct. 12, 2012 to Dec. 7, 2012, examines the challenges faced by African-American baseball players as they sought equal opportunities in their sport beginning in the post-Civil War era.  The Library is sponsoring several free programs for the public in connection with the exhibition, including an opening reception on Oct. 25 at 4 p.m. 
           
In the 1880s, more than 30 African Americans were on

UMass Amherst Again Ranked Among Top Public Universities by U.S. News & World Report

AMHERST, Mass. ­– The University of Massachusetts Amherst again ranks among the nation’s top 50 public universities, according to the 2013 U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges rankings released this week.
 
In the Top Public National Universities Category, UMass Amherst ranks No. 42, tied with three institutions. Among all National Universities, public and private, UMass Amherst ranks No. 97, tied with three other institutions. The engineering program at UMass Amherst ranked No. 58 in the country.
 
The United States has more than 2,700 four-year colleges and universities.

UMass Amherst’s Eighth Annual Faculty Convocation is Sept. 14 in Bowker Auditorium

*** MEDIA ADVISORY ***
 
DATE:            Friday, Sept. 14, 2012
TIME:             11 a.m. 
PLACE:          Bowker Auditorium, Stockbridge Hall
 
The University of Massachusetts Amherst is holding its Eighth Annual Faculty Convocation on Friday, Sept. 14, at 11 a.m. in Bowker Auditorium in Stockbridge Hall. Chancellor Kumble R. Subbaswamy will give the keynote address and five nationally acclaimed faculty members will be presented with the Award for Outstanding Accomplishments in Research and Creative Activity.
 
Those receiving awards are: Cynthia L.

UMass Amherst Cancelling Evening Outdoor Activities as Precaution Against Mosquito-Borne Illnesses

AMHERST, Mass. – Officials at the University of Massachusetts Amherst today cancelled nighttime outdoor activities as a precautionary measure against mosquito-borne illnesses such as eastern equine encephalitis (EEE).
 
The dusk-to-dawn ban (approximately 6:30 p.m. to 6 a.m.) on outside events is in accordance with recommendations from the state Department of Public Health for towns designated at high or critical risk for EEE. Amherst is considered a high-risk community, according to DPH, which is urging communities to bar outdoor evening events until the first hard frost.
 
EEE is a rare

UMass Amherst and the EPA Reach Landmark Consent Agreement on Window Glazing Contaminated with PCBs in the Lederle Research Center

AMHERST, Mass. – The University of Massachusetts Amherst has entered into a consent agreement and final order with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that would safely allow the polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) contaminated window glazing found in the Lederle Graduate Research Center low-rise and 16-story Tower A to temporarily remain in place. The agreement is considered a first-in the-nation solution to a problem found in many buildings built from 1950 through 1979.
 
Under the agreement, UMass Amherst agrees to encapsulate the window glazing in the two buildings, test the

UMass Amherst Alumna, Former Vermont Gov. Madeleine M. Kunin to Speak on Next Phase of Women's Progress

AMHERST, Mass. – Madeleine M. Kunin, former governor of Vermont and U.S. ambassador, will speak at the University of Massachusetts Amherst about her latest book, The New Feminist Agenda: Defining the Next Revolution for Women, Work and Family, on Tuesday, Sept. 18 at 5 p.m. in 302-304 Gordon Hall. A reception and book signing will follow Kunin’s talk.
 
Kunin, a 1956 graduate of UMass Amherst, served as governor of Vermont from 1985-91, and during the Clinton administration was deputy secretary of education, then ambassador to Switzerland and Liechtenstein from 1996-99. She is now a Marsh

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