NIU faculty, staff and students now have a new tool to guide their actions before, during and after campus emergencies.
Nearly 10,000 copies of the new NIU Emergency Guide are being delivered this week to employees in every job classification, and are being posted in every classroom and public space on campus.
Sporting cardinal-and-black school colors and featuring a flip-chart format, the guide includes a memo from NIU President John Peters that urges users to familiarize themselves with standard procedures and customize information for their own buildings and departments.
“Northern Illinois University, like so many other colleges and universities throughout the United States, can take much pride in the security of its campus,” Peters said. “I am proud to add this guide to an already-impressive array of safety resources.”
Peters urged supervisors to review the guide with employees as early as possible, and to fill out sections calling for such building-specific information as location of fire extinguishers, tornado shelters, emergency exits and names of individuals needing assistance during an emergency.
“Recognizing that no single set of instructions can anticipate all potential emergencies,” Peters wrote, “I urge you to provide feedback on this first-time publication by sending confidential comments and/or suggestions to egfeedback@niu.edu.”
Copies of the guide are also posted on the NIU Web site at http://www.niu.edu/about/safety/index.shtml.
For about 2,000 sugar maple seedlings now growing in Canada’s Lake Superior Provincial Park, global warming will arrive next spring.
NIU geographers Lesley Rigg and David Goldblum have been awarded a $260,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to simulate global warming on sugar maple seeds and seedlings and study the effects over three years.
Rigg and Goldblum, working with NIU students, will travel in May to Canada, where they will build rain-exclusion, temperature-controlled structures over existing seedlings in a forested area of Lake Superior Provincial Park.
The structures will allow the researchers to simulate temperature increases and dryer conditions predicted to occur over the next century.
The sugar maple is the dominant tree species in the northeast portion of the United States and a keystone species of forests in eastern North America. Prized for its hardwood and known for the maple syrup made from its sap, the sugar maple is considered to be of great ecological and economic importance.
Sugar maples can reach 400 years of age and 120 feet in height. They thrive in cool, moist climates, with seeds germinating at about 1 degree Celsius (34 degrees Fahrenheit).
“Mature trees may be able to handle warming temperatures, but scientists need to determine whether the trees will be able to successfully reproduce and whether the species will be able to migrate northward to cooler climates,” says Rigg, who holds a joint appointment at NIU in geography and biological sciences.
Scientists expect global warming to be most pronounced in higher latitudes. Environmental mitigation will require early identification of potential problems.
“When it comes to climate change, there tends to be a focus on the direct impacts on humans, such as sea-level change, killer heat waves or negative impacts on agriculture,” Goldblum says. “But one of the more vulnerable aspects of global warming is the balance of our ecosystem. Scientists are concerned that animals and plant species won’t be able to respond to rapid change.”
The Canadian Regional Climate Model (CRCM) predicts monthly temperature increases of 4.2 degrees Celsius (7.6 degrees Fahrenheit) for the study area over the next 75 years. Some researchers have suggested that sugar maple trees, which now extend south all the way to Georgia, could disappear completely from the United States.
“Under some climate-projection models, you can write off the sugar maple in its southern limits, even though warming there won’t be as pronounced,” Goldblum says. “In order to survive, the species has to be able to move north.”
Located on the eastern shore of the world’s largest freshwater lake, Lake Superior Provincial Park marks an ideal setting to study the sugar maple’s ability to migrate. The site of the experiment is within a transition area from deciduous forest to boreal forest, the latter dominated by coniferous trees.
“We expect that our experimental design of simulating a range of temperature and moisture regimes will capture conditions that the sugar maple will experience in the northern part of its range sometime in the next 100 years,” Rigg says.
Adapting to gradual climate change, the sugar maple has slowly migrated northward over time. But projections of human-induced climate change suggest that warming over the next several hundred years will be faster than anything the sugar maple has experienced within the last 18,000 years, or possibly within the past 2 million years.
“If predictions are correct, the changing climate will force the sugar maple to move faster than it has ever moved in its history – and through a fragmented landscape of streets, parking lots and subdivisions,” Rigg says.
NIU researchers and students recently returned from Canada, where they tagged the seedlings that will be studied, dividing them into about 20 plots, each measuring about 1 by 2 meters.
Meanwhile, work also is being done on the NIU campus.
Graduate student Shannon McCarragher is monitoring sugar maples that have been germinated in growth chambers and treated to different temperatures. The seedlings come from seeds collected in Tennessee, Illinois and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
“It may be that seeds and seedlings from the south, where temperatures have been warmer for thousands of years, will more readily survive in the north under conditions of global warming,” Goldblum says.
The study is expected to be completed in 2010.
Students interested in international study-abroad programs and internships can get more information on available opportunities at the upcoming 15th annual Study Abroad Fair.
The fair will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 13, in the Duke Ellington Ballroom of the Holmes Student Center. The event will feature informational booths on study-abroad programs in about 65 countries.
Students can meet with NIU faculty members who direct short-term study-abroad programs worldwide. Students also can meet with representatives from several independent study-abroad organizations working with the NIU Study Abroad Office to offer programs for which students still can earn NIU academic credit.
“The fair is an opportunity for students to answer many questions and accomplish a great deal of research on study-abroad options,” said Anne Seitzinger, director of the Study Abroad Office.
Representatives will be available at the fair throughout the day to answer questions and help students consider which programs might best fit their major or career interests. Each year, the Study Abroad Fair draws about 500 NIU students seeking academic experiences outside the United States.
“There are dozens of options that allow students to find programs in their major areas of study, or they can explore options where they might earn credit toward NIU general-elective requirements,” Seitzinger said.
“Some students will prefer a semester or academic-year program that offers a variety of courses, while others might want to focus on a topic such as art history in Rome, history in Malaysia or marketing in Ireland,” she added. “It’s imperative that NIU students understand their profession or area of study from a global perspective.”
Last year, about 250 NIU students studied abroad. The university is unique in that its study-abroad programs attract high numbers of graduate students. In recent years, 30 percent to 45 percent of NIU study-abroad participants were graduate students, compared to about 15 percent nationally.
“We send a relatively large number of graduate-level students overseas,” Seitzinger said. “We are able to do this thanks to the significant number of NIU faculty-directed programs that we offer.”
During the 2007/08 academic year, NIU faculty will direct programs in China, Costa Rica, England, France, Ghana, India, Italy, Ireland, Malaysia, Poland, Russia, Spain, Sri Lanka and Thailand. These faculty-led programs provide faculty development while also promoting internationalization of curricula.
“That’s outstanding diversity in terms of the destinations we offer,” said Deborah Pierce, executive director of the Division of International Programs. “In fact, providing study-abroad opportunities in less-commonly-chosen countries such as Ghana, India, Malaysia and Sri Lanka is one of the goals of the Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Foundation Act (HR 1469), which has more than 40 co-sponsors and was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives earlier this summer.”
Information from consulates and tourist offices also will be available during the NIU Study Abroad Fair. Student Financial Aid Office staff members will be present to answer questions about financial aid and to provide information on federal and state loans. Potential scholarship information will be available as well.
All attending the fair will receive free goodie bags and have a chance to win one of several excellent raffle prizes, donated by area businesses and offices on campus.
“Students who attend the fair will learn about programs and financial aid and loan options that will allow study abroad to become a reality,” Seitzinger said. “Past participants will be present to provide first-hand information and offer guidance and encouragement.”
The fair is for faculty as well as students.
“The annual Study Abroad Fair is an excellent opportunity for faculty members to learn how creating their own study-abroad programs might benefit them both personally and professionally,” Seitzinger added.
Students who aren’t able to attend the fair can plan to attend “Study Abroad 101: First Steps to Study Abroad.”
The informal presentation, followed by a question-and-answer session, is designed to provide information to students who are considering studying abroad or who are in the first phases of the process. Content is the same at each session, so students need only attend once to learn the basics. Study Abroad 101 will be offered at 3:30 p.m. every Wednesday and Thursday in the NIU Study Abroad Office.
Both the Study Abroad Fair and Study Abroad 101 are free and open to the public. For more information, visit http://www.niu.edu/niuabroad, send an e-mail to niuabroad@niu.edu, or call (815) 753-0420 or (815) 753-0700.
J.D. Bowers, a professor of history at NIU, will hold a signing for his new book, “Joseph Priestley and English Unitarianism in America,” from 5 to 7 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 29, at Barnes & Noble, 2439 Sycamore Road in DeKalb.
The book, published by Penn State Press, is getting attention in American religious history circles among both scholars and an ecumenical swath of religious believers. The cross-denominational appeal is no surprise to the author.
“There was a time when Unitarians were avowed Christians, a time when, instead of a universal creed, they had several competing and exclusive creeds, all contending for the right to be the sole Unitarian belief system,” Bowers says.
“My book explores that time period, from the late 1700s until the late 1800s, and the people who were central to the disputes and the various and competing religious theologies,” he adds. “People inside Unitarianism as well as outside the denomination are naturally curious about an era and set of ideas that were both so different from modern Unitarianism.”
Bowers directs the secondary history and social studies teacher-certification program at NIU. He has been working on the book for nearly 10 years.
“It has been a real labor of love,” he says. “I grew up just four blocks from the American home of Joseph Priestley and have always been fascinated with his innumerable contributions to the fields of religion, science, politics and education.”
While Priestley was an enlightenment figure, dabbling in many fields of study, Bowers’ book focuses primarily on his contributions to the development of liberal religion in America.
Bowers’ work is “a resolute and positive reaffirmation of the complexity and importance of theology in early American history,” notes the prominent historian Daniel Walker Howe, who has his own new book coming out on the nation’s early national period, also focusing on the developments within American religion.
Bowers has worked extensively with the Joseph Priestley House and Museum in Pennsylvania for more than 10 years, serving as a historical consultant and researcher. He also wrote a guide for docents on Priestley’s religious activities and beliefs.
“I am humbled to be a part of a larger conversation on the way in which religion has played a role in American society,” Bowers says. “Theology, and the complexity of theological systems, rarely makes its way into general public discourse, leading to misunderstandings and conflicts. It is exciting to re-engage people on the topic of theology and its historical development.”
Bowers has extended an open call to Unitarian congregations and interested community groups who wish to hear him speak.
“Historians need to do a better job at engaging the wider public in their research and discourse,” he says.
Students looking for major-related career experiences prior to graduation, or to jump-start their career plans, are encouraged to attend the fall career fairs.
These are premier events for many NIU students, providing opportunities to meet face-to-face with a wide array of potential full-time and internship employers prior to graduation. Visitors can expect between 100 and 200 employers looking to hire interns and upcoming graduates enrolled in over 25 different majors.
The Job Fair takes place Wednesday, Oct. 3, and the Internship Fair is scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 17. Both are open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Convocation Center. There are no fees to attend these events. Resumes are required at the registration table for admittance to the fair.
A convenient shuttle service will be available to the fair. The shuttle will run from the Normal Road side of the Holmes Student Center to the Convocation Center.
The fall career fairs are student-centered learning events where employer representatives provide students insight into their hiring trends, information about job openings and how to apply for internships, and what students can expect from the interview process.
Career fairs also provide students the experience of approaching employers and presenting themselves as prospective employees in their chosen fields. Students should bring plenty of resumes to leave with the employers they meet. Dress for each event is business attire.
Students are encouraged to research attending employers before the fall career fairs either online or at the Career Resource Center. The NIU Career Resource Center in the Campus Life Building 235 has computers for accessing Victor eRecruiting to research employers and to apply for jobs online.
Information about the fairs, finding a job or an internship, writing a resume or preparing for an interview can be found at the NIU Career Services Web site at www.niu.edu/careerservices.
Students can schedule appointments with career counselors on NIU’s campus by calling (815) 753-1642 or at the NIU-Rockford campus by calling (815) 762-2675. Walk-in, 10-minute student resume critiques also are available at the Career Resource Center.
Career Services is a division of Student Affairs and is located in Campus Life Building 220.
NIU Accountancy Professor Doug Clinton has been selected as the first Burge Family Faculty Fellow.
The two-year fellowship will support his work toward completion of a statement on management accounting that he is completing for the Institute of Management Accountants, the world’s leading organization for management accounting and finance professionals.
The statement will provide an authoritative overview of best practices for that industry.
Members of the Department of Accountancy’s Personnel Committee selected Clinton for the honor because his work “has the potential to provide NIU with substantial recognition in the management accounting area.”
Thomas Rossing, NIU Distinguished Research Professor Emeritus, is celebrating the recent publication of the Springer Handbook of Acoustics.
Rossing edited the 1,182-page book; the retired physics professor began the work at NIU and finished it at Stanford University, where he has been a visiting porfessor for the past three years.
All 28 chapters are written by internationally known leaders in various areas of acoustics. Rossing wrote three chapters in addition to his editing duties.
Since retiring from NIU, Rossing has held visiting professorships at Edinburgh University (Scotland), Seoul National University (Korea) and Stanford.
Join NIU President John G. Peters as he delivers his annual State of the University Address.
The address begins at 3 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 27, in the Altgeld Hall Auditorium. A reception immediately follows the address in the Altgeld Auditorium Foyer.
For more information, call the Office of Special Events at (815) 753-1999 or e-mail ellena@niu.edu.
The Department of Geology and Environmental Geosciences has announced the schedule for its Fall 2007 Colloquia.
All talks are held at 4 p.m. in Davis Hall 308 unless otherwise indicated and are co-sponsored by the Graduate Colloquium Committee of NIU. Call (815) 753-1943 for more information.
Friday, Sept. 14: NIU faculty research updates by Kathy Kitts, Paul Loubere, Ross Powell, Reed Scherer, Paul Stoddard, Jay Stravers and Jim Walker.
Friday, Sept. 21: to be announced.
Friday, Sept. 28: Greg Wiles, College of Wooster, “Changes in Alaskan Glaciers and Climate Over the Past Two Millennia.”
Friday, Oct. 12: Roy Plotnick, University of Illinois at Chicago, Paleontological Society Distinguished Lecturer, “Let Us Prey: Trace Fossils, Foraging Ecology, Chemoreception, and the Origins of Marine Landscapes.”
Friday, Oct. 19: Terry Engelder, Pennsylvania State University, AAPG Distinguished Lecturer, “Craquelure in Masterpieces of the Louvre (Paris, France) as Analogue Models for Development of Joints in Fractured Reservoirs.”
Friday, Oct. 26: Anders Carlson, University of Wisconsin-Madison, “North Atlantic Ice Sheets and Ocean Circulation During the Last Deglaciation.”
Friday, Nov. 9, 4:30 p.m.: Charlotte Schreiber, University of Washington, International Association of Sedimentologists Distinguished Lecturer, “Reworking of Evaporites: Case Histories from the Messinian of Italy.”
Friday, Nov. 16: Eric Erslev, Colorado State University, Structural Geology, title to be announced.
Friday, Nov. 30: John Luczaj, University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, “Paleo-fluids/MVT deposits/Arsenic-contaminated Groundwater.”
The 11th annual Huskie Bash has been rescheduled and will take place in Central Park on NIU’s West Campus from 2 to 6 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 15, after the Huskie football game.
Students, faculty, and community members are invited to enjoy food, games and music. The event is free. A sheet of tickets for food purchase costs $14. For further details, contact Phyllis Dupre of Housing and Dining at pdupre@niu.edu.
NIU will hold an election Tuesday, Oct. 16, to determine who will represent the university’s Operating Staff employees on the State Universities Civil Service Advisory Committee (also known as the Employee Advisory Committee “EAC”).
Balloting will be conducted at Human Resource Services, the Holmes Student Center and Transportation. The term of office for this representative is from Jan. 1, 2008, through Dec. 31, 2011.
Civil Service employees interested in running for this position must pick up petitions and Statement of Candidacy forms at Human Resource Services beginning Monday, Sept. 17. These forms must be completed and returned no later than 4:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 21.
To be eligible for nomination and election to membership on this committee, a Civil Service employee must hold a certified status position (not a student or extra help) and have at least three current consecutive years of employment in an institution currently served by the system.
For additional information, contact Jodi Tyrrell at (815) 753-0094.
The Christian Faculty and Staff Prayer Luncheon is scheduled for noon Tuesday, Sept. 18, in the East Room of the Blackhawk Cafeteria.
Participants may bring a lunch or purchase one there. All are welcome.
Peter Olson, NIU Art Museum assistant director, will give a curator’s talk on the “Body Politic” exhibition at the museum at 12:30 p.m. and 5 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 20.
Several artists from the exhibition will present gallery talks at the museum from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 6. All three events are free and open to the public. The museum will continue to host “Body Politic” in its South Galleries through Saturday, Oct. 13.
“What we think about when we contemplate our corporeal selves, and what others
assume about our identity based on their observations, make for unpredictable and fertile territory,” Olson said, “out of which can spring myriad allusion and interpretations, including this exhibition.”
“Body Politic” focuses on the human body’s complex relationship to identification, meaning, and individuality in the junction between public and private space. Artists Molly Carter, Mary Dritschel, Anni Holm, Coke Wisdom O’Neal, Karen Savage and Jennifer Yorke explore the social and political ramifications of identity in this multi-media exhibition.
The NIU Art Museum’s South Galleries are located on the first floor, west end of Altgeld Hall. The South Galleries are open to the public from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday and by appointment for group tours. Exhibition and lectures are free; donations are appreciated.
The exhibitions of the NIU Art Museum are funded in part by the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency, the Friends of the NIU Art Museum, and the Arts Fund 21. For more information, visit www.vpa.niu.edu/museum or call (815) 753-1936.
The NIU Lifelong Learning Institute invites participatants in its fall 2007 field trips.
To sign up for the field trips, call (815) 753-0277 or visit http://www.niu.edu/clasep/lifelong/lli/2007fall/index.shtml and click on Field Trips to register online. For further details, contact Anne Petty Johnson at apetty@niu.edu or (815) 753-5200.
NIU’s Academic Advising Center will host the Exploring Majors Fair from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 2, in the Duke Ellington Ballroom.
Designed for all students who want to learn more about majors, minors and other academic opportunities, the fair offers a chance to speak with faculty members and staff from each of NIU’s academic units in a centralized location. Additionally, the program provides departments with an opportunity to showcase particular majors, minors and programs to a broad group of NIU students.
Faculty and staff are encouraged to promote this event in classes and in conversation with students. Also, please remember that the Exploring Majors Fair is for all students exploring their academic options, and not just for those who are currently without a major.
For further details, contact the Academic Advising Center at (815) 753-2536.
NIU’s Unity in Diversity steering committee will present “Reflecting on Our Past, Looking to Our Future,” an exhibition of artifacts, art, documents and ephemera from the project’s past 20 years.
An opening and reception for the 20th anniversary celebration is scheduled for 5 to 6 p.m. Friday, Oct. 5, in the Holmes Student Center Gallery.
Barbra Henley, vice chancellor for Student Affairs at the University of Illinois at Chicago, is the keynote speaker. Henley will speak at 6:30 p.m. in the Duke Ellington Ballroom.
RSVP to Shirley Mashare in the Diversity and Equity Office at (815) 753-1513.
Female high school students interested in exploring career possibilities and learning more about the academic side of college life are invited to attend the 2007 Conference for Young Women, hosted by NIU from 8:15 a.m. to 1:45 p.m. Monday, Oct. 22, at Holmes Student Center.
The 12th annual conference will introduce young women in their sophomore through senior years of high school to a variety of career areas, including professions where women have been historically underrepresented.
The conference will include a panel discussion on career opportunities for women and presentations by faculty on topics related to women’s collegiate experiences and career options. Tours of the NIU campus and its facilities also will be offered.
This year’s speakers will focus on career opportunities in fields ranging from marketing and laboratory science to athletics and communication.
“Faculty and students enjoy this opportunity to showcase the best NIU has to offer young women,” said Amy Levin, director of the NIU Women’s Studies Program. “In turn, the high school girls who attend often comment on the way the event gives them a more realistic sense of what they can accomplish in college and afterward. They are excited by career opportunities they hadn’t imagined.”
The conference is sponsored by the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and the NIU Women’s Studies Program. To register, call (800) 345-9472. For additional information, call (815) 753-1038 or visit www.clas.niu.edu/wstudies/ywc2007.htm. The registration fee is $38 before Oct. 15, with a $5 additional late charge. Limited scholarships are available.
All letters of nomination for the 2008 Presidential Teaching Professorships should be submitted to Earl Seaver, Vice Provost, Office of the Provost, Altgeld Hall 215, no later than Monday, Oct. 1.
Following receipt of a letter of nomination, the selection committee will invite each nominated faculty member to prepare materials in accordance with the published procedure. Only full professors with tenure and at least six years service at NIU are eligible for the award.
The Presidential Teaching Professorships were established in 1990 to recognize those outstanding teachers who have demonstrated over time that they:
The procedure calls for a rigorous and thorough portfolio review including contacting former students. The 2008 recipients will be announced next spring.
Have you been thinking about losing some weight? If so, NIU needs you.
The Employee Assistance Program will sponsor a Weight Watchers at Work group on campus in HSC Blackhawk West at noon Tuesdays if 15 people are willing to commit to participating in the program. Please consider improving your health, losing some weight and helping some NIU employees and yourself.
Contact Karen Smith at (815) 753-9191 for more information.
Rehearsals for the sixth season of the Greater Kishwaukee Area Concert Band will begin at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 12. They are held in the Band Room of Huntley Middle School, located at the corner of South Seventh and Taylor streets in DeKalb, and conclude at 9 p.m.
The band is an all-volunteer group made up of anyone 18 and older who has played either a wind or percussion instrument in the past. No auditions are necessary, just an eagerness for fun, to meet new people and to grow musically. John Hansen, retired band director from Malta, is the director.
The first of the four concerts of the season will be held at 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 21, in the Boutell Memorial Concert Hall on NIU’s campus. Band members are grateful for Mildred and Joan Sulaver, the concert’s sponsors.
For more information, call Sue at (815) 899-4867 or John at (815) 825-2350.
The fall exhibition season at the Nehring Center Gallery opens with “Natural Selections: Artwork by Kimberly Mullarkey” from Friday, Sept. 14, through Sunday, Oct. 14. The public is invited to an opening reception from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 21.
Mullarkey’s work combines elements of scientific illustration, charcoal drawing and mixed media.
Displayed in conjunction with her pieces is a selection of Mullarkey’s personal natural science collection that both inspired and directed her works: She is a self-described collector of unusual things who believes the art of collecting and labeling is as important as the resulting artwork itself.
As the collection grows, she has started developing a 21st century Cabinet of Curiosities.
Mullarkey received her BFA from the University of California, Santa Cruz, and obtained her MFA at NIU. She studied Northern Renaissance oil painting in Monflanquin, France, at the Atelier Néo Médicis. She now teaches botanical art and illustration at the Morton Arboretum, the College of DuPage and the Fine Line in St. Charles. She currently maintains a studio in DeKalb.
“Natural Selections” is free and open to the public during regular gallery hours from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday and from 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday. The Nehring Gallery also is open by appointment.
Located on the second floor of the historic First National Bank building on the corner of Lincoln Highway and Second Street in downtown DeKalb, the gallery is cooperatively operated by the DeKalb Park District and the NIU College of Visual and Performing Arts Division of Outreach. An entrance accessible to all is available at the 111 S. Second Street entrance.
The Women’s Resource Center has posted its 2007 Fall Events Calendar. Visit http://www.niu.edu/women/URW/WRC_calendar_fall2007_final.pdf for the latest information on support groups, speakers, services and other valuable resources offered by WRC.
All NIU women – students, faculty and staff – are invited to the Networking Luncheon from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday, Sept. 28, in the Chandelier Room, Adams Hall. Department of Geography associate professor Lesley Rigg and assistant professor David Goldblum will present “Living and Working Environmentally: One Family at a Time.”
The cost is $8 per person. Make a reservation by Tuesday, Sept. 18, by calling (815) 753-0320. For details, visit http://www.niu.edu/women/PCSW/network.shtml.
In conjunction with one of its current exhibitions, “Some Enchanted Evening: 100 Years of Evening Gowns (1900-1999),” the NIU Art Museum is hosting a Big Band Dance Night with dessert buffet and cash bar at the Altgeld Auditorium from 7 to 11 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 20.
Swing dance lessons with Barb Heimendinger begin at 7:15 p.m. in the auditorium. The Grand Avenue Big Band will perform from 8 to 11 p.m. Dance lessons and a dessert bar are included in the ticket price. Formal or vintage attire is encouraged, but not required.
All of the NIU Art Museum’s galleries on the first floor, west end, will be open from 7 to 10 p.m. during the event.
The museum also is offering free foxtrot and cha cha dance lessons from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 15, to those who register in advance.
Advance ticket prices for members are $25 for a single or $45 for a couple. Non-members pay $36 for a single or $65 for a couple. Tickets also are available at the door during the event. Members pay $30 for a single or $50 for a couple; non-members pay $40 for a single or $70 for a couple.
Advance tickets can be purchased by credit card or check payable to NIU. To purchase advance tickets, call the museum at (815) 753-1936 or visit www.vpa.niu.edu/museum for a ticket order form. Print and return completed order form by mail or deliver to the museum with payment. The mailing address is NIU Art Museum, Altgeld 116, NIU, DeKalb, IL, 60115.
Free parking is available during this special event in the lot northeast of Gilbert and College Drives. Campus parking is available without a permit after 7 p.m. except for designated service and reserved spaces.
The University Women’s Club of NIU will host its annual fall open house from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 26, at the home of Barbara Peters, 901 Woodlawn Drive, DeKalb.
The University Women’s Club invites every woman associated with the university, whether she is a current or retired faculty or staff member, or the wife of a current, retired or deceased faculty or staff member, to join this long-standing organization of NIU women.
Meet people with a common interest in N IU, participate in distinct interest groups, enjoy social events and support the club’s philanthropic endeavor of providing scholarships to deserving NIU women students.