Alexandra Wysocki, Director of the Fitchburg State University Police Program, program staff, and the 7th Fitchburg State University Police Program's Recruit Officer Course (ROC) held a walk-through for tomorrow morning's Police Program Graduation: 7th ROC. Expected at the ceremony are President Hodge, local dignitaries, members of police departments from across Massachusetts, as well as proud family members.

This morning, Chief Fitchburg State University Police Chief Michael Cloutier and other members of the University Police joined with Fitchburg Fire Department (FFD) at their North Street Headquarters, adjacent to the university, to commemorate lives lost during the attacks on 9/11/2001. The ceremony was held at the 9/11 memorial outside Fire Department headquarters - a piece of a steel beam from the North Tower of the World Trade Center anchors the memorial.

This afternoon, Student Development held Rock the Block XXVI on Highland Ave & on the Main Quad. Rock the Block gives students a chance to connect with over 150 Clubs, Organizations, Departments and Non-Profits. There are a plethora of activities, including an obstacle course, dinner, dunk tank, ice cream truck, club demonstrations, free stuff and so much more!

Professors  Amy McGlothlin and Jonathan Harvey began their semester courses this today defining expectations and going over the syllabus; Music Technology, and Chamber Choir. Dr. Amy McGlothlin also serves as the Program Director for our Creative Arts Therapies program, while Dr. Jonathan Harvey serves as the Program Director for our Creative Arts Enterprise program. 

Nursing Professor Melissa Dunn tasked students in her Community Health Nursing course to break into groups and compile lists of what things can affect health. Community Health Nursing focuses on systems concepts as a basis for applying the nursing process with aggregate clients in the community. Special emphasis is placed on nursing care of vulnerable populations including the homeless, people of poverty, minority populations, women and children, and older adults.

This week, Edward Troxler began teaching his guitar course in the Conlon Fine Arts building. In this class, students will learn the fundamentals of guitar playing including learning basic chords, scales, arpeggios and techniques for playing a variety of musical styles. Emphasis is placed on melody and accompaniment style texture as well as on individual and ensemble playing. Edward Troxler operates Eddy's Music located in Fitchburg, MA.

Students in Biology and Chemistry Professor Dr. Michael Nosek's Cell Biology course hit the ground running in their first day of lab in the Antonucci Science Complex.  In this course, cellular and subcellular structure and function are covered. Major topics include membranes, cell organelles and biogenesis, energy metabolism, regulatory mechanisms, signal transduction, DNA structure and function, transcription and translation, cell cycle control, and cancer development. Laboratory experiments focus on current cell biology methodologies and instrumentation, and include spectrophotometry, cell fractionation, microscopy, electrophoresis and cell culture technologies.

Students in Dr. Robert Carr's Client Project Production course wasted no time and met with this semester's client, the Fitchburg Art Museum. After breaking into small groups and some initial strategizing, the class discussed their project, promotion of an upcoming exhibit,  with Curator Emily Mazzola, and Assistant Curator Sarah Harper of the Fitchburg Art Museum. 

Two of our simulation manikins "played" the same role today for team of our nursing students who were directed to take vitals, administer medications, explain procedures, and work through the simulation in real time. The Fitchburg State University Nursing Simulation Laboratory assists nursing students in learning critical thinking and clinical judgment skills in preparation for their healthcare careers. The “manikins” act as lifelike patient simulators, wherein instructors provide real-time feedback via a control center, giving students as close to a hospital scenario as possible. Fellow students watch as their classmates work through the simulation. All students and faculty debrief after the scenario.