Artist Candice Ivy and Fine Arts Professor Andrea Olmstead set up Candace’s exhibit “A Wide Golden Blue” in Fitchburg State University’s Hammond Hall Art Gallery. “A Wide Golden Blue” will be on display in the Hammond Hall Art Gallery from Tuesday, Jan. 16 to Sunday, March 1, 2024. There will be a reception with the artist at 3:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 25, 3:30 p.m. at the gallery, located in Hammond Hall at 160 Pearl St. Admission is free and open to the public. Read more here.

Winter Orientation was held in the Hammond Center today to welcome our newest Falcons to campus. After registration, the day began with welcome remarks from Director of Student Development Michael Kennedy, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Patricia Marshall, Vice President for Student Affairs Laura Bayless, and our Student Orientation Leaders. Students and their families heard presentations from various student services departments including Commuter Affairs, Housing and Residential Services, Wellness & Counseling Services, Academic Coaching and Tutoring Center,  Career Services and Advising (CSA), Student Accounts, University Police, and Community Health Connections, Welcome to the flock!

Beginning this evening, the Communications Media Department will present its production of It's a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play at the Wallace Theater for the Performing Arts in the McKay Complex. Written by Joe Landry and directed by Fitchburg State Professor Kelly Morgan and student Allison Thompson, the classic movie is retold as a charming 1940s-themed radio show, including a live Foley operator for sound effects. Experience the impressive vocal range of the actors as they play multiple characters "over the air." Learn more about the production and when to see it here.

Students in English Studies Professor Kisha Tracy's Honors Seminar Literature discussed their work on the topic of Afro/Africanfuturism at the Student Literature Fair: An Exploration of Afro/Africanfuturism in the Amelia V. Gallucci-Cirio Library. University Librarians selected a winner of the Fair, with an additional Visitors' Choice award.

The Fitchburg State University Campus Center was abuzz today as the university once again hosts the American Moot Court Association's Eastern Regional Undergraduate Moot Court Qualifying Tournament. Student teams and coaches from as far away as California and Louisiana registered for the event this afternoon. Event coordinator, Economics, History and Political Science Professor Paul Weizer, welcomed volunteer judges, as well as the competing teams. This competition will span this afternoon and all day tomorrow.

Last night we kicked off our Homecoming and Reunion Weekend with a Pep rally, Bonfire, and Carnival in a transformed Ross St. Parking Lot. Homecoming is our annual celebration that brings our entire Falcon community together for an amazing fall weekend and the opening night was amazing, we celebrated our athletic teams, and everyone enjoyed  rides, games, food and more!

Last night, the Office of International Education (OIE) and the Fitchburg Indian Student Association observed Diwali in the Main Lounge of Hammond Hall. Diwali is the Hindu festival of lights with its variations also celebrated in other Indian religions. It symbolizes the spiritual "victory of light over darkness, good over evil, 
and knowledge over ignorance". The event, including dinner, dancing and an educational portion, was generously funded by ITInduct.

This afternoon, the Career Services and Advising Center held an  Exploration Fair in the Hammond Main Lounge.  Fitchburg State University's School of Graduate, Online and Continuing Education (SGOCE) along with local university's graduate school programs, provided this as opportunity for schools to meet the talented students at Fitchburg State University, and connect with potential graduate students. This was an opportunity for our students to learn about graduate school programs, and receive information about the application process.

The Center for Faculty Scholarship featured Professor Teresa Fava Thomas of the Economics, History and Political Science Department for a conversation about her new book, The Allied Bombing of Central Italy: The Restoration of the Nile Mosaic and Sanctuary of Fortuna at Palestrina. Dr. Thomas's book "explores the pressure by the Mussolini regime to control the Barberini family's art collection, the uses of cultural materials for propaganda purposes, the Allied use of airpower in the Italian theater of war, the postwar decision-making and recovery process. The book is one of the very few long-range studies of the war's impact on a single Italian town."