Students enrolled in the Fitchburg State University Police Program's Recruit Officer Course (ROC) had their last monthly meeting of the semester yesterday afternoon in Weston Auditorium. At this meeting, the Drill Instructor (DI) had a "hats off" conversation with the students. When a DI has a “Hats off” conversation with a group, it’s a signal to the group that it will be an open discussion, it’s a time to teach/mentor/coach and a time for the group to relax just a bit. When the hat goes back on, it’s a signal that the DI is back in the traditional DI role.

Theater Concentration, Communications Media student Rebecca Joseph, who recently played Ruth Younger in the university's production of  A Raisin in the Sun, used her talents in our Nursing Simulation Laboratory where she played a patient. After getting her characters backstory, the scene began with Rebecca in the Clinic waiting room to be called by a team of Nursing Program students who were unaware of her ascribed condition.

Professor Kisha Tracy, and students in her Global Middle Ages course, assembled some informational packets,  "Hildegard's Horde," a medieval miscellany of entertaining education, as a take away for next week's Choral Kaleidoscope performance. On Tuesday,  the Fitchburg State choirs as well as voices from Gardner High School, Murdock High School and Narragansett Regional High School, will perform in Weston Auditorium. Among the selections performed will be pieces from the Middle Ages by Hildegard of Bingen. The packets are full of information about Hildegard of Bingen, the Middle Ages, and more.

Yesterday afternoon, Criminal Justice Professor Katherine Hazen, presented 5 Study Tips from Cognitive Science with students in Percival Hall. The thrust of the presentation was to give students the tools they need, based on cognitive science, that will help them study for their upcoming finals.

Students in Professor Petri Flint's Introductory Painting work on projects in the Conlon Fine Arts. The course studies the basic problems of form, color, and texture as understood in oil. Consideration is also given to the nature and use of the oil painting materials. 

Our 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.

Late last week, Dean of The School of Health and Natural Sciences Dr. Jennifer Hanselman and Engineering Technology Department faculty welcomed local business partners to the  Fitchburg State University Engineering Technology Department's Industry Advisory Board (IAB) meeting. Included on the agenda was an opportunity for students to present their work to the partners in attendance.

Co-Producer and Director alumnus Graham Suorsa '02 screened his HBO Max documentary The Fastest Woman on Earth yesterday afternoon in Kent Auditorium. Mr. Suorsa gave a poignant and powerful introduction to the screening, recounting how his days at Fitchburg State University, and interactions with his faculty, formed him into the filmmaker he is today.  One mention of note was Communications Media Professor Gunther Hoos, whose daughter, and Director of Alumni and Family Relations, Tanya Hoos Crowley MS '21 spearheaded the event, and introduced Mr. Suorsa. In particular, Graham mentioned how Professor Hoos took a chance on him, allowing him to do his own production one summer. At that time, Professor Hoos gifted Graham a new director's  slate saying, "Now you're a Director, you need a slate." That slate has appeared in everyone of Mr. Suorsa's productions as an homage to Professor Hoos. Also noted were the love and support of his parents, Fitchburg State friends, and relatives that were in attendance. 

The filmmaker also hosted a Q&A, along with an informal "Pizza with Graham" chat session after the screening to connect with Fitchburg State Falcons past and present.

Students in Biology and Chemistry Professor John Ludlam's Invertebrate Biology Lab are studying feeding efficiency in the hornworm. The process involves meticulously weighing & recording natural and artificial food sources, along with the worm, and its waste. The results will give a better idea of how the different food sources are used by the worm. 

Beginning this evening, the Communications Media Department will present its production of Lorraine Hansberry’s celebrated play A Raisin in the Sun. The play tells the story of a lower-class black family’s struggle to gain middle-class acceptance. The university’s production is directed by Professor Kelly Morgan. “It is brutally upsetting that issues presented in this play still resonate with us as a society," Morgan said. A Raisin in the Sun will be performed in the Wallace Theater for the Performing Arts at the McKay Complex at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, with matinee performances at 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Learn more about the production here.