Armenian dance and song workshop March 5
Fresno State hosts a traditional Armenian song and dance workshop with Hasmik Harutyunyan from 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday, March 5, South Gym, Room 133. The workshop is free to Fresno State students; $10 general. Reservations: Armenian Studies Program, 278-2669.

Nomination deadline for Provost's Awards March 18
Nominations are now being accepted for the Provost's Awards for the 2010-2011 academic year. Students, faculty, and staff are encouraged to submit nominations of full-time tenure and tenure-track faculty, or an academic program for the Assessment of Learning Award. Nominations may be submitted in the following categories: Excellence in Teaching, Technology in Education; Graduate Teaching and Mentoring; Faculty Service; Promising New Faculty; Distinguished Achievement in Assessment of Learning; and Distinguished Achievement in Research, Scholarship, or Creative Activities. All nominations must be submitted to the Office of the Provost on or before 5 p.m. on Friday, March 18. (Funding for the awards is provided through non-state dollars.) Nomination forms are available on-line: http://www.csufresno.edu/academics/faculty_resources/opportunities_awards/provost_award.shtml

Friends of Freddy to gather in Fresno
The Friends of Freddy will gather in Fresno March 26-27 (a week later than previously announced) to celebrate that pig o’ their hearts, Freddy, the talking animal hero of 25 children’s books written by the late Walter R. Brooks and published by Alfred A. Knopf from 1927 to 1958, the year of the author’s death. In addition to the Freddy books, Brooks was the author of more than 200 short stories for adults, 20 of them featuring Ed the Talking Horse, whose adventures formed the basis of the kitsch classic TV show of the ‘60s, Mr. Ed.

Founded by Toronto playwright Dave Carley in 1984, this literary fan club has grown from a stalwart three or four to more than 600 members throughout the U.S., Canada, and England. The original whimsical purpose of the club was to “spread the names and fame of Walter R. Brooks and Freddy the Pig throughout the known universe.” Thanks to Club efforts, the Freddy books are back in print, with new paperback editions coming out this spring.

The Fresno gathering will celebrate the gift of Michael Cart’s collection of Freddy books and related materials as well as both Brooks’s personal files and Cart’s as well. Michael Cart is Brooks’s biographer; his book Talking Animals and Others: The Life and Work of Walter R. Brooks was published in 2009. The Arne Nixon Center will offer an exhibition of materials related to Freddy and Walter R. Brooks from March 1 through May 31. ANCA, the Arne Nixon Center Advocates, will sponsor a reception for Freddy guests on Saturday evening, March 26.

Travel to Fresno is convenient by plane (the Fresno Yosemite airport code is FAT), Amtrak, Greyhound, or automobile. Fresno is about a four-hour drive from either San Francisco or Los Angeles. The Piccadilly Inn-University, 4961 North Cedar Avenue, Fresno, California, 93726-1087, will offer a "Friends of Freddy" rate of $89 (includes tax) for up to four people in a room. The hotel is located across the street from the Fresno State campus, about a 15-minute walk from the library, where meetings will be held. The room rate will increase on March 10th. Call (800) HOTEL-US or (559) 224-4200 for reservations. There is no charge for this program, which is limited to 100 people on a first-come, first-served basis. Older children are welcome if accompanied by an adult. Pre-registration is required; for more information see www.freddythepig.org. The Friends of Freddy will sell books, t-shirts, and other Freddy materials. For more information call (559) 278-8116 or send e-mail to mrianto@csufresno.edu.

Cardinal Newman’s education ideals subject of discussion
President John D. Welty and Dr. Craig Bernthal (English) will discuss the thought and writings of John Henry Cardinal Newman on the ideals and realities of higher education at the third annual Sergio P. Negro Memorial Lecture on March 27. Newman was a 19th century British theologian, writer and preacher, trained as an Anglican priest, who converted to Catholicism. The lecture series memorializes the Rev. Negro, a lecturer at Fresno State and the longtime pastor at the St. Paul Newman Center, west of campus. This year’s lecture will be at 3 p.m. March 27 at Cardinal Newman Hall, north of the St. Paul Newman Center, 1572 E. Barstow Ave. There is no charge for the lecture, but a free-will offering will be taken. More information is available at 436-3434.

32nd annual Central California Research Symposium
The Central California Research Symposium will be held on Wednesday, April 6, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the University Business Center. The purpose of the symposium is to share recent research with community investigators in various fields, college students, and faculty as well as to encourage research activities in the Central Valley. All fields of research will be considered for presentation to exchange further ideas among investigators and the general public. Abstract submission date: Friday, Feb. 25 by 11:59 p.m. For additional information and a sample abstract, please visit http://csufresno.edu/grants/programs/students/symposium.shtml.

Applications being accepted for the the Claude C. Laval Jr. Award
Applications are being accepted for the Claude C. Laval Jr. Award for Innovative Technology and Research. The award, in monies up to $5,000, supports the development of innovative technology and related research at Fresno State. Funding for the award is provided by an annual gift to the university from Mr. and Mrs. Claude C. Laval III. The competition is open to all full-time, tenured, or probationary members of the faculty; to tenured faculty participating in the Faculty Early Retirement Program who teach on a half-time basis; and to full-time undergraduate and graduate students of the university with the sponsorship of a faculty member who is eligible for the competition. Applicants must be in continuing employment by, or enrollment at, the university during the grant year. Teams of two or more persons may apply jointly, but all must be eligible under these terms. Applicants with previously unfunded proposals may submit proposals for this award. Applications will be evaluated for creativity, innovation, practical application and general merit. The application deadline has been extended to April 8. For more information, contact Maral Kismetian at the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs at 278-0856 or mkismetian@csufresno.edu.

Faculty urged to recruit academic judges
Thomas McClanahan, associate vice president for Research and Sponsored Programs, is seeking help from faculty members and staff in recruiting academic judges for the 25th Annual CSU Student Research Competition. The competition will be held May 6-7 at Fresno State. Students selected from 23 CSU campuses will gather to present their research projects to their peers, faculty, and administrators.

Fresno State faculty and staff are not eligible to serve as judges because the university is hosting the event, but are invited to identify potential judges. Judges will assess the quality of the oral presentations in 10 categories: Physical and Mathematical Sciences; Behavioral and Social Sciences; Biological and Agricultural Sciences; Business, Economics and Public Administration; Education; Health, Nutrition, and Clinical Sciences; Engineering and Computer Science; Humanities and Letters; Arts and Design; and Interdisciplinary Studies.

Judges should be knowledgeable in their fields as indicated by graduate degrees. They will be asked to arrive one hour before the competition begins for orientation before judging a number of presentations on Friday afternoon and/or Saturday morning. An honorarium of $150 will be provided to each judge for each half-day session. For more information, please contact the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs at orsp@csufresno.edu or 278-0840.

25th Annual CSU Student Research Competition
The 25th annual California State University Student Research Competition will be held May 6-7. This system-wide competition will showcase excellent research conducted by CSU undergraduate and graduate students in the full range of academic programs offered by the CSU. Student participants will make oral presentations before juries of professional experts from major corporations, foundations, public agencies, and colleges and universities in California. For more information, please visit http://www.csufresno.edu/grants/programs/students/student.shtml.

Travel study program to Ireland next fall
The Division of Continuing and Global Education has announced a non-credit travel study program open to curious travelers of all ages. A new destination is Shades of Ireland, a 10-day journey to the Emerald Isle, which departs next fall on Oct. 2, 2011. For details, call 559.278.0423 or email mailto:travelstudy@csufresno.edu