Call for Nominations: Rensselaer Alumni Hall of Fame

The Rensselaer Alumni Hall of Fame is accepting nominations for its 2005 Induction Class. The Rensselaer Alumni Hall of Fame is designed to permanently preserve, celebrate, and widely communicate the long and exceptional heritage of Rensselaer. To date, 49 alumni and friends of the Institute who have made outstanding and far-reaching accomplishments have been inducted.

Additional information and an online nomination form is available at www.alumni.rpi.edu/hof. Note: nomination forms are due by Jan. 31, 2004.

If you have questions, contact Peter Pedone, assistant director of alumni relations, at pedonp@rpi.edu or ext. 6061. 11/10/03

Blood Drive Nov. 19

Alpha Phi Omega is sponsoring a blood drive in the Mueller Center on Wednesday, Nov. 19 from 11:30 a.m. to 5:15 p.m. Appointments can be scheduled ahead of time by e-mailing phillt2@rpi.edu or by calling the Alpha Phi Omega office at ext. 6516. 11/10/03

Snow Emergency Parking for Off-Campus Personnel
Students, faculty, and staff who would otherwise park on the city streets will be able to park in the North Lot when the City of Troy declares a snow emergency on city streets, according to Rensselaer’s Parking Office. Vehicles must display a Snow Emergency Permit, which can be obtained free of charge from Rensselaer's Parking Office during regular business hours. Or, apply online for your Snow Emergency Permit at http://www.pt.rpi.edu/ under permit management.

If you already have a Rensselaer parking permit, you do not need to obtain a Snow Emergency Permit. Your permit will be valid during Snow Emergencies.

The last four rows of the North Lot in the northwest corner will be made available during snow emergencies and the parking entry gates will be in the up position. Parking is allowed for the duration of the snow emergency. Permits are valid for the entire semester, including during semester breaks.

Information about snow emergencies and parking restrictions is available by calling 274-TROY (8769) or by checking Rensselaer's Campus Parking Web site at http://squirrel.pt.rpi.edu/. For further information, contact the Parking Office at ext. 6616. 11/10/03

Library Hosts Exhibit on Williamsburg Bridge

A traveling exhibit from the Brooklyn Arts Council titled “Williamsburg Bridge at 100: Spanning a Century of Change" will be on display in the lobby of the Folsom Library during the month of November. As chief engineer for the Williamsburg Bridge, Rensselaer Alumni Hall of Fame member Leffert Buck (Class of 1868) set out to build a structurally sound bridge that would be less expensive, and longer, than the nearby Brooklyn Bridge.

The exhibit documents the history of Williamsburg Bridge with emphasis on its construction, reconstruction, and workers past and present. The exhibit will open Tuesday, Nov. 4.

A continuing Archives exhibit titled “The Williamsburg Bridge: Alumni Ingenuity” will also be available for viewing on the third floor of the Folsom Library. 11/3/03

To facilitate snow removal this winter, no overnight parking is allowed in gated lots except for the yellow-striped student section of North Lot.

Core-lot (“C”) permit-holders will be given first preference for spaces in the 510-car parking garage, which is scheduled to open in January 2004. If you have core parking and would like garage parking, e-mail parking@rpi.edu by Nov. 14. After this date, garage parking will be available to all other faculty and staff on a first-come, first-served basis. If all the spaces have not been claimed by Jan. 1, 2004, post-doctoral and graduate students will be offered the option of garage parking. Any remaining parking would then be opened to all other students on a first-come, first-served basis.

If you have questions, visit the Parking Office Web site at http://www.pt.rpi.edu/ or call ext. 6616. 10/27/03

Preregistration Now Required for Traincaster Courses

Due to high demand for Rensselaer’s Professional Development Program and the associated online learning management system, Traincaster, preregistration is now required for all of the courses in the program, including the Management Development Series, Staff Development Series, and Environmental Health and Safety courses. Preregistration will ensure that appropriate facilities and presentation materials are available for each session.

To register for Environmental Health and Safety courses (denoted by HR(EHS) in the course title), select the course desired from the assigned course curriculum on the “My Traincaster” page or from the course catalog. Follow the prompts to register.

To register for Management Development Programs, Staff Development Programs, and Focused Workshops (denoted by HR(MD), HR(SD), and HR(FW) in the course titles), complete the same process as required for registration for the Environmental Health and Safety courses. In addition, a Professional Development Program hard-copy registration form must be completed and submitted to Human Resources. This form, as well as submission instructions and the related course fees, can be reviewed on the Human Resources web-site at http://www.rpi.edu/dept/hr/pubs/prodevcatalog.html

If you have questions about the registration process or the Professional Development Program, contact Beverly Pruitt, director of employee relations and development, at ext. 6038 or pruitb@rpi.edu; or Will Fahey, training and program development specialist, at ext. 2318 or faheyw@rpi.edu 10/27/03

Save the Date: Memorial for Coach Bill Cahill Nov. 21

A memorial service will be held Friday, Nov. 21 to honor Bill Cahill, Rensselaer’s women’s hockey coach who died Oct. 5. The memorial will begin at 9 a.m. in the Chapel + Cultural Center. The campus community is invited to attend. Cahill was entering his fourth season as Rensselaer's women's hockey coach. He also had served seven years as an assistant coach with the men's Division I program. 10/20/03

Streetscape Improvement Projects Begin on North Side of Campus: Temporary Parking, Traffic Restrictions in Effect

As part of the ongoing improvements to the campus, work has begun on Ninth Street between Peoples Avenue and Sage Avenue. The west side of Ninth street will be completely reconstructed with new curbs, pavement, sidewalks, and landscape. Parking is prohibited on the west side of the street while this work is under way; work is expected to take three to four weeks. When completed, there will be approximately 15 new parking spaces available on the street.

Commuters are asked to use the shuttle parking lots and not to park on neighborhood streets. Seven parking spaces in the Black Cultural Center lot will be made available to student residents of that block of Ninth Street. See the Parking Office for more information.

On Oct. 13, a complete reconstruction of the intersection of Sage Avenue and Fifteenth Street will begin. New curbs, crosswalks, sidewalks, and traffic signals will be installed. This work will require the closure of Sage Avenue in two phases. Phase One will close the west side of the intersection from Oct. 13 through Nov. 3. Fifteenth Street will remain open at all times. The Ricketts Gate off Sage Avenue will be open but will have to be approached from the west.

On Nov. 3 the west side will open up and work will switch over to the east side of the intersection, closing Sage Avenue access to the east. All surface work is planned to be completed by Nov. 24.
During Family Weekend, Oct. 24-26, work will be temporarily stopped and the intersection will be opened for access. Fifteenth Street will remain open to two lanes of traffic at all times during this work. Some parking on Fifteenth will be restricted during the work so that traffic lanes can be maintained open.

“These projects complement the extensive streetscape work happening on the east side of campus,” said Barb Nelson, project manager in campus planning & facilities design. “We appreciate your cooperation in obeying all restrictions and passing through these work zones with caution while work is under way.” 9/29/03