1. Big Brothers Big Sisters Info Sessions
2. Wesleyan Professor William D. Johnston to Speak
3. UMass Alumnus Peter Manseau To Speak
4. BDIC Information Session
5. The Librarian is In!

Achievements, Awards & Accolades

1. Michael King Wins Howard H. Quint Memorial Prize in Honors

$cholarships and $upport

1. Fulbright Info Session

Internships & Employment

1. Writing Tutor Intern Opportunity

Academic Opportunities

1. Senior Honors Thesis Course
2. Community Service Learning Courses - Fall ?09
3. New Creative Writing Capstone Course

Campus & Community Events

1. Take Back the Night
   
2. Kiss a Senior
   
3. Dinner with Strangers
   
4. Anatomy of a Hollywood Writer
   
5. Campus Center Hotel Rooms Available For Commencement 2009
   
6. Indigenous Peoples Symposium/Concert/Powwow
   
7. Senior Shovel and Scoop
   
8. 9th Annual Juniper Literary Festival
   

— ANNOUNCEMENTS & ACTIVITIES —

BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS INFO SESSIONS
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Hampshire County is holding a series of information sessions Thursday, April 30th, at 4:00, 4:45 and 5:30 p.m., in room 406A Goodell for students who are interested in taking the Honors 292S course, ?Mentoring with Big Brothers Big Sisters?. More Information.

WESLEYAN PROFESSOR WILLIAM D. JOHNSTON TO SPEAK
"?Because I loved him?: The Life and Legacy of Abe Sada?
Professor William D. Johnston of Wesleyan University will give a talk Thursday, April 23, at 5:30 p.m. in Herter 217. Drawn from his book Geisha?Harlot?Strangler?Star: A Woman, Sex, & Morality in Modern Japan, he will speak on the life and legacy of Abe Sada.
   This lecture is free and open to the public, and is part of the visiting speaker series associated with the capstone course ?Sacrifice and Martyrdom in Japan.? Dr. Johnston is Professor and Chair of the History Department, East Asian Studies Program, and Science in Society Program at Wesleyan University. His research interests are syphilis in early modern Japan, warfare and state formation in sixteenth-century Japan, and the historiography of Amino Yoshihiko. Click here to view PDF poster.

UMASS ALUMNUS PETER MANSEAU TO SPEAK
Come hear Peter Manseau Prize Winning Novelist, Religious Scholar, and UMass Amherst/Commonwealth College Alumnus speak on "Collecting Gods: Why Telling Stories About Other People's Beliefs Might Just Save the World", Monday, April 27, 12:00-1:30 p.m. in Goodell 604, Oasis Seminar Room. More Information.

BDIC INFORMATION SESSION
BDIC is the design-your-own-major program at UMass Amherst and is now housed in Commonwealth College. Concentrations in BDIC range from "Neuroscience" to "Film Studies" to "Entrepreneurship and Information Technology." Com Col students interested in the BDIC major are invited to an information session with Dan Gordon, professor of history and director of BDIC. A brief video will be part of the presentation.
Where: 608 Goodell
When: Every Thursday, 4-4:30 p.m.

THE LIBRARIAN IS IN!
Emily Alling, librarian for Commonwealth College, will be in the ComCol Lounge for one hour per week from 12:00 ? 1:00 p.m. Stop by with any research you might be working on, or just to say hi and learn more about what the Libraries have to offer. Dates are as follows:
Wed Apr 29
Tue May 5

—ACHIEVEMENTS, AWARDS & ACCOLADES—

— $CHOLARSHIPS AND $UPPORT —

FULBRIGHT INFO SESSION
The Office of National Scholarship Advisement (ONSA) will be hosting a Fulbright Information Session on Thursday, May 7th, from 12:15 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. in the Commonwealth College Lounge, 504 Goodell.
This session will be open to all interested students, graduate as well as undergraduate.

— INTERNSHIPS & EMPLOYMENT —

WRITING TUTOR INTERN OPPORTUNITY
Interested in becoming a tutor at the UMass Amherst Writing Center? We're now taking applications! To become a writing tutor intern, undergraduates need to apply for and complete a two-semester course sequence on writing education: English 329H in the fall and English 298H in the spring.
   We'll talk about social theories of writing, research on writing processes, cultural differences, disciplinary conventions, and more; students in these courses start to tutor mid-way through the fall semester.
The courses are open to all majors, and those who complete both courses with a grade of B or higher can join us as paid tutors. For more information about the application process, please visit the UMass Writing Center.
   Select applicants will be interviewed, and first consideration will go to those who apply by April 17, 2009; however, we'll continue to accept applications if there are still seats available.

— ACADEMIC OPPORTUNITIES —

SENIOR HONORS THESIS COURSE
Honors 499C, sec. 5 - Historic and Contemporary Issues of American Indians and Tribes: History, Policy, and Law ? Fall semester, TU/TH 1:00PM - 2:15 p.m.
This is a 2-semester senior honors thesis course that covers American Indian history and federal Indian policy and law. It includes gaming, environmental rights, federal acknowledgment, tribal governments and economies, and much more.
   In addition to relevant readings and writing assignments, the first draft of the honors thesis will be due by the end of fall semester.
For information regarding registration, please contact: Kathleen Brown-Pérez, brown- perez@honors.umass.edu for permission. Only 5 available openings in the course remain.

COMMUNITY SERVICE LEARNING COURSES - FALL ?09
Learn outside the classroom! The following are some examples of Commonwealth College community service learning opportunities for credit:

? Get to know -- and get involved with! -- people, places, and organizations that address issues of food security and hunger in the communities near UMass.
? Develop your IT skills as you develop customized databases, websites, web-based content management systems, and digital storytelling projects with a local community organization.
? Mentor kids in the afterschool program of a local elementary school to provide an early intervention for college access for under-represented youth.
For a full listing of courses, please click here. For more information about community service learning at Commonwealth College, visit www.umass.edu/csl.

NEW CREATIVE WRITING CAPSTONE COURSE
Commonwealth College is offering a new two-semester Narrative Nonfiction Creative Writing Capstone, Truth/Telling: Reading and Writing Narrative Nonfiction.
Permission of the instructor is required. Seminar is limited to 15. Submit your application now. Meeting Times: Thursdays 2:30 ? 5:30 p.m.
To receive an application form, contact: Prof. Connie Griffin at cgriffin@honors.umass.edu.

— CAMPUS & COMMUNITY EVENTS —

TAKE BACK THE NIGHT
Thursday, April 23, 2009
6:00 p.m.: Drop-in Art Workshop ? Student Union Lawn
7pm: Rally and March - Student Union Lawn
University of Massachusetts Amherst
   Join us for an evening of art and activism! All are welcome! At 6:00 p.m., join us for the Drop-in Art Workshop to make a sign to carry in the march, create a Clothesline Project t-shirt, or decorate a postcard to be added to the Everywoman's Center Postcard Project (our twist on Post Secret). At 7:00 p.m., join us to Rally and March and make some noise about sexual violence! Performances include: the Not Ready for Bedtime Players, Phallacies, Body Politics, and Shira Erlichman.
   The march will conclude with a drum circle led by Ellen Clegg.
Wheelchair Accessible. Rain location: Bartlett 61.
Call Angela at 413-577-4229 for more information.
Sponsored by the Everywoman's Center/ Educator Advocates.

KISS A SENIOR
If you would like to order a favorite senior or seniors that you work with a "Kiss a Senior Goodbye" gift of either a champagne glass or Class of 2009 coffee mug, both containing Hershey Kisses. Your gift comes with a personal message from you.
Use the order form or go to Alumni Connections.
Student Alumni Association members will hand deliver the gifts to your office so that you can surprise your senior or add it to an existing gift.

DINNER WITH STRANGERS
Thursday, April 23, 2009
6:00 p.m. in Memorial Hall
Do you know a great student that would benefit from a dinner with alumni? If you do, you should tell them about the Alumni Association's new program, Dinner with Strangers. This is an interactive program that combines good food with good conversation and an opportunity for students to network with alumni about life after college. More information.
Please note, seats are filling up fast. This is complimentary for students.

ANATOMY OF A HOLLYWOOD WRITER
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
4:00 p.m. in Memorial Hall
As part of the Eleanor Bateman Alumni Scholar in Residence program, UMass Amherst alumnus, Mark Wilding ?79, will share his story from student to producer and lead writer for Grey's Anatomy. Immediately following the talk, all guests will have the opportunity to visit with Mr. Wilding at the complimentary reception. More information.

CAMPUS CENTER HOTEL ROOMS AVAILABLE FOR COMMENCEMENT 2009
The Campus Center Hotel has a limited number of hotel rooms available for Commencement 2009. A two night stay is required of either Thursday/Friday or Friday/Saturday and the cost is $499 a room. Full payment is required at time of booking and no refunds will be given if the room is cancelled. To make the reservation please call 1-877-822-2110 ext 7714.

Commencement 2010 room reservations will go on sale beginning Wednesday, May 13, 2009 at 10 a.m. by calling 1-877-822-2110 ext 0. There will be a two night minimum stay and the cost is $499 a room. A deposit of half the total cost is due at time of booking; final payment is due by Friday, December 4, 2009.

INDIGENOUS PEOPLES SYMPOSIUM/CONCERT/POWWOW
A not-to-be-missed event for Commonwealth College students and all interested in expanding their knowledge of the Indigenous Peoples of the Americas. Ties in with the fall 2009 ?Honors Seminar? (formerly ?Dean?s Book Course?) book ?Ten Little Indians? by Sherman Alexie. More Information.

SENIOR SHOVEL AND SCOOP
Come join us for the Senior Shovel and Scoop, as seniors plant and dedicate the 2009 Class Tree on Arbor Day, April 24th. More Information.

9TH ANNUAL JUNIPER LITERARY FESTIVAL
Join in the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Massachusetts Review!
Come to any part or all of two days of readings and performances by emerging and renowned poets and writers; addresses; roundtables; and an independent press fair showcasing an exciting range of local, regional, and national publications, being held on campus April 24 and 25. All events take place in the Fine Arts Center Lobby and University Gallery. Free and open to the public. More Information.