Currently@Carleton

Please join me for our Quarterly Meeting on Tuesday, May 26, at 10 a.m. in the Concert Hall. I'll be providing some updates on the May Board of Trustees Meeting, and we will address some of the budget measures recently passed by the Board. We will also have an opportunity to provide some updates on other initiatives at the College. I look forward to seeing you on Tuesday.

All staff and faculty are invited to a reception to bid John a fond farewell as he makes the transition to his new position as Provost at Muhlenberg College, Pennsylvania. The event will be Thursday, June 4 from 3 to 4:30 p.m. in the Alumni Guest House Meeting Room.

On Friday, May 29, at 3 p.m., we will assemble to honor those students who have completed distinguished work during their undergraduate careers. Carleton’s Anne Patrick, the William H. Laird Professor of Religion and the Liberal Arts, will deliver the Honors Convocation address. Friday will follow the same schedule as we had for Opening Convocation; click here to view the schedule.

Plans are in place for the 135th Commencement in the proud history of Carleton College. Festivities will begin on Friday, June 12, with a variety of activities including receptions and student performances. Details about the weekend’s events can be found online.

The Commencement ceremony will take place Saturday morning, June 13, at 9:30 a.m. on the lawn west of Hulings Hall with seating to accommodate all guests. FACULTY: The academic procession will assemble on the sidewalk alongside of Laird Hall at 9 a.m. and will begin processing (in pairs) toward Music Hall at 9:20 a.m. Diagrams for faculty processional and recessional routes can be found here.

Greetings, members of the Forum and SAC communities! Please be sure to mark your calendars for the fast-approaching SAC/Forum End-of-Year Gathering. The event will be held in the Alumni Guest House Meeting Room and Patio (weather permitting), Monday June 1, from 3 to 5 p.m. Light refreshments will be served and President Oden will say a few words to the group as well. Please join us for this nice, informal time to reflect on the year's accomplishments, chat a bit, and eat a bit. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact the SAC Co-Chairs, Noel Ponder (x7185/nponder@carleton.edu) or Martha Jirovec (x4100/mjirovec@carleton.edu). We hope to see you there!

Congratulations to our students, faculty, and staff on another academic year filled with accomplishments! June marks not only the end of our academic year, but it also marks the end of our fiscal year on June 30. We would like to remind you of a few housekeeping items before you leave campus. 

• We encourage all campus employees to make sure all College purchase orders, invoices, employee expense reimbursement requests, travel expense reports, travel advance receipts, and all deposits are submitted to the Business Office before you leave campus for the summer.
• Petty cash custodians are reminded to reconcile their account with the Business Office. If you will not be accessing your fund during the summer, please turn it in to Candace Koen for safe-keeping. Please be aware the Business Office will be conducting random audits of the departmental petty cash funds during the month of June.
• The Business Office cashier window will close at 3:30 p.m. on June 30 to audit year-end cash balances. It will reopen at 9:30 a.m. on July 1 for the new fiscal year 2009-2010!
• All vendor invoices and employee expense reimbursements for the month of June (or earlier months) must be submitted to Accounts Payable by noon on July 7 (or sooner!) to ensure they are posted to the appropriate fiscal year.
• Visa purchases posted to your card on or before June 30 will be charged to fiscal year 2008-2009. Orders should be placed at least a week in advance to ensure they post to your card prior to month-end. June Visa transactions must be reviewed and approved by Tuesday, July 14.

If you have questions or concerns, please feel free to contact the Business Office at x7095. Thank you for your support as we work to close our fiscal year in a timely and accurate manner.

• The Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellows Spring Student Research Symposium will be held today, Monday, May 25 at 4 p.m. In poster presentations and formal talks, this symposium presents the ongoing independent research of eight junior and senior Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellows on a variety of topics in the humanities and social sciences. The poster session will run from 4 to 5 p.m., and a series of three formal presentations will follow from 5 to 6:15 p.m. All are welcome and refreshments will be served.
• The PBS Point of View Film Series continues on Tuesday, May 26 at 5:15 p.m. Hosted by the ACT office, this film series explores various social issues relevant in the U.S. today through a series of documentaries. The documentaries focus on topics including:  the working poor, refugee resettlement, sweat shops, and Native American rights.
• The International Relations Council plans a coffee hour discussion on Tuesday, May 26 at 8 p.m.
• The African Mbira Ensemble, directed by Associate Professor of Music Melinda Russell, will give a recital on Thursday, May 28 beginning at noon.
• The PBS Point of View Film Series screens the final film in the series on Thursday, May 28 at 6 p.m. 

• Memorial Day Observance—Monday, May 25, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., candlelight vigil, Chapel.  Light a candle in silent reflection or prayer in observance of Memorial Day.
• Taizé Vespers Service—Wednesday, May 27, 8:30 p.m., Chapel Main Sanctuary. A brief mid-week service of songs, readings, and meditative silence.
• Centering Prayer Meditation—Thursday, May 28, noon, Chapel Lounge. A brief time for Christian meditation and prayer led by Jill Tollefson.
• Torah Study—Thursday, May 28, 5 p.m., Reynolds House. Led by Rabbi Shosh Dworsky.
• Buddhist Meditation—Thursday, May 28, 8 p.m., Chapel Lounge. Led by Bhanti Sathe.
• Shabbat Service—Friday, May 29, 6 p.m., Reynolds House. Led by students. Dinner after the service.
• Zen Meditation and Teaching—Sunday, May 31, 5 p.m., Chapel. Led by Joen Snyder O’Neal. Soup supper follows the service.

Summer is a busy time for the Facilities Office to complete building maintenance and repairs. This year, the list of projects includes exterior work on a few of our older buildings—Leighton Hall, Willis Hall, and the Chapel. The work involves roof replacement, exterior stone/brick replacement, and mortar tuck pointing where necessary.

Starting Friday, changes will be made to the parking areas behind Leighton Hall as contractors begin preparing the site to make room for a crane. The accessible parking lot directly behind Leighton will be closed Friday, May 29 and moved to a temporary location north of where it is now. A crane will be set up in the accessible parking area throughout the summer. The parking area across from the temporary accessible parking lot will also be closed this summer to provide an area for contractor storage. Please see the attached revised parking map for details.

Other work this year includes new windows in Goodsell Observatory, Myers Hall and Old Music Hall. Also, this summer is the beginning of a three-year plan to upgrade all campus elevators which is mandated by state law. The elevators in Hulings, Mudd, Olin, Goodhue, Musser, Myers, and both elevators in Burton Hall are slated for upgrades this summer. The upgrades may take much longer to complete in the older buildings than in the newer ones.

Project schedules are not confirmed yet for all of the projects mentioned. The exterior work on the Chapel and Willis Hall is expected to begin mid-June and continue into fall. The details will be announced as soon as the information is available. Visit the Facilities Web page for updates or contact the Facilities Office at x4167 if you have any questions or concerns about these projects.