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UVI Bulletin Board for September

First Annual Health and Wellness Days Set at UVI on St. Thomas and St. Croix Sessions of the First Annual Health and Wellness Expo, sponsored by the Government of the Virgin Islands, are scheduled at UVI on St. Thomas and St. Croix on Sept. 6 and 7, respectively. The Expo, designed for any Virgin Islands government employees, will feature free biometric testing, diabetes and hypertension awareness information, aerobics, Zumba and yoga demonstrations, massages, reflexology, facials and more. The V.I. Culinary Team will offer breakfast and lunch cooking demonstrations. UVI Director of Employee Benefits Veda Richards encourages all UVI employees to take some time to attend the Expo. It will provide an opportunity for them to complete a Health Risk Assessment (HRA) which allows health insurance provider to identify health behavior patterns that are risky to your wellbeing.
The Health and Wellness Expos run from 10 a.m. through 4 p.m. The St. Thomas session is set for Thursday, Sept. 6, at the Sports and Fitness Center. The St. Croix Expo is scheduled for Sept. 7, in the Great Hall on the Albert A. Sheen Campus. For more information, view this V.I. Government Health and Wellness Expo flyer.
Public Invited to Join in the Creation of a Science and Technology Plan for the USVI Members of the public are invited to contribute to the creation of the Territory’s first Science and Technology Plan by participating in a series of public consultations beginning with a focus group sessions planned for Sept. 12, 13 and 14, on St. Croix, St. Thomas and St. John, respectively.
Developing a V.I. Science and Technology Plan is an early goal of the STEP UP Initiative, announced on Aug. 17, by Gov. John P. deJongh, Jr. The initiative’s name – STEP UP – stands for Science, Technology, Education and Economic Progress. The Governor, who serves as chair of the VI Science and Technology Council, described the effort as an opportunity to take good science from the laboratories of the University of the Virgin Islands to the local and global marketplace. He said the VI Science and Technology Council was established to "act as a catalyst for leveraging resources in the U.S.V.I. in the areas of science, technology, engineering, and innovation for economic development."
Research and development initiatives are not confined to UVI and ideas for involvement of other public and private sector entities are encouraged.

Focus groups are scheduled for the following dates:
• St Croix: UVI’s Albert A. Sheen Campus – room to be announced
Wednesday, Sept. 12 – 6 to 8 p.m. or Thursday, Sept. 13 – 9:30 to 11:30 a.m.
• St. Thomas: UVI Administration and Conference Center – room to be announced
Thursday, Sept. 13 – 6 to 8:30 p.m. or Friday, Sept. 14 – 2:30 to 4:30 p.m.
• St. John: St. Ursula’s Meeting Hall
Friday, Sept. 14 – 10 a.m. to noon
Please confirm attendance at session of choice no later than Sept. 10. Google “Engaging America’s Talents” to see what other jurisdiction have accomplished with a strong science-technology plans to guide their EPSCoR research and development efforts. For details or to confirm attendance call Yasmin Mannan at 513-9235 or Claudette Young Hinds at 778-3275. Please speak clearly and slowly when leaving messages.
Drummer Dion Parson Is Artist-in-Residence at UVI
Grammy Award-winning, Virgin Islands native Dion Parson, leader of the world renowned 21st Century Band, has been selected as artist-in-residence in the Music Area of the University of the Virgin Islands.
Parson, a drummer who has recorded for major record labels including Columbia, Sony and Blue Note, will offer two, hour-long, private lessons per week. The private lessons are for registered UVI percussion students, members of the UVI Jazz Band, and students in the Brass and Percussion Pedagogy class for Music Education majors. As artist-in-residence, Parson will teach at UVI one week per month. Parson’s UVI lessons began at the start of the Fall 2012 semester, the week of August 20. A news release and photo are available on the UVI homepage – http://www.uvi.edu – and from this direct link.
UVI’s Final 2012 Phonathon Scheduled for Sept. 17-20; Volunteers Sought Volunteers are needed for UVI’s final Phonathon of 2012, which is now scheduled from Sept. 17 through 20, on St. Thomas. Volunteers will work from 5:30 to 9 p.m. each evening in the first-floor conference room of UVI’s Administration and Conference Center. They will make calls and process on-line pledges from Reichhold Center for the Arts patrons as well as traditional and special alumni. Prizes will be awarded to top performers and dinner will be served. Persons interested in volunteering one or more evenings should call the Office of Institutional Advancement at 693-1047.
Water Resources Research Institute Issues Call for Project Proposals The Virgin Islands Water Resources Research Institute (VI-WRRI) at the University of the Virgin Islands has issued a Call for Proposals for the 2013 – 2014 U.S. Geological Survey Water Institute Program. Proposals that address water resources issues in the U.S. Virgin Islands are being sought. Funds for this program are made available through the Section 104 Institute Program of the U.S. Department of Interior – U.S. Geological Survey. All faculty and staff of the University of the Virgin Islands are eligible to apply for these funds through the VI-WRRI. Collaborations with non-UVI personnel are allowed.
There will be approximately $80,000 available to fund projects in the U. S. Virgin Islands. Individual projects should not exceed this amount. Projects in the $15,000 to $20,000 range are preferred. Projects will last one year, a starting date of March 1, 2013, and an ending date of Feb. 28, 2014. Proposals are due by Friday, Nov. 16, 2012.
The local VI-WRRI Advisory Committee will review proposals and recommendations for funding will be made to the Director of the VI-WRRI. Criteria used in the evaluation process will include:
• Technical merit
• Feasibility of completion
• Competence of the principal investigator
• Training and education opportunities provided
• Plans for the dissemination of knowledge gained
• Local relevance
Interested persons should contact the VI-WRRI for instructions for preparing the proposal at 693-1628 or send e-mail to hsmith@uvi.edu.
Student Competition Promotes Role Swap with UVI President Ever wondered what it would be like to be President of the University of the Virgin Islands? If you had a chance, what would you say or do to make a difference in the lives of UVI students, faculty and staff? UVI’s President for a Day Competition will give two UVI students, (one on St. Thomas and one on St. Croix), an opportunity to trade places with UVI President Dr. David Hall. It’s the first time that the President For a Day Competition will take place at UVI.
During the fall 2012 semester, President Hall will swap roles with one UVI undergraduate student on St. Thomas. He’ll swap roles with one undergraduate student on the Albert A. Sheen campus on St. Croix during the Spring 2013 semester. Details on how to apply are available in a news release on the UVI homepage – www.uvi.edu – and from this direct link.
Do you know this week’s “We Are UVI” contributor? To find out who it is, visit “We Are UVI” at: http://weareuvi.blogspot.com.
“We Are UVI” is the our Golden Jubilee blog. It features people sharing CVI/UVI stories from the past 50 years. A new submission is added each week. This submission was posted Sunday, Sept. 2. It joins stories from Sinclair Wilkinson (’72), Rafe Boulon, Jr. (’76), Carmie Thompson (’10), Frank Mills (’67), James Rakocy, Arah Lockhart (’78), Utha Williams (’82), former UVI President LaVerne Ragster, Marthious Clavier (’02,’08), John Lucas, Maxine Nunez, Rosary Harper, Yegin Habtes, Gloria Callwood, Laurent Javois (’76), Helen Dookhan (’79, ’84, ’98), Curtis Gilpin (’80), Carolyn O’Neal-Morton (’85), Ali McClean (’93), Constance Gumbs (’87, ’91), Malcolm Kirwan (’67), Sharleen Fahie (’86, ’93), Sam Hall Jr., Richard Lippke, Randy Brown, Paul Flemming (’95, ’98, ’99), Kishma Allen (’09), Lawrence Lewis (’73), Aimery Caron, Quilin Mars (’08), Alvincent Hutson (’76), Vincent Cooper (’72), Dennis Parker, UVI President Emeritus Orville Kean and Richard Schrader.

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