UM Experiences Spring Enrollment Jump
 

More students are taking more credits at UM this spring than during the same semester a year ago, according to enrollment figures released Tuesday.

Total head count this semester is 13,356 -- an increase of 47 from spring semester 2007. In addition, enrolled students have registered for credits that amount to 11,515 full-time equivalents (FTE), an increase of 117 over a year ago. An FTE represents 15 undergraduate or 12 graduate semester credits.

"These numbers indicate that students continue to find the University attractive and responsive to their needs," said UM President George Dennison.

The biggest jump in enrollment came at the UM College of Technology, which posted an increase of 93 additional students this spring for a total of 1,517.

 

 International Festival To Delight Taste Buds
 

The University Center will host a celebration of global sights, sounds and aromas at the annual UM International Culture and Food Festival on Sunday, March 9.

The festival kicks off at noon with a parade of flags, and activities will run until 5 p.m. More than 500 students hailing from 74 countries will participate in the festival, which costs $2 for general admission and $1 for children under 12.

A food bazaar in the UC Atrium will feature authentic dishes, ranging from Greek spanakopita to Japanese sushi, for under $4. Children's World in the UC Commons on the second floor offers games, art projects and world dances and songs. The Cultural Show on the third level includes traditional and contemporary performances, such as Tajik dances and Korean drumming.

The festival is sponsored each year by UM's International Student Association and the Office of Foreign Student and Scholar Services with the participation of other community ethnic organizations.

International Culture and Food Festival 

 Researchers Lead Spring Budding Project
 

A new nationwide initiative enables volunteers to track climate change by observing the timing of flowers and foliage.

Project BudBurst, operated by the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research and a team of partners that includes UM, allows students, gardeners and other citizen scientists in every state to enter their observations into an online database, giving researchers a detailed picture of our warming climate.

UM researchers Carol Brewer and Paul Alaback are collaborators on Project BudBurst, along with the Chicago Botanic Garden and UCAR, which was funded with a grant from the U.S. Bureau of Land Management and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. The project also is supported by the National Science Foundation and Windows to the Universe, a UCAR-based Web site that will host the project online as part of its citizen science efforts.

Brewer, a UM biology professor said, "Project Budburst is about phenology, that is, the timing of when plants put out leaves and flowers. We like to say that phenology is nature's clock."

Project Budburst 

 Lecture Offers Insight Into Chinese Trade
 

Two of China's international trade law experts will speak Tuesday, Feb. 26, at UM. Xinjuan Zhang and Heng Wang will present "China, the WTO and Rule of Law: Challenges and Opportunities" at 7:30 p.m. in the UM Law Building's Castles Center. The event is free and open to the public, and refreshments will be served.

Zhang is associate law dean and professor of international trade law at Beijing's China Youth University for Political Sciences. She has advised China's government on trade matters since China joined the World Trade Organization in 2001. As UM's Visiting Mansfield Center Scholar this semester, she is working on her next book about China trade remedies.

Professor Wang teaches international trade law at Chongqing's Southwest University of Political Science and Law. He was with the WTO Secretariat in Geneva, and he specializes in assessing the WTO's impact on China's domestic constituencies.

David Aronofsky, UM's legal counsel, also will speak. He teaches an international business and trade law course at the School of Law and has taught various law courses and lectured throughout China on the WTO.

The lecture is sponsored by UM's Maureen and Mike Mansfield Center, International Law Society and Chinese Students Association.

 

 Rembrandt, Map Exhibit, Coming To Campus
 

Thirty-five rare prints and 40 original maps printed from wood and steel engravings will be on view at the Montana Museum of Art & Culture at UM from March 11 through April 29.

"Sordid and Sacred: The Beggars in Rembrandt's Etchings" will be in the museum's Meloy Gallery. The 35 prints in "Sordid and Sacred," executed by Rembrandt between 1629 and 1654, are from the John Villarino Collection. They focus with profound empathy on the poor and underprivileged of Rembrandt's time.

In addition to the traveling exhibition, MMAC will have on view in the Meloy Gallery a Rembrandt titled "The Persian" from the museum's Permanent Collection. The etching, acquired by the museum through the estate of Lee Morrison, was printed in 1632.

"Miracles and Myths: Mapping the World from 1572 to 1921," a survey of maps from the collection of Missoulian Bill Caras, will be in the museum's Paxson Gallery.

Montana Museum of Art & Culture 

 Legendary Guitarist To Perform
 

The University Theatre will present guitarist Richard Thompson in concert at 8 p.m., Tuesday, March 18.

Tickets are available at all GrizTix locations and cost $28 in advance or $30 on the day of the show. All seating is reserved. For phone purchases, call 406-243-4051 or 888-MONTANA; to buy tickets online, go to the GrizTix Website.

Named by Rolling Stone Magazine as one of the top 20 guitarists of all time, Thompson recently received an Ivor Novello Award for songwriting and the 2006 BBC Lifetime Achievement Award.

GrizTix 

 UM Commercials Rake In Awards
 

A new UM commercial featuring anthropologist Kelly Dixon recently won Best of Show in the electronic media category at the 2007 Montana ADDY Awards Competition in Great Falls.

Chisel Industries, which worked with campus to produce UM's two-year television campaign, won six ADDY awards for the campaign at the Feb. 9 awards ceremony.

Chisel won two Gold ADDYs for the UM anthropology commercial: one in the cinematography category and one in the regional/national single spot category. The ad features Dixon, a UM assistant professor of anthropology. Dixon is known for her archeological work on the Donner Party campsite in California and at the Coloma ghost town east of Missoula.

Chisel won an additional Gold ADDY award for the UM television campaign's music. Also, a 60-second UM men's basketball commercial won a Silver ADDY for cinematography and a Bronze ADDY in the regional/national spot category.

Chisel Industries 

 Leadership Conference Set For March 1
 

UM's Center for Leadership Development will host its 10th annual student leadership conference -- "The Perfect Storm: How Ordinary Individuals Create Extraordinary Results" -- on Saturday, March 1.

The conference runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the University Center. Chad Crittenden, from the CBS series "Survivor: Vanuatu" will be the keynote speaker. One and a half years before he became a "Survivor" castaway, Crittenden had his lower right leg amputated to remove a rare and deadly form of cancer. He completed a triathlon nine months later.

After opening remarks from UM Provost Royce Engstrom, Crittenden will tell his story -- from surgery to "Survivor" -- to help students understand that obstacles are a part of life.

Conference tickets are available at The Source in the UC and are $8 before Friday, Feb. 22 and $10 after that date. Check-in starts at 8:30 a.m. the day of the conference.

For more information, call 406-243-5527 or e-mail patty.kero@mso.umt.edu.

Student Leadership Conference 

 Griz Split Games, Strait Climbs Records Ladder
 

Senior forward Andrew Strait scored a season- and game-high 21 points and moved up a notch on UM's career scoring list, as the Grizzlies defeated the Sacramento State Hornets 90-57 Feb. 14 in Dahlberg Arena.

Griz sophomore guard Ryan Staudacher scored a career-best 19 points and made 5-of-7 3-point shots, while Sharp added 13 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for his first career double-double.

Saturday, the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks defeated the Grizzlies 80-76 in another tightly contested Big Sky Conference game in UM's Dahlberg Arena. Strait scored a game-high 23 points, grabbed six rebounds and tied his career-high with four steals in the loss.

Strait now has 1,543 career points, which moves him up to fifth on UM's career list, passing current Griz head coach Wayne Tinkle, who scored 1,500 points during 1985-89. Strait also has 680 career rebounds, which moves him up to eighth on Montana's career list, passing Derrick Pope, who had 675 caroms from 1979-83.

Montana's record is 6-6 in Big Sky play and 12-13 overall. The Grizzlies are on the road this week, playing the Weber State Wildcats last night and Idaho State Sunday.

Montana Grizzlies 

 Lady Griz Win Two, Stay On Top
 

The Lady Griz got 20 points, eight rebounds and six assists from junior Mandy Morales to post a 75-63 victory at Sacramento State Feb. 14 in Sacramento, Calif.

Senior Johanna Closson finished with 12 points and four rebounds, and freshman Dvera Tolbert added a season-high seven rebounds and hit 5-of-7 shots for 10 points.

Sunday afternoon, Montana kept its one-game Big Sky Conference lead with an impressive 87-58 victory over Northern Arizona in Flagstaff, Ariz. The Lady Griz bench produced three double-figure scorers and combined for 47 points, out-scoring the Lumberjacks' reserves by 34 points.

Montana improved to 19-5 with the win, upping its Big Sky mark to 9-2. The Lady Griz own a one-game lead on Idaho State and a game-and-a-half lead on Portland State with three weekends of regular-season play to go. Montana hosted Weber State last night and will play Idaho State at home Saturday at 7 p.m.

Montana Grizzlies