Last TGIF Of The Year Is Next Week
 

TGIF News will publish its last issue of 2006 next Friday, Dec. 15, as Finals Week wraps up on campus and students head home for the holidays. Wintersession classes run Jan. 2-19 for those who opted to hit the books over winter break.

TGIF will return Friday, Jan. 19, with your weekly update of UM news, events, information and sports. Spring semester classes begin Monday, Jan. 22.

Happy holidays from all of us at UM!

UM Events Calendar 

 Football Powerhouses Rumble Friday
 

The No. 2-ranked Montana Grizzlies (12-1 overall/8-0 Big Sky Conference) will host the No. 3 University of Massachusetts Minutemen (12-1 overall/8-0 Atlantic 10 North Division) Friday in Washington-Grizzly Stadium.

The semifinal playoff game kicks off at 5:35 p.m. and will be shown on ESPN2.

The winner earns a berth in the championship game of the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision (formerly known as I-AA) at 6 p.m. MST Friday, Dec. 15, in Chattanooga, Tenn.

The Griz are coming off a dominating 20-3 drubbing of the Southern Illinois Salukis last Saturday in Missoula. Senior quarterback Josh Swogger threw for 230 yards and two touchdowns, while UM’s stifling defense held Arkee Whitlock, the Salukis’ standout running back and Walter Payton Award finalist, to 80 yards on 21 carries.

The Minutemen slipped by the New Hampshire Wildcats 24-17 last weekend to earn their shot at the Griz. UMass quarterback Liam Coen passed for 231 yards and two touchdowns.

The Griz and Minutemen have never played against each other in any sport. Temporary lights arrived Wednesday to illuminate the night game.

Montana Grizzlies 

 UM Narrows Search For New Provost
 

Finalists for the position of provost and vice president for academic affairs at UM have been selected, and the candidates will visit the Missoula campus this month.

The three finalists are James Coleman, vice chancellor for research and professor of biological sciences at the University of Missouri-Columbia; William Fritz, associate provost for academic programs and professor of geology at Georgia State University, Atlanta; and James Pratt, dean of the School of Arts and Sciences and professor of biology at Clarkson University in Potsdam, N.Y.

The UM provost and vice president for academic affairs is the University’s senior executive officer after President George Dennison and will serve as the chief administrator for all academic activities.

The public is invited to meet the three candidates at the following campus forums:

• Friday, Dec. 8: William Fritz, 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Both forums will be held in the University Center Theater.
• Monday, Dec. 11: James Coleman, 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Both forums will be held in the UC Theater.
• Wednesday, Dec. 13: James Pratt, 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. The 10:30 a.m. forum will be held in the UC Theater. The 1:30 p.m. forum will be held in the UC North Ballroom.

A search committee of faculty members, staff, students and administrators, including representatives from UM-Western, Montana Tech of UM and the Helena College of Technology, selected finalists for the position from a pool of more than 130 applicants.

UM Provost Search 

 UM's Katz Joins Social Security Board
 

Marsha Katz, project director at the UM Rural Institute, has been appointed to the Social Security Advisory Board by the U.S. Senate.

The independent, bipartisan board was created by Congress to advise government on matters related to the Social Security and Supplemental Security Income programs.

Sen. Max Baucus, incoming chair of the Senate Finance Committee, recommended Katz for the position.

Katz has worked as an advocate for people with disabilities for more than 25 years. She came to UM’s Rural Institute in 1999 after serving as vice president of the Association for Community Advocacy in Ann Arbor, Mich.

She is an experienced trainer in all aspects of SSI and Social Security Disability Insurance programs. The second edition of her book, “Don’t Look for Logic: An Advocate’s Manual for Negotiating the SSI and SSDI Programs,” was published by the Rural Institute in 2005.

UM Rural Institute 

 Circus Of Science Coming To Missoula
 

Exhibits, entertainment and hands-on activities for the whole family are just part of the fun of the Circus of Science, which comes to UM Sunday, Dec. 10.

Events will take place from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the University Center Ballroom, located on the third floor of the UC. Admission is $1 and open to the public.

Visitors to the Circus of Science should plan to roll up their sleeves to create, explore and play with the Super Science Squad, composed of area scientists, artists and students.

Ring one of the circus features high-flying activities, including top-notch building sets and marble tracks, make-and-take battery-powered jitterbugs and flower dissections.

In ring two, visitors will see world-class exhibits, including the spiraling Gravity Well, hair-raising Van de Graf generator and powerful Swiss radar magnets.

A dynamic group of entertainers from the community will be in ring three: UM’s mascot, Monte, will kick off events there from 11 a.m. to noon. The Yellow Eagle Singers then will share American Indian dance and song from noon to 12:40 p.m. Visitors can explore the science of sound with Kids’ Vibrations from 1 to 2 p.m., and UM’s favorite wizard of chemistry, G Wiz, will mix potions from 2:30 to 3:10 p.m.

Science toys and gifts for the whole family will be on sale during the daylong event, which is presented by UM’s Science Learning Tent and Montana’s National Science Foundation Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research.

 

 Professor: Acidification A Looming Threat
 

We should be concerned -- even alarmed -- by the changes now under way in our world’s oceans.

That’s the message UM paleontologist George Stanley brought home from a conference titled “Ocean Acidification: Modern Observations and Past Experiences,” held earlier this fall in New York City.

An expert on modern and ancient coral reefs, Stanley was a keynote speaker at the prestigious gathering, which featured climate modelers, chemists and other scientists from a dozen countries around the globe. The conference and workshop was held at Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Geological Observatory.

“The overall conclusion of our group is that the seas are gradually growing more acidic because of global climate change,” Stanley said. “This adversely affects the important calcifying organisms -- like plankton and reef-builders -- by dissolving their skeletons.”

If it gets as bad as some scientists suggest, ocean acidification could cause a collapse of food chains under the waves, mass extinctions and starvation for people dependent on the sea for food.

Full news release 

 Montana Businesses Sought For Trade Mission
 

Looking to test the European waters and expand your business internationally? Montana businesses interested in pursuing overseas markets should consider joining a trade mission to Italy and Greece Feb. 19-23, 2007.

The trade mission is being organized by the Montana World Trade Center at UM, the Montana Export Assistance Center and U.S. Congressman Denny Rehberg.

“We chose these markets because we thought there were excellent opportunities for Montana businesses in a number of industry sectors, and the feedback from the United States Foreign Commercial Service confirmed this assessment,” said MWTC Executive Director Arnie Sherman. “Montana is not engaged in these markets to the level it could be, so the time is right to explore these possibilities.”

Mission organizers concluded a successful trade expedition to Asia in August.

The cost for the trade mission is estimated at $4,500, plus travel and lodging. Businesses will have one-on-one meetings arranged with companies in their specific industries. In addition, there will be networking functions in both locations, which will include local government officials and businesspeople.

Interested businesses should call MWTC at 406-243-5850 by Friday, Dec. 15.

Montana World Trade Center 

 Art For Sale: Just In Time For Holiday Giving
 

Ceramics, sculpture, photos, prints, drawings and paintings -- all perfect for unique holiday gifts -- are for sale through Saturday, Dec. 9, at UM.

The 21st annual Christmas Sale and Juried Show is under way at the Art Annex, next to the Adams Center on the UM campus. The event is free and open to the public.

The art sale began Thursday and continues in the annex from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. today and tomorrow.

Proceeds from sales go to the Starving Sculpture and Ceramics Students and the Artist Collective of UM.

Funds will be used for student projects, travel to conferences, scholarships and visiting artists, as well as to purchase wood for Angama kiln firing.

 

 Film, Photo Exhibit Display Beauty Of Montana
 

Two events scheduled Wednesday, Dec. 13, at UM offer an opportunity to see Montana’s vastness and diversity of topography, flora and fauna through film and photography.

The photo exhibition -- “NATURE’s Best on Montana PBS” -- will run from 7 to 9 p.m. in the lobby of UM’s Performing Arts and Radio/Television Center.

A screening of Montana’s public television program "NATURE," subtitled “Christmas in Yellowstone,” will be held from 7:30 to 8:15 p.m. in the center’s Masquer Theatre.

“Christmas in Yellowstone” follows in the snowy footprints of the park’s red foxes, spies on the predatory warfare of wolves and elk, and climbs into the den of a grizzly that gives birth to two cubs while deep in hibernation.

The exhibit features a wide variety of photos from across Montana. All were entries in a Montana PBS photo contest.

The events are sponsored by the Montana Museum of Art & Culture and Montana PBS. They are open to the public, and there is no charge for admission.

Montana Museum of Art & Culture 

 Special Parking Set For Friday’s ‘Richard III’
 

With the Montana Grizzlies playing a semifinal football game Friday night in Washington-Grizzly Stadium, special arrangements have been made for those planning to attend that evening’s performance of “Richard III” at UM.

The play, one of William Shakespeare’s most famous, begins at 7:30 p.m. in the Montana Theatre of the PAR/TV Center, while the Griz-UMass game starts at 5:35 p.m. The Department of Drama/Dance has arranged for free parking to be set aside for “Richard III” patrons on Friday only in the following two locations:

• The hourly lot between Connell and Eddy avenues, west of the Gallagher Business Building, between Arthur Avenue and the Clover Bowl.
• The reserved parking on the 700 block of Eddy Avenue, which is ringed by the Law Building, PAR/TV Center and the Education and Music buildings.

For more information about tickets to “Richard III,” call the Drama/Dance Box Office at 406-243-4581. The play runs through Saturday.

 

 Cookie Cook-Off Links Campus, Community
 

Take some of the stress out of finals week by baking cookies to help those in need during UM’s annual Great UM Cookie Cook-Off.

The event will take place from 2 to 6 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 14, in the Food Zoo. Students, staff and faculty are invited to bake cookies for their families and -- most important -- for those in need. This year’s theme is “The Bear That Cares,” and Monte will make an appearance, as will Santa Claus.

Last year nearly 280 dozen cookies were donated to 13 local charities. Supplies are provided by University Dining Services and donors.

 

 Tough Lady Griz Take Show On The Road
 

The UM women's basketball team, which just completed a 3-0 home stand, will play at Washington State and Idaho this weekend.

The Lady Griz (6-1) face the Cougars (2-5) Friday at 8 p.m. MST at WSU's Bohler Gym in Pullman, Wash. The road trip continues with Montana playing the Vandals (3-4) at 8:30 p.m. MST Saturday at UI's Memorial Gym in Moscow, Idaho.

The Lady Griz won Monday night with an 86-56 victory over Utah State. Montana had previously defeated Wyoming 70-59 and Portland 74-54.

"These are both good teams," Montana coach Robin Selvig said of Washington State and Idaho. "They both have some wins this year. Idaho hasn't been beaten at home, and Washington State has Pac 10-caliber players. Idaho has a bunch of new kids, but it looks like they are starting to figure it out."

The road trip will conclude a stretch of five games in 10 days for the Lady Griz. "We've had a lot of games in a short period of time," Selvig said, "so we haven't had a chance to get in a lot of practice."

Montana Grizzlies 

 Selvig Passes 650-Win Mark
 

UM women's basketball coach Robin Selvig recorded his 650th victory Saturday night when the Lady Griz defeated Portland at Dahlberg Arena.

"I'm just glad we won this one," Selvig said after the game, when asked about the magnitude of 650 career wins. "I've been fortunate to have had a lot of special teams over the years, and I appreciate that the school made a big deal out of it [with the post-game presentation].”

Selvig ranks 10th among active Division I women's basketball coaches in career victories, while his .775 career winning percentage (650-189) ranks eighth.

Montana Grizzlies 

 Griz Basketball Bounces Boise
 

Senior forward Matt Dlouhy recorded 17 points to lead UM basketball to a 62-58 win over the Boise State Broncos Sunday in Missoula. The non-conference win improved the Grizzlies’ record to 3-4 overall while the Broncos fell to 2-4 on the season.

Both teams struggled shooting from the field. Montana shot 37 percent (10 of 27) in the first half then fell to 29 percent (7 of 24) in the second half. The Broncos shot just 32 percent (9 of 28) in the first half, then improved to 38 percent (12 of 31) in the final half. While the Grizzlies struggled from the field, they were able to shoot 43 percent from three-point range while the Broncos hit 30 percent of their three-point shots.

The Grizzlies took on the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers Wednesday at home. Their home stand continues with UC Riverside on Saturday and South Dakota State on Sunday.

Montana Grizzlies