New & Updated Items posted Jan. 28, 2008

V.I.'s Top Cooks, Volunteers Sought
for UVI's 19th Afternoon of the Green

The Virgin Islands' top cooks are invited to enter food dishes - entrees, side dishes, drinks and desserts - in the competition at the University of the Virgin Islands' 19th annual Afternoon on the Green. UVI's annual "friend-raiser" is scheduled for noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday, March 9, 2008, on the St. Thomas campus golf course. This year's theme is "Be Seen on the green for Cultural Cuisine!"

Along with the food competition, where members of the community sample dishes and cast ballots for their favorites, the day features live entertainment, admission prizes, children's games and family fun. Also featured are informational booths that focus on how the community can take advantage of UVI's wide array of academic, public service and research offerings.

General volunteers, and especially those with valid health cards who can act as food servers, are also sought. Individuals who wish to enter a dish or participate as a server or general volunteer should call UVI's Office of Institutional Advancement at 693-1040.

Performers Sought for St. Croix
Student Talent Show on March 14

UVI's St. Croix campus Office of Student Activities is seeking musicians, singers, rappers, chanters, actors, dancers and other performers for its spring semester "UVI @ the Improv" talent show to be held on March 14. Entry forms are available at the Student Activities Lounge from students Joel Dorsett or Kelly-Ann Joseph. The show will be held at 8 p.m. in the UVI Cafetorium on the St. Croix campus. For details call 692-4228.

Other Current Items ...

Reichhold Seeking Volunteers
for Playing Ring: In De Yard

UVI's Reichhold Center for the Arts is seeking volunteers from the University community to assist with the Playing Ring: In De Yard event scheduled for Wednesday, Jan. 30. Playing Ring: In De Yard will bring Virgin Islands culture bearers and young people together. Students from all three islands are expected to attend. They will have the opportunity to learn about traditional toys and games -- such as jacks, tops, cocks and toe-toe-tom -- as well as storytelling. Volunteers, who will assist the culture bearers, will need to be at the Reichhold Center at 7:30 a.m. Lunch will be provided. For details or to sign-up, call the Reichhold at 693-1550 or send email to ffenton@uvi.edu.

Playing Ring: 'A Fungi Jamboree'
Set Feb. 2 at UVI's Reichhold Center

UVI's Reichhold Center for the Arts presents “Playing Ring: A Fungi Jamboree” on Saturday, Feb. 2, 2008. The fun starts with the traditional marketplace at 6 p.m. on the Reichhold grounds. Local foods, arts and crafts will be featured. The music begins in the theatre at 8 p.m. The Fungi Jamboree will feature the St. Croix Quelbe band Native Rhythm - with special guest artist Jamesie Brewster, the Anguilla scratch band Smokey and the Boys, and Puerto Rican music from Victor Manuel Reyes y El Barrio. Victor Manuel y El Barrios is the only band to win the Puerto Rican troubadour show twice at both the Barcardí Fair and at the Puerto Rican National Institute of Culture. The Playing Ring series is made possible through partnership with Reichhold Center’s season sponsors: First Bank, First Insurance, Marriott Frenchman’s Reef Resort, Tropical Shipping, the Virgin Islands Council on the Arts and Innovative Cable TV. Tickets - at $12, $18 and $35 - are available at Modern Music, the UVI Bookstore, V.I. Bridal & Tuxedo, Urban Threadz, Essentric Shoe Boutique, Island Video (Nisky), Home Again (Red Hook) and the Reichhold Center Box Office at 693-1559. Details are available on line at Reichhold Center web site: www.reichholdcenter.com.

Food, Arts and Crafts Vendors
Sought for Feb. 2 Playing Ring Fair

UVI's Reichhold Center for the Arts is seeking food and arts and crafts vendors to participate in the Playing Ring: Market Place Arts Fair scheduled for Feb. 2 on the Reichhold grounds. To participate, call Tasida Kelch at the V.I. Council on the Arts at 340-774-5984.

Upward Bound Offers After-School
Centers on St. Croix, St. Thomas

The Upward Bound Program at the University of the Virgin Islands will host After-School Homework/Computer Literacy Centers for high school students and their parents starting later this month. Assistance with English, math and science homework, and instruction in the basic principals of computer use will be offered. The centers will be open Mondays through Thursdays from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. on the St. Thomas campus and from 5:45 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on the St. Croix campus. Spaces are limited. Applications are available from the Upward Bound Offices on both campuses. For details, call 693-1133 on St. Thomas or 692-4182 on St. Croix. The center is funded by a Community Development Block Grant, through the Department of Planning and Natural Resources.

St. Thomas 2008 Senior Class
Meeting Slated for Feb. 3

The next meeting of the 2008 Senior Class on UVI's St. Thomas campus is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 3 in room B-110. For details, contact Class President Gaetan Gentius at 277-0035 or send email to gaetanpresident@gmail.com.

Financial Aid Awareness Week
Set Feb. 5-7 on St. Croix Campus

Financial Aid Awareness Week activities for continuing UVI students are planned on UVI's St. Croix campus from Feb. 5 through Feb. 7. Sessions titled "Promoting the Financial Aid Office on Campus" are slated for 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 5, at the Library Terrace, and from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 6, on the Student Center Terrace. A session for junior and senior high school students - titled "How to Pay for College" is slated for 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 6 at the Student Center/Cafetorium. A workshop on the online financial aid application process for the 2008-2009 school year is planned from 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 7, in the library computer lab room 902. Space is limited for the online workshop and registration is required. Call 692-4193 to reserve space.

Free HIV/AIDS Testing Offered
Feb. 7 on UVI's St. Thomas Campus

Free HIV/AIDS testing will be offered to UVI students, faculty and staff - as well as the general public - on UVI's St. Thomas campus from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 7. The testing is being offered by Hope, Inc. and the UVI Health Services Center as part of the National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day activities. Testing will be conducted in a mobile booth in the UVI Bookstore parking lot. Details are available from Health Services Supervisor Ronda Hatchett at 693-1124. More information is also available from the www.blackaidsday.org web site.

Other Current Items ... (Cont.)

St. Croix Campus to Offer
Free HIV/AIDS Testing on Feb. 6-7

The University of the Virgin Islands Health Services Center and the office of Student Activities on the St. Croix campus, in collaboration with VICare, will offer free HIV testing from 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 6, and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 7. Testing will take place in Health Services office. It is open to the UVI community as well as the general public. For more information, call Health Services Supervisor Naita Salmon-Iles at 692-4214.

Living With HIV' Workshop
Planned Feb. 7 on St. Croix

A workshop titled "Living With HIV – A Personal Journey" will be presented by VICare Chief Executive Officer Bruce E. Smail at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 7, in the Cafetorium on UVI's St. Croix campus. The workshop is free and open to the UVI community and the general public.

St. Thomas Campus Student Activities
Web Site Offers Latest Information

UVI students on the St. Thomas campus are encouraged to visit the Student Activities web site - studentactivity.uvi.edu - for the latest information of interest to students. The site includes a semester calendar of activities, an announcements section, and detailed information on student government (with photos) and student organizations.

Spring Semester CLEP Tests Offer
Chance to Earn College Credit

CLEP - College Level Exam Program - tests will be administered five times during the spring semester at the University of the Virgin Islands. Successfully completing a CLEP test allows a student to earn college credit, saving money and cutting the time it takes to earn a degree. The tests are offered in more than 20 areas of study, ranging from accounting to chemistry to English literature. A complete list is available on pages 26 and 27 of the 2007-08 UVI Catalog - available online at http://www.uvi.edu/pub-relations/cat_07-08/index.html.

The next series of CLEP tests will be administered on January 30 on the St. Thomas campus. The registration deadline is January 28. Details for the St. Thomas campus tests are also available from this CLEP 2008 direct link.

The schedule for spring semester CLEP tests on the St. Croix campus will be announced as soon as it is confirmed.

Students can register for the tests at the Access and Enrollment Services Office in the Administration and Conference Center on the St. Thomas campus or the Academic Services Office on the St. Croix campus. The cost is $65 per test, plus a $10 administrative fee. Only checks, money orders or credit cards will be accepted for payment. For more information contact the UVI Admissions Office at 693-1168 on St. Thomas or the UVI Academic Services Office at 692-4103 on St. Croix.

SBDC Notes ...

UVI to Host Tax Preparation Workshops
for Farmers on St. Thomas, St. Croix

Tax preparation workshops for Virgin Islands farmers are scheduled on Jan. 30 on St. Thomas and Jan. 31 on St. Croix. The workshops are designed to assist farmers with proper filing procedures, to take full advantage of available tax breaks, and to meet requirements of the V.I. Code. They are offered by the V.I. Department of Agriculture, the V.I. Bureau of Internal Revenue and UVI's Small Business Development Center. Forms such as the Schedule F “Profit or Loss from Farming” and Form 242VI “Information to Support Claim for Subsidy of 90% of Income Taxes Paid under the Farmers, Fishermen, and Consumers Assistance Act of 1997” will be explained.

The St. Thomas workshop is set for 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 30, at the SBDC Training Facility at Nisky Center. On St. Croix, the workshop will be held at the UVI Research and Extension Center from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 31. All farmers are encouraged to attend. For details, contact the V.I. Department of Agriculture at 778-0997 on St. Croix or 774-5182 on St. Thomas.

UVI CELL Notes ...

UVI-CELL to Launch Management
Workshop Series with AMA in February

The University of the Virgin Islands' Community Engagement and Lifelong Learning (UVI-CELL) Center will launch its newly developed Management Skill Series in February. The series is designed to help managers develop and refine the skills needed to manage the workforce more effectively. The first workshop in the ten-part series -- entitled "Leadership Skills for Managers" -- will kick-off Feb. 1 on both St. Thomas and St. Croix. All workshops will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on the first Friday of every month. On St. Croix, workshops will be held at the Joseph A. Simpson Building, #23A Hospital Street in Frederiksted. On St. Thomas, the workshops will be held at the UVI-CELL Center on the St. Thomas Campus.

Participants will learn to: build teams; coach, mentor and reward employees; foster and develop new leaders; provide direction to turn an organization's vision into reality; stay the course in troubled times; and manage change.

The workshops are offered in collaboration with the American Management Association (AMA). Participants who complete six of the workshops will obtain a Certificate in Management Skills in the Workplace from UVI and the AMA. For details or to register, call 693-1100 or visit UVI-CELL on-line at http://cell.uvi.edu.

Taxi & Tour Certification
Program Set for February

Taxi and Tour Operators who wish to join their peers in receiving certification have the opportunity to once again qualify for certification through a six-week program offered by UVI's Community Engagement and Lifelong Learning Center (CELL). The next session is scheduled for 6-8 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 14, on St. Thomas. The program covers customer service, V.I. history and culture, points of interest and presentation skills. Training costs $250 and includes materials. Graduates are eligible for membership in the Certified Taxi and Tour Guide Association.

The certification program was developed by UVI-CELL and is endorsed by the USVI Hotel and Tourism Association and the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association. To register, call the UVI-CELL Center at 693-1100 or visit http://cell.uvi.edu.