Skip to Navigation | Skip to Content

Calvin-Parents E-Newsletter: February 2, 2010

Calvin Sports: This week's athletic events
Student treat deadline TODAY! It's been a long winter. Why not send your student a special treat next week? The Valentine Treat features a BPA free 24 oz. stainless steel maroon water bottle (which is not pictured at right), imprinted with a gold Calvin logo, and filled with treats and a $5 certificate for use at Johhny's Cafe. The treat costs $25. The Valentine Treat is included in the Year of Treats. The order deadline is Tuesday, February 2 and this gift will be delivered to students on Wednesday, February 10. Remember that you can surprise your student with the popular "Pizza and a Movie" treat ($25), which can be ordered anytime and often! "Pizza and a Movie" features a certificate for a large two-topping pizza (delivery), a bag of popcorn, and a Blockbuster® gift card! For more information please visit the Student Treats site. ReGathering 2010 ReGathering 2010 on February 3 is our chance to meet as a community to begin the second semester. We welcome back students and faculty who have traveled and studied abroad and we ask God's blessing on the academic work of the semester ahead. Our speaker for ReGathering is Mike Mantel, director of Living Water International, Calvin alum and Calvin parent. Visit the ReGathering site to find out more about efforts to raise money for Living Water International. We are partnering with Living Water International's "Schools to Schools" initiative to raise $12,000 to supply a school in Uganda with clean water. If we reach $12,000, find out who will be jumping into the freezing waters of the Seminary Pond for uKnight week! Forum on water; "Kill-a-watt" Calvin professors just back from interim trips to Cambodia, Belize and Costa Rica will be among the presenters at the "Water: Scarcity or Abundance?" forum on February 3-4 on issues related to water. David Dornbos and Leonard DeRooy, who led an interim to Cambodia, will join colleagues Dave Warners, Ryan Walter Rooks and Glenn Remelts from 9-9:50 a.m. on February 4 for a session on water use around the world, one of 14 events that day with water as the topic. Other sessions will be on water use at Calvin, climate change and water, water and religions and even water, the Great Lakes and Asian carp. The forum kicks off on February 3 with Calvin's annual ReGathering 2010 event to begin second semester. That day also will see the presentation of a film on water called Flow. Presenters at the two-day event will include Calvin professors and students as well as local business owners and elected officials. Also In February, another environmental program dealing with creation care awareness is a competition in the residence halls called “Kill-a-watt”. Each hall will compete to lower their energy usage, which will be measured at the end of the month. Students can also earn “points” in a variety of other ways. They can get their room “DREAM” (Dorm Room Environmental Awareness Movement) certified by doing things like eliminating extra appliances, unplugging cords that are not in use, having plants, turning on their computers’ power-saving modes, or using natural light instead of electricity. The contest will also include challenges in the dining hall, such as “Meatless Monday” and “Tray-less Thursday” where students can read about the environmental effects of meat production and water and food waste, and can opt to go without meat or trays on particular days. Students can also earn points for attending campus events related to creation care. Festival of Faith & Writing The Festival of Faith & Writing (FFW) will take place at Calvin from April 15 to 17, 2010. Presenters will include Eugene Peterson, Mary Karr, Wally Lamb, Kate DiCamillo, Richard Rodriguez, Stephanie Kallos, Parker Palmer, Luci Shaw, and Stephen Carter, among many others. For a complete list of presenter and the schedule of events, visit the FFW site. Online registration is available at http://ffwreg.calvin.edu/. Please feel free to contact us at ffw@calvin.edu if we can assist you with your registration in any way. Please note that there are scholarships offered by the Calvin Alumni Associaton for recent alumni. If you want to prepare for the FFW by reading some of the books from presenters who will be at FFW, visit the Festival Favorites page. There is also a Recommended Reading page with a list of recommended books from all the presenters. Career resources for internships Are you the parent of a junior or sophomore student? Did you know that many employers expect students to complete at least one internship by the time they graduate? Internships give students the opportunity to explore a specific career field of interest and obtain experience that will enhance a resume and improve skills. If your son or daughter is looking for an internship for the summer or next fall, encourage them to visit the career development office. Staff members are available to assist students in search of an internship, create a resume, and practice interviewing skills. Students can call 616-526-6485 or stop by the career development office (372 Hekman Library) to set up an appointment. More resources are also available on our site: www.calvin.edu/career, or find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/calvin.career.development. Siblings Weekend, February 26-28. 2010 Mark your calendar for the Siblings Weekend on February 26-28, which provides your Calvin student an opportunity to share the Calvin experience with a younger sibling, cousin, family friend, etc. The cost is $22 per guest, which includes meals in the dining halls and admission to a number of fun activities and events planned for Siblings Weekend. For additional information, visit the Siblings Weekend site which is the only way to register and pay. Older siblings (grades 10-12) should note that Siblings Weekend 2010 is also a Fridays at Calvin visit weekend. The Summer Academy The Summer Academy is a real life "Calvin try-on" for ninth through 12th graders looking for an early or pre-college experience that will test and improve their academic readiness for post-high school studies. Real college credit, real campus life---all in Calvin's distinctively Christian learning and living environment. See all the pre-college programs that are offered, such as ACE International, Entrada Scholars Program, and Pathways to Possibilities to name a few. -Julie Veeneman, program manager Senior Salute in preparation for Commencement There's more to Commencement than just a cap and gown. Senior Salute, February 16 & 17, 2010, will have all the necessary information regarding Commencement available at one time and in one place for graduating students. Note: If a student is on an off-campus program for spring semester or was finished with requirements in December, he or she can give the registrar’s office a spring mailing address. The Senior Salute information will be sent to him or her by the end of March. Check the Parent Calendar for important dates Bookmark the Parent Calendar page to keep track of important dates throughout the year, including: Feb. 3: ReGathering: Opening Convocation (9:50-10:50 a.m.) Feb. 5: Last day to add full and first-half semester courses Feb. 26-28: Siblings Weekend Mar. 1: U.S. Financial Aid application due (returning students); Calvin named scholarship applications due, most department scholarships are also due; miscellaneous charges payment due (1st of each month) Jan. 6 - Feb. 6: Center Art Gallery exhibition: "Sanctuary: Hallowed Space, Holy Place" Feb. 6: English prof. Gary Schmidt in San Diego Feb. 6 & 20: River City Improv Feb. 8-13: uKnight week Feb. 26 & 27: Alumni Choir in Cincinnati You may want to bookmark the alumni events calendar to keep track of important dates throughout the year, to which you are warmly invited, as a parent, alumni and/or friend of the college. Click on the picture above to see more photos from this year's Calvin/Hope rivalry game sites around the country and world! News & Stories from campus Watch Calvin-Hope women's hoops live online on February 3. Also find out details for uKnight Week, February 8-13, including a swing dance. And see: a look back at interim via stories, blogs, pics a video tour of Fine Arts Center construction
For information about athletic events visit the redesigned Sports Information Web site. Need Calvin sports results fast? Call the Calvin sports hotline at 616-526-6522 for current sports updates. You can also sign up for the Calvin Sports-Report, a free e-mail bulletin notifying Calvin sports fans of current sports news.
Other Helpful Links:
Parent & Family Resources Parent Calendar Worship & Discipleship Campus News Daily Sports Update