Notes and News - Week of January 13, 2020

Welcome back to the courtyard and a new decade!  I hope everyone is well rested and excited for the spring 2020 semester.  

I want to start our first “Notes and News” of 2020 by giving an especially warm welcome to Professor Amy Bei and her husband, Sidiya Mboj, and their lovely children who just moved into the college as our new TD Residential Fellow family.  You’ll no doubt enjoy getting to know their big girls, Aby and Dior, as well as their newborn baby sister, Anna, who is the star of our “picture of the week”. Welcome!!!

I am happy to announce that TD is once again sponsoring 20 TD runners for the IRIS Run for Refugees 5K on Super Bowl Sunday –  February 2, 2020.  The race will begin at Wilbur Cross High School and run through the East Rock neighborhood.  Post-race, there will be music and food from chefs from around the city.  To get a free entry to the race, sign up here using this coupon code: TD-IRIS20.  Please remember the spots are first-come, first served and this code is for use by TD students only so please do not pass it onto friends in other colleges.  Last day for online registration is 2/1!

My office hours will continue to be on Wednesday and Friday afternoons from 1:30-3:30pm.  To make an appointment, please email our office senior administrator, Karen McGovern, at Karen.mcgovern@yale.edu.  

Here are some important dates and events for these two weeks:

Monday January 13^th TD Community Engagement Fellowship Application Opens

The Timothy Dwight Community Engagement Fellowship supports student efforts to create and foster long lasting relationships with New Haven public institutions and not-for-profit organizations. This spring, we have three fellowships to award with a stipend of $600 for students to undertake public service projects in any field. Priority will be given to collaborations with institutions within the greater New Haven area, especially in the vicinity of TD.  Please check in with me before sending in your application.  The application portal will close on 2/3/2020.

Wednesday January 15^th Fireside Chats for Class of 2023, Session 1 (TD House)

Please join Dean Mahurin and HL in the TD House to reflect on your first year at Yale.  Access this link to sign up.  You’ll see each 40-minute session has one of the following themes: “My Two Homes,” “Academics Roundup,” and “Changes and Choices”.   If you can’t make it this Wednesday, a second session is available the following week.  

Monday January 20^th 11:59pm Deadline for Creative and Performing Arts (CPA) Grants for spring 2020

The CPA supports on-campus dramatic, musical, dance, video or film productions, literary publications, and exhibitions in each of Yale’s Residential Colleges. To access the application and grant guidelines, please go to the CPA website.  The online application opened on 1/2/2020 and will close on Monday 1/20/2020 at 11:59pm.  All applicants should make an appointment to meet with me prior to submitting your application.  

Tuesday January 21 6-7:30pm Senior Sushi Night (TD House)

It’s TD tradition to kickoff your last semester at Yale with a wonderful sushi dinner hosted by chefs from Sono Bana restaurant in Hamden, CT.  We’ll have an amazing assortment of nigiri and maki that will be sure to include vegetarian and vegan options.  

Wednesday January 22^nd Fireside Chats for Class of 2023, Session 1 (TD House)

Second round of this year’s First-Years Fireside Chats.  Same themes – “My Two Homes,” “Academics Roundup,” and “Changes and Choices”—are repeated.  Please go here to sign-up.  

Without further ado, here is a word from Dean Mahurin…

Àshe,
HL

***
 
The Journey
Mary Oliver

One day you finally knew
what you had to do, and began,
though the voices around you
kept shouting
their bad advice—
though the whole house
began to tremble
and you felt the old tug
at your ankles.
“Mend my life!”
each voice cried.
But you didn’t stop.
You knew what you had to do,
though the wind pried
with its stiff fingers
at the very foundations,
though their melancholy
was terrible.
It was already late
enough, and a wild night,
and the road full of fallen
branches and stones.
But little by little,
as you left their voices behind,
the stars began to burn
through the sheets of clouds,
and there was a new voice
which you slowly
recognized as your own,
that kept you company
as you strode deeper and deeper
into the world,
determined to do
the only thing you could do—
determined to save
the only life you could save.

UPCOMING DATES AND DEADLINES

CLASS OF 2021: Interested in applying to become a first-year counselor?
Remember that the deadline to apply is January 31^st! You can learn more about frocoing at https://yalecollege.yale.edu/communities/student-leadership/first-year-counselor-program-froco.  

SPECIAL BLUEBOOKING EVENT: Crafting the Schedule that Works for YOU!
(featuring hot chocolate and cookies)
Tuesday, January 14^th, 4-5:30 pm, Poorvu Center Room 120A
Join Academic Strategies Director Dr. Karin Gosselink, our Academic Strategies Mentors, and our Community Initiative Ambassadors for a structured bluebooking session to help you prioritize your needs and interests as you craft your spring semester schedule. Be warmed by hot chocolate and cookies as you relax and focus with friends.

ACTION RECOMMENDED: INSTALL OR UPGRADE PAPERCUT TO PRINT QUICKLY ON CAMPUS
NOTE: If you already have PaperCut installed, you will need to upgrade to the most recent version; support for legacy versions will be discontinued. Follow the instructions below to upgrade.

PaperCut software allows you to print directly from your computer to Yale printers the same way you’d print to a personal printer (via File > Print, for example). With PaperCut installed, you do not have to use WebPrint to print on campus, you will not be subject to WebPrint’s wait times and queues, and you will have more functionality available to change the settings of your print job. Printing cost with PaperCut is the same as the cost with WebPrint. Using PaperCut instead of WebPrint is highly advised during busy printing times like shopping period.   To install or upgrade PaperCut:

• Visit the Student Printing site at ypps.yale.edu/studentprint and choose “PaperCut for Windows on your Computer” or “PaperCut for Mac on your Computer”. 
• Download the installer and follow the instructions to install the software (if you need to upgrade an old version of PaperCut, follow the same install steps; this will uninstall the old version and install the correct one). 
• Once installed, you can print any document or web page by selecting File > Print, then choosing BluePrint_BW (black and white) or BluePrint_Color (color) from the printer list. You can then release your print job at any BluePrint printer on campus.

U.S. GRANT TEACHING PROGRAM

The Ulysses S. Grant Foundation is a 6-week academic summer program for talented and motivated middle school students who are enrolled in public and parochial schools in New Haven, CT.  Each summer a team of Yale undergraduate teachers, through courses in the humanities and investigations and through electives and group activities, help students acquire the academic preparation and skills they will need to excel in their current school environment and to enter and succeed in college. Teachers have the freedom to teach classes in subject areas that interest them, ranging from the politics of pop music to climate change. 
The 2020 Teacher Application is now available. There will be two information sessions:

January 15^th, 7:00pm, Bass L01-A
January 24^th, 5:00pm, Bass L01-A

Please see https://campuspress.yale.edu/usgrant/ for more information!

VOLUNTEER INCOME TAX ASSISTANCE

The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program is looking for more volunteers! VITA is a low-commitment opportunity to provide clients from all over the New Haven community with free tax services. In the last year alone, we helped 1600 people file their tax returns.  VITA is especially in need of intake coordinators (no tax knowledge necessary) and basic tax preparers. These commitments are only 2 hours per week. We have training materials to get you up to speed on tax knowledge if you’d like to be a preparer!  If you are interested in getting involved with VITA this semester, please fill outTHIS form as soon as possible to receive more information about certifying as a volunteer!