Campus Currents

Ending Ceremony on Thursday, April 25, 2024, at 4:30 PM in Alumni Room (Hybrid)
Campaign Leader: Sabrina Grammatic
Zoom Registration Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZApc-2rrDkiHtAljHCEKKWfQiexH1-HSl6s

Overcoming personal struggles should be celebrated, but it can be difficult to share these struggles with others. Now you have the opportunity to do so! Share your story about overcoming a challenge in your life through a form (https://forms.gle/AupgnUqHFUKj2ffX6) submission and come to our in-person event April 25th at 4:30 pm in the alumni room to see other's stories and also share your own! You can be anonymous, or you can opt to speak about your experience. No matter what, know that you are courageous for sharing your triumphs!

Saturday, April 27
12:00PM - 3:00PM
Christa McAuliffe Center and O'Connor Hall Parking Lot

Science on State Street is Framingham State University’s annual science festival, a community-wide event organized by the Christa McAuliffe Center in collaboration with MetroWest STEM Education Network.

Science on State Street has a particular focus on themes relating to planet Earth. Explore science, technology, engineering, and math and the ways they support environmental justice, renewable energy, and environmental sustainability!

EARTH DAY FESTIVAL SATURDAY, APRIL 20TH, 11AM -3PM
Visit FSU's Campus Sustainability booth and dozens of others at the 12th annual
festival on the Framingham Centre Common (at Edgell Road/Vernon Street).

CLIMATE HOPE CONCERT SATURDAY, APRIL 20TH, 7PM & 8:30PM
Multiverse's annual Climate Hope Concert hosted at the McAuliffe Center
interweaves music and science to tell immersive stories of regeneration: projects
working to heal not just our atmosphere, but our biosphere and society as a whole.

FSU SUSTAINABILITY TRIVIA WEDNESDAY, APRIL 24TH, 12PM -1:30PM
Join us in the McCarthy Dining Commons to test your FSU sustainability knowledge
and win prizes to support eco-friendly living!

POLLINATOR GARDEN WALKING TOUR THURSDAY, APRIL 25TH, 2:30PM
Meet in front of the McCarthy Center for a walking tour hosted by Dr. Aviva Liebert
to learn more about the pollinator gardens on campus and how they are beneficial
to native bees and other pollinator species.

GARDEN & NEIGHBORHOOD CLEAN-UP FRIDAY, APRIL 26TH, 12:30 -2:30PM
Sign up here to join Keep Framingham Beautiful, Green Initiative, & Campus Sustainability to prep the campus garden for spring planting and help clean litter from the campus and surrounding
neighborhood. Meet outside the McCarthy Center to get supplies and instructions.

Register at: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0545ACA829A5F49-48768627-spring?useFullSite=true#/

Wednesday, April 24, 6 p.m., McCarthy Center Forum 

Join Framingham State University and award-winning author Matt Paradise for a discussion on ''Money Management: Building your personal finance future and whole-health wealth.'' Explore the
intersection of financial well-being and overall health, and learn practical strategies to achieve
both. Matt will share insights on creating an environment that values inclusion and empowers
individuals to thrive.

This free discussion is open to college students, parents, and community members looking to enhance their financial and holistic wellness. Attendees will receive a free e-book.

LEARNING OUTCOMES:
After you engage in this interactive discussion, you'll:

• Understand the significance of financial inclusion and whole-health wealth.
• Learn practical strategies for managing finances and improving overall well-being.
• Be able to apply these strategies in your own life for a healthier, wealthier future.

Don't miss this interactive session! It's your chance to take charge of your finances and unlock
your path to a healthier, wealthier you!

Sponsored by Division of Student Success, Henry Whittemore Library, Office of Family Engagement,
and Center for Inclusive Excellence.

Framingham State University's Danforth Museum and School has three upcoming events in Portuguese! At all of the events, The Danforth will have any written materials in Portuguese as well as English; and there will be Portuguese-speaking people to welcome guests, make their visit to a new place as comfortable as possible, guide them if needed, and answer any questions.

We are really excited to pilot this bilingual programming with our consistently well-attended Drop into Art and our Community Conversations through Art. The Brazilian artists who are speaking at this year's Community Conversations through Art are fabulous artists and wonderful people.

Learn more by clicking on the links below!

Bilingual Drop into Art – May 12, 2024: Museum Blooms

Bilingual Community Conversations through Art - June 1, 2024

Alumni Room
Monday, April 29 and Wednesday, May 1
11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Come relax with therapy dogs before your finals! FSU SEALS Peer Health Educators will give you free resources to help lower your stress and feel better.

Join us for our first networking event hosted by the Entrepreneurship Innovation Center!

Friday, April 26, 5 p.m.
860 Worcester Road

All majors welcome! Engage in conversations on entrepreneurial equity, starting a business, and scaling up your startup with link-minded peers. Refreshments and Ram Tram Service provided. 

Register at: https://forms.office.com/pages/responsepage.aspx?id=ivGKVtunQE2ln9ZP1I2zZhQg1mP20oBLh9AyCIJ06V1UMVMzUTRQT05KVU84TklSMlhKTVpOT0tOMC4u&origin=lprLink

From Challenges to Opportunities: Innovative Housing Solutions For Economic Prosperity IN GREATER METROWEST

Thursday, May 30th, Forum, McCarthy Center
Framingham State University
Register HERE

TIME:
11:00 a.m. Program
11:30 a.m. Keynote Address
12:35 p.m. MERC Update
12:55 p.m. Panel Presentation
2:00 p.m. Adjourn

Keynote Speaker: ED AUGUSTUS
Secretary of Housing and Livable Communities, Commonwealth of Massachusetts

Secretary Ed Augustus leads the newly created Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities. The office is dedicated to housing and driving solutions to create more homes and lower costs. It is focused on the urgent need to build places to live that are affordable and closer to public transit - giving residents access to jobs, medical care, groceries, and other essential services. Before joining the Healey administration, Secretary Augustus served as City Manager of Worcester, functioning as the gateway city’s chief administrative and executive officer of more than 200,000 people. As City Manager, Augustus spearheaded the $240 million landmark redevelopment of Worcester’s canal district, including leading the complex negotiation to relocate the Boston Red  Sox AAA affiliate (now the WooSox) to the city and constructing the multi-use Polar Park Stadium.

By Kaitlin Carman, Publications Intern

Brilliant hues of manipulated fabric designs, stunning oil paintings, and powerful photographs float across the screen as their proud creators, Saberah Malik, Jasmine Chen, and Stephen Marc, discuss their works, goals, and inspirations.

But these are not just any artists or designs.

What do they have in common? They are all bi-cultural diasporic artists who, through their unique approaches to their work that connect across time, societies, and places, create art that reflects their personal experiences and cultural heritages.

The moderated panel was hosted on April 10 by Alexander Hartwiger and sponsored by Framingham State’s division of Diversity, Inclusion, and Community Engagement (DICE), The Danforth Art Museum, and Arts and Ideas. It is one of the last showcases that coincide with this year’s theme of Courage and Resilience.

Malik is a Rhode Island based artist who received her BFA, MFA, and MA of Industrial Design. She said some of her works are derived from her cultural ties to Pakistan: “Vivid bright patterns - geometric [and] floral – wherever the eye wanders, you are just infused with this joy of color.

“I think that’s something that is part of me even when I tried to get away from it during the COVID [Pandemic],” said Malik.

Her other three-dimensional works, especially those featuring stones transparent fabrics like bottles and glass, signify the life and memories of her upbringing and those to come.

She said her works with “bottles and container are endless memories … of who I am [and] where I came from … I also bottled-up memories of my progression through life. As I move ahead, what is it that I can hold in these symbolic memories?”

The second presenter, Chen, is a Massachusetts based artist who grew up living between China and America.

Her experiences from having lived in distinctive neighborhoods and communities, “their art reflects the struggle to make sense of place and identity by making connections across time societies and places,” said Katherine Tako-Girard, learning and engagement coordinator for The Danforth Art Museum.

All her life, Jasmine Chen never anticipated becoming a full-time artist – she received her B.A. from Harvard University and her Ph.D. in Finance from Brandeis University.

Despite these accomplishments, she found that her passion lies elsewhere – in visual art.

Chen said, “What I love about oil (paintings) … It gives you the maximum freedom and as a consequence of that freedom you have when you’re practicing visual thinking and problem solving.”

Marc is a documentary photographer, digital montage artist, author, professor, and John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation fellow who was raised on the Southside of Chicago. 

Some of his works include documenting The Black Trans-Atlantic Experience and the Passage of the Underground Railroad – a project that took a decade to complete.

He featured his community-led art installations and emphasized the significance of using photography to highlight social concerns and realities.

“My goal is if I do a project for a community, I wanted to get to the point where they don’t see me anymore. They see the piece as being theirs,” said Marc.