FBLA Wins Eight Awards at Annual National Competition
Congratulations to UVI's Phi Beta Lambda chapter of the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) which garnered eight awards at the FBLA's annual national leadership conference/competition in June. Following a year of preparation and fund raising, the chapter sent 20 students to to compete in 18 categories. Attending were: Toriefa Alexander, Shanitta Bedminster, Paul Remy, Kimika Woods, Krystal George, Latifah Pratt, Renelle Stephens, Jermaine Baptiste, Malon Angol, Sharifa Skelton, Desiree Burton, Sherwin Pilgrim, Lemuel Ryan, Brian Thomas, Syvonne Richardson, Celia Sebastien, Kishma Freeman, Burnette Williams, Wendell Ronan and Jennifer Simon.
Taking first-place awards were Remy in E-Business, and Richardson and Bedminster in Digital Video Production. Seventh-place awards were won by Bedminster in Computer Applications, and Pilgrim and Woods in Small Business Management. Thomas and Baptiste took eighth-place awards in Business Ethics.
UVI's Chapter of FBLA has expressed its thanks to all who helped make the competition possible.
UVI Students Urged to Apply for Thurgood Marshall Scholarships
UVI students are encouraged to apply for Thurgood Marshall Scholarships for the 2008-2009 academic year. More information is available from this Web site: www.thurgoodmarshallfund.org . Details are also available from UVI's Thurgood Marshall Fund Scholarship Coordinator Ardrina Scott-Elliott at 340-693-1043.
Fall Semester Orientation Schedules Now Available from UVI Web Site
Fall orientation schedules for new and transfer students are now available from the Student Life Services page of the UVI web site – www.uvi.edu. UVI's fall 2008 semester classes will begin on August 18 and continue through December 10.
AES/CES Win Grant to Study Trees on Both UVI Campuses
UVI's Agricultural Experiment Station, in conjunction with the Cooperative Extension Service, was recently awarded a grant from the Virgin Islands Urban and Community Forestry Program from the V.I. Department of Agriculture. Study co-authors Brian Daley (biotechnology-agroforestry) and Carlos Robles (natural resources management) were awarded more than $19,000 for equipment and to create a comprehensive spatial database of the trees on both UVI campuses. Using hand-held GPS units, and with assistance from UVI students, they will mark and identify all campus trees and record their size and condition. The results will produce a planning tool that will assist in the management of existing, valuable, urban trees on both campuses. It will also help in the determination of what kinds of trees to plant in the future and where to plant them. For details, call Daley at 692-4078 or Robles at 693-1083.
Basic Safe Boating Class to Begin July 14 on St. Thomas
The U.S. Power and Sail Squadron's basic boating class will be offered starting today (Monday, July 14) at UVI's MacLean Marine Science Center. Classes will be held on Mondays and Wednesdays, from 6 to 8 p.m. through July 30. The course is free, however, there is a $75 materials fee that covers a book, electronic charting DVD and navigational tools. For details or to sign up, call Captain Tom McCoy at 690-0729.
Music Camp Students Presenting Free, Public Concerts Each Wednesday
Twenty-nine junior and senior high school musicians attending the UVI Summer Band Camp are giving a series of free, public concerts from 11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. each Wednesday in July at St. Thomas' Emancipation Garden. The camp, under the direction of UVI Prof. Austin A. Venzen, takes place in the Music Building on UVI's St. Thomas campus. It includes students from St. Thomas, St. Croix and Antigua. The UVI community and the general public are encouraged to attend the concerts. The camp also features four instrumental ensembles, one of which performs each Sunday at a different church on St. Thomas. The camp is sponsored by the Law Enforcement Planning Commission, the Virgin Islands Council on the Arts and UVI. For more information, contact Prof. Venzen at 693-1192.
Free Workshop on Financial Literacy Planned for Individuals with Disabilities
A free workshop on financial literacy for Virgin Islands residents who have disabilities and their family members will be held on St. Croix on Monday, July 21. The workshop, slated for 10 a.m. to noon, will take place in the Sunshine Mall office of UVI's Small Business Development Center (SBDC). The session is presented by the Virgin Islands University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities and the Virgin Island Assistive Technology Foundation (VIATF) in partnership with Banco Popular and the SBDC.
The workshop is designed to assist individuals who have credit problems, or no credit, and who are interested in obtaining loans in order to purchase assistive technology equipment or services. The following areas will be covered:
• Establishing credit for the first time
• Credit building techniques
• Accessing low-interest loans
• Budgeting techniques to reduce debt and increase savings
• Repairing damaged credit
• Securing insurance coverage on loans
Representatives from the VIATF, Banco Popular and the SBDC will be on hand to answer questions and provide individualized assistance. For details, contact Diane Hampton at 692-1919 or Deborah Samuel-Sinclair at 692-5270.
UVI Community Invited to Picnic with South Atlantic Region Alumni
All UVI alumni, their friends and families, and the general public are invited to attend the 2nd Annual Alumni Picnic from 2 to 8 p.m. on Sunday, July 27, in Lithonia, Georgia. The event is hosted by the UVI South Atlantic Region Alumni Chapter and will be held at the Bransby Outdoor YMCA.
This Virgin Islands styled picnic promises to be fun and will include activities such as tennis, sand court volleyball, a three-on-three basketball tournament, sack races and a moonwalk. Attendees can also enjoy the use of the pool. All are encouraged to bring a lawn chair or a blanket. DJ Patrick will provide the music and mocko jumbies will perform. Barbeque, food and drinks will be on sale.
UVI alumni and Virgin Islanders who live in or will be visiting Georgia are encouraged to attend. For directions, send a request to uvi_sarac@yahoo.com. For more information call 340-693-1040. A news release is available from the UVI web site – www.uvi.edu.
For more about the University of the Virgin Islands, visit the Web site: www.uvi.edu.
