A COVID-19 update from Chief Medical Officer Michael Apostolakos
Ocean conservationist Alexandra Cousteau will speak to the University community in the next installment of the “Difficult Conversations” series
Sunday is the last day to enjoy the Memorial Art Gallery’s Renaissance Impressions: Sixteenth-Century Master Prints from the Kirk Edward Long Collection exhibition
A reminder on face masks: they must be worn properly, covering the nose and mouth, indoors on the University’s campuses and properties. Visit the face mask FAQ page for full information on what kinds of masks are acceptable.
COVID-19 update from Michael Apostolakos, chief medical officer
Michael Apostolakos, chief medical officer at Strong Memorial Hospital, has been at the forefront of treating, monitoring, and communicating about COVID-19 in the greater Rochester community since the pandemic began. His regular email updates have kept the Medical Center community apprised of the status of the infection and have included important details and resources on staying healthy, as well the current COVID-19 prevention protocols in place. A digest form of these updates is being featured in @Rochester and on the University’s COVID-19 Resource Center as a way to share important information with the broader University community. Apostolakos’s message from February 1 follows.
We have finally begun to see a slow but steady decrease in hospitalization rates, and projections show this downward trend continuing in the coming days and weeks. We’re also poised to welcome a military medical team to Strong Memorial Hospital as early as next week; hospital leadership is currently awaiting more details on the make-up of this team to appropriately match their skills to where our greatest needs lie. We are grateful to our federal, state, and local officials for making these resources available, and it’s our hope that these and other efforts will bring some much-needed relief to our heroic staff who have been working so hard in such challenging circumstances.
Eva Pressman, chair of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, answers common questions about COVID boosters in pregnancy and breastfeeding in this new two-minute video. She discusses safety, efficacy, timing of the booster dose, breastfeeding following a booster, and more.
UR Medicine Labs will begin a staged reopening of some of its locations that were temporarily closed due to staff illnesses. As early as Wednesday, the Victor location at 6532 Anthony Drive will begin operations, and next week, two more locations will reopen: one in Rochester (125 Lattimore Road) and the other at East Ridge Family Medicine in Irondequoit (999 East Ridge Road). Please check the UR Medicine Labs website for up-to-date hours by location.
Ocean conservationist Alexandra Cousteau to speak to University community
Ocean conservationist and environmental activist Alexandra Cousteau will be the featured speaker in the next installment of the University’s “Difficult Conversations as a Catalyst for Change” series. The granddaughter of famed French explorer Jacques Cousteau will join Donald Hall, the Robert L. and Mary L. Sproull Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Sciences & Engineering, on Thursday, March 3, at 7 p.m. EST in Strong Auditorium on the River Campus. The event will be streamed live via Zoom. Register here to attend.
Farash Foundation challenge
The Max and Marian Farash Charitable Foundation recently established a $500,000 challenge to support the construction of the Greenbaum Center for Jewish Life on the University’s River Campus. The Farash Challenge is designed to encourage other donors to join in helping to build the center, which will be the new home for Hillel at the University of Rochester and a resource for all students and the broader Rochester Jewish community. Learn more here.
Flags will be lowered for Carolyn Barry
University flags on the Eastman Quadrangle and near the entrance of Strong Memorial Hospital’s Emergency Department will be lowered Tuesday, February 8, for Carolyn Barry, a nurse practitioner in University Health Service, who died on December 15. Barry joined the University staff in 1983.
AS&E graduate research symposium call for abstracts
The Office of Graduate Education and Postdoctoral Affairs in Arts, Sciences & Engineering and the Graduate Student Association invite abstracts for the AS&E Graduate Research Symposium, taking place Wednesday, March 23, from 3 to 5 p.m. EST in Douglass Ballroom.
The research symposium will feature a poster session and monetary awards for selected posters and will showcase research by graduate students across the disciplines, including master’s and PhD candidates, in Arts, Sciences & Engineering. All graduate students in AS&E are invited to submit an abstract to be considered for the poster session.
Attend an informational webinar on Wednesday, February 9, at noon EST to learn about tuition benefits offered to employees. The session covers employee tuition benefits for attending classes at the University, tuition reimbursements for outside colleges and universities, and dependent children tuition benefits at Rochester. There will be time for your questions at the end of the presentation. Register here to attend.
Spring 2022 online learning workshops
A series of one-hour “how-to” workshops can help get you started with some basic online learning activities. The series covers everything from giving live or recorded lectures, using various discussion board tools, giving an online test, and providing a platform for asynchronous student presentations. Find the list of workshops and registration links here. Open to all University faculty and staff.
Public health grand rounds lecture on advancing cancer control in the Northern Plains American Indians
Daniel Petereit, a radiation oncologist at Rapid City Regional Hospital, presents “Walking Forward: Collaborating at the Community Level to Advance Cancer Control in the Northern Plains American Indians,” a public health grand roundswebinar in collaboration with the Wilmot Seminar Series. Preregistration is required for the lecture, taking place Friday, February 4, at noon EST. ASL interpreters will be present. Email Carolyn Settle with questions.
Mini-grant opportunity for community, Medical Center partnerships
Supported and funded by the Center for Community Health & Prevention and the Clinical and Translational Science Institute, these mini-grants are one-time grants up to $2,000. Faculty, staff, and advanced trainees (post-docs, residents) at the Medical Center and community partners associated with a community-based 501(c)(3) organization are eligible to apply. Grant applicants must be part of a community-Medical Center partnership that serves the Rochester, Monroe County, or the Finger Lakes region. Learn more and apply today. The next round of mini-grant applications is due by noon on February 7.
Nominations due February 17 for the 2022 Satcher Community Health Improvement Awards
Yesterday’s @Rochester listed an incorrect due date for nominations. Nominations are due by noon on Thursday, February 17, for the Center for Community Health & Prevention’s 13th annual Dr. David Satcher Community Health Improvement Awards. Self-nominations are also accepted. The awards recognize Medical Center faculty and staff for significant contributions to the health of the community through research, teaching, practice, and service programs. The awards reflect the shared mission to develop and expand university-community partnerships that support participatory research and interventions to reduce health inequities or improve health in our communities.
Attend a screening of dance films
The Program of Dance and Movement will present a trilogy of dance films by French artist Smail Kanoute on Friday, February 11, at 2 p.m. EST. The trilogy features the film Never 21, a tribute to victims of gun violence. There will be an in-person viewing in the Spurrier Hall Dance Theater and a Zoom Q&A.
Pre-college programs at Rochester
Registration is open for Rochester’s pre-college programs. High school students can explore different career paths and majors, live on campus, and challenge themselves with summer programs in business, medicine, humanities, and engineering. Staff, faculty, and alumni with high school-aged children receive 10 percent off tuition with the Rochester community discount. Learn more about courses, dates, and the application process. Call (585) 275-3221 or email precollege@rochester.edu with questions.
Sunday, February 6, is the last day to enjoy the Memorial Art Gallery’s Renaissance Impressions: Sixteenth-Century Master Prints from the Kirk Edward Long Collection exhibition. Let the Renaissance enchant you all day long with live music, era-inspired arts and crafts, a special menu from Brown Hound Downtown, and more. At 2 p.m. EST, join the museum for a Zoom concert and talk by Senso di Voce, inspired by the exhibition, which explores the emergence and transformative impact of the print medium on the visual culture of Renaissance Europe. Registration is required.
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Ocean conservationist and environmental activist Alexandra Cousteau will be the featured speaker in the next installment of 
