On Dec. 3 at the edge of Patriots Park, Eastern students plunged into the chilly waters of Coventry Lake to raise money for the Special Olympics. Students or "penguins" solicited donations from family, friends and local businesses in order to take the plunge.

The Eastern Concert Chorale performed a concert at the Cathedral of St. Patrick in Norwich on Nov. 22. The chorale was joined by the Concert Choir of Northeastern Connecticut and the Norwich Diocesan Choir and sang Franz J. Haydn's "Te Deum" and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's "Coronation Mass."

Members of Eastern Connecticut State University's student chapter of the Association of Information Technology Professionals (AITP) attended the AITP-Long Island Chapter 2011 Technology Showcase and Economic Forecast on Nov. 15.

Three Eastern Connecticut State University students participated in the sixth Collegiate Mathematics Competition on Nov. 18 at Connecticut College in New London. The event, sponsored by the Northeastern Section of the Mathematical Association of America, was open to undergraduate students throughout the Northeast.

This fall, 32 athletes from Eastern Connecticut State University were recognized as members of the Little East Conference All Academic Team.

15 Eastern Connecticut State University students receiving awards at the National Association for Campus Activities regional conference in Hartford, CT, on Nov. 17- 19.

Athletes from Eastern Connecticut State University's men's lacrosse team, women's soccer team, volleyball and softball teams, and numerous other Eastern organizations recently participated in the third annual Poverty Awareness Marathon. They supported Health and Physical Education Professor Charles Chatterton by collecting more than 600 nonperishable items to donate to a local food pantry in Willimantic.

This fall, Eastern Connecticut State University's club rugby team finished in first place in the south region of the New England Rugby Football Union's Division III men's college standings and qualified for postseason play. They fought hard before losing in the semifinals against Tufts University.

The Eastern Connecticut State University Concert Chorale performed a special concert at Carnegie Hall on Nov. 13 as part of the Mid America Production Concert Series.

Three Eastern Connecticut State University students participated in the eighth annual New England American College of Sports Medicine College Bowl on Nov. 3 at the Rhode Island Convention Center in Providence, RI. Fourteen other New England universities participated in the competition.

Eastern Connecticut State University's Center of Community Engagement worked alongside the University's People Helping People student club to organize a book drive on campus.

Eastern Connecticut State University's Habitat for Humanity campus chapter held its annual "Shack-a-Thon" fundraiser over a 24-hour period from Oct. 26-27 in front of Webb Hall. The fundraiser was held to increase awareness of substandard housing in the Willimantic community.

The Theatre Program and Drama Society in the Department of Performing Arts at Eastern Connecticut State University presented "The Island," their first major production for the 2011-12 season, from Oct. 27 to 30 and Nov. 1 and 2.

Nineteen students from Eastern Connecticut State University took a field trip from Oct 21 to 24 to the White House, the U.S. Congress and the World Bank. The students enrolled in Professor Dennis Canterbury's Sociology of Globalization class attended the trip.

The Theatre Program and Drama Society in the Department of Performing Arts at Eastern Connecticut State University presented "The Island," their first major production for the 2011-12 season, from Oct. 27 to 30 and Nov. 1 and 2.

Four students and two faculty members from Eastern Connecticut State University's Department of Environmental Earth Science participated in the New England Intercollegiate Geological Conference (NEIGC) from Sept. 30-Oct. 2. The annual meeting was held at Middlebury College in Middlebury, VT.

FEMALES (Females Excelling Maturing to Achieve Leadership, Excellence and Success), a women's leadership club at Eastern Connecticut State University, hosted its third annual "Take Steps for Crohn's and Colitis" walk on Oct. 2. Proceeds benefited the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of America (CCFA).

Several local students are serving as resident assistants (RAs) at Eastern Connecticut State University this fall. Eastern has more than 70 RAs, students who are carefully selected and trained to help dormitory residents create an environment that is conducive to individual and social growth.

Ten Eastern Connecticut State University Students volunteered with the Math Mania Tutor Program. Eastern students and staff have completed their second year of the renowned and successful Math Mania camp.

Students from Eastern Connecticut State University's Performing Arts Department performed "Ring Around the Bottle" as part of the Phoenix New Play Series on Oct. 8.

The students attended the trip for an 11-day study tour of marine and terrestrial environments this past summer. San Salvador's flora and fauna include both native and introduced species, making the island a natural laboratory for studying island biogeography. The following local residents were among a group of Eastern undergraduate biology students who traveled to the Gerace Research Center on San Salvador Island, the outermost island in the Bahamas:

A group of Eastern Connecticut State University students recently visited the country of Nepal along with Associate Professor of Psychology Carlos Escoto, Geeta Pfau, retired associate director of health services, as well as ITS trainer Barbara Williams.

Nineteen communications majors from Eastern Connecticut State University recently travelled to London and Paris to learn about different platforms of European media and how they compare to American media.

More than 1,300 students, including first-time freshmen and transfer students, are attending Eastern Connecticut State University for the first time this fall. Christopher Dorsey, acting director of admissions at Eastern. notes that Eastern freshmen come from 164 of Connecticut's 169 towns, from 24 other states and from 48 other countries. Local students enrolled at Eastern include:

A record 303 Eastern Connecticut State University students have received ECSU Foundation's competitive scholarships in the 2011-12 academic year. The allotted scholarships total $334,000 in funds awarded through the ECSU Foundation's annual scholarship process.

Six Eastern Connecticut State University students traveled to Italy this past summer as part of Art History Professor Anne Dawson's Honors course, "Art in the Italian Landscape." Local students included:

More than 1,300 students, including first-time freshmen and transfer students, enrolled for the first time this fall at Eastern Connecticut State University. Christopher Dorsey, acting director of admissions at Eastern Connecticut State University, notes that Eastern freshmen come from 164 of Connecticut's 169 towns, from 24 other states and from 48 other countries. Local students who are attending Eastern include:

The Eastern Connecticut State University Alumni Association Board of Directors has elected three new members to the board: Holly Butler of Groton, CT; Kate Fortier of Ashford, CT; and Paulette Haines of Marietta, GA. The three women were unanimously approved and will begin their first three-year terms at the board meeting on October 5. Butler, a 2008 graduate of Eastern, is a mental health worker with CarePlus in Groton. Fortier graduated in 2003 and is a community engagement director with Access Community Action Agency in Willimantic, while Haines is a 1994 graduate and the CEO/consultant for Creative Non-Profit Solutions, LLC. Members of the Eastern Connecticut State University Alumni Association Board of Directors are responsible for attending and actively participating in meetings of the Board in person or via teleconference. They are also encouraged to represent the Alumni Association at university events and activities and to engage fellow alumni to support university events through their attendance or through financial sponsorship. Board meetings are held quarterly on Eastern's campus. Eastern Connecticut State University is part of the Connecticut State University System (CSUS) and is the state's public liberal arts university. Eastern serves more than 5,600 students each year on its Willimantic campus

Eastern Connecticut State University has published "From Tutor to Tutor: A Guidebook for Writers," a book written by students under the leadership of Lauren Rosenberg, associate professor of English and coordinator of Eastern's First Year Writing program. The idea for the book came from student tutors in Rosenberg's Tutoring Writing class in fall 2009. The peer tutors in Eastern's Writing Center work one-on-one with fellow students on their writing assignments for class. While the student tutors received training during the course, the books and articles they read were all written by scholars and professors of composition and rhetoric. Nothing was available by students their age. They chose to do something about it. Throughout the fall 2010 and spring 2011 semesters, the tutor-trainees met with Rosenberg to plan, write and edit a guidebook by peers for peers. "Nothing like this is out there," said Rosenberg. "We didn't model our book after any other because there are no student-written works like this." "From Tutor to Tutor" is composed of 18 essays that range in topics from dealing with plagiarism to working with English as a Second Language students to handling unexpected experiences during tutoring sessions. Essays include "What to Do When You Have No Clue"; "Meeting with a Tutor for the aEUR~Write' Reasons: Why Voluntary Meetings Beat Mandatory Sessions"; and "Turning Stressful to Productive," among others. Each essay is written by a student trained in Writing Center theory and pedagogy in either Eastern's Tutoring Writing or Composition and Theory Pedagogy courses.

The following students were named to Eastern's Dean's List for the spring 2011 semester.