by Lauren Ebersole '07 - It's that time of year again, and no I don't mean the cookie baking, present shopping, tree-cutting time of year. It's finals time here in Indonesia. I'd like to devote this email to explaining the test process, which is only slightly less complicated than nuclear physics.

By Dr. John Wear. Students – and prospective students – are placing more importance on colleges' sustainability record than ever before. Environment & Energy, a publishing firm, recently noted that "colleges are ... beginning to see that environmental initiatives have impacts on how their peers, along with their current and past students, perceive them. A school's reputation may hinge as much on its green credibility as it does on conference titles and championships."

By Deirdre Parker Smith, SalisburyPost.com - After the show, you'll probably be wheezing from all the laughing you've done at this Ray Cooney farce, starring Salisbury's best comedic actor, Gary Thornburg. Thornburg earned entrance applause on opening night and twice more following fiercely frantic bits.Pairing up with him is the multi-talented Justin Dionne, who is Piedmont's marketing director and a Catawba alumnus.

Wrapped in bright red like presents next to the Christmas tree, about 145 children sang for residents of Oak Park retirement community Thursday. Catawba College Community Music Program Director Erin Harper directs the North Hills choir, which includes students from first through fifth grades.

National Native American Heritage Month was celebrated on Nov. 17 in the Hefner VA Medical Center Social Room. The theme was Service, Honor, Respect, Strengthening Our Cultures and Communities. Catawba College president Dr. Joe Oxendine was the keynote speaker, quoting from his book and speaking about the nuances of culture and tribal group of the Lumbee Indians.

A new scholarship has been established at Catawba College in memory of the late automobile dealer, Hubert B. Parks of Kernersville. The Michael and Parks First Family Scholarship was created through gifts from Catawba alumnus and automobile dealer Chester A. "Junie" Michael, III '70 of Mooresville and his wife, Teresa, and the family of Hubert Parks.