Ayanna Beach ‘23 credits her professors at Fitchburg State for inspiring a love of entrepreneurship. The Boston native had long contemplated a career as a veterinarian, but the coursework and its reliance on science and math were not what she had in mind. “I thought maybe I should try something else,” she recalled. “I always had an interest in working for myself, but I had a lot of misconceptions about business. The faculty here have been the most helpful teachers I’ve ever had. It’s been really eye-opening and it’s made me believe in myself.” Beach is now president of the student Entrepreneurship Association, and recently got to meet with State Rep. Jon Zlotnik and Wachusett Business Incubator Executive Director Magnus Carlberg and others for a roundtable discussion on creating opportunities for students to collaborate with the regional business community. The session was convened by Professor Michael Greenwood, chair of Fitchburg State’s Business Administration Department. Zlotnik recalled his efforts to create the business incubator in 2012, noting the need in the area to support entrepreneurs in bringing their visions to fruition. Helping businesses thrive supports the region’s economy, he said, as local high school and college graduates will stay in the region if there are opportunities for them to grow their careers. “We’re looking for synergies,” said Greenwood. “If there’s an opportunity for us to work together, we should be doing that.”  Assistant Professor John Lohmann, who serves as advisor to the Entrepreneurship Association, noted the university is working on a certificate program in entrepreneurship. “My goal is to provide an opportunity for our students to be the next entrepreneurs,” he said. Carlberg said he appreciated the opportunity to meet with business students and faculty to discuss future collaborations. “I’m really excited about what we can do with Fitchburg State,” he said. “There’s a lot that can happen working with our organizations.” Beach said she looks forward to advancing her own business plan through the university’s collaboration with partners like the business incubator. She is developing a line of activewear for plus-sized people, called Unapologetic Shape. “I want it to be a platform that brings awareness to women who are heavier but who have disorders that make it hard to lose weight,” she said. “The activewear industry is very one-sided. I’m not trying to exclude people who are smaller, but to bring representation. The biggest thing I’m trying to fix is make plus-size clothes more affordable.” Business student Sophie Mitchell said she was grateful for the support and mentorship of her faculty, whose guidance has opened her eyes to what she can achieve. “Having these mentors is so important to me,” she said. “One person doing amazing things is an opportunity for others to be amazing.”

State Rep. Michael Kushmerek had a conversation with police students about his own path from Fitchburg State to the Statehouse, and the opportunities that await them after their own studies. Fitchburg Police Chief Ernest J. Martineau addressed students in Fitchburg State University’s police program on Tuesday afternoon, saluting their commitment to joining a vital profession. And he offered them a chance to make some money along the way. Chief Martineau invited the students to apply for his department’s new civilian traffic control specialist positions, which will pay $53 an hour to staff road details.  Demand for such positions has exceeded the department’s capacity to fill them, the chief said, explaining many details that went unfilled last year. Opening the opportunity for civilians - including police students - should fill that gap. “I think a police officer or aspiring peace officer brings a lot to the table,” Chief Martineau told the students. “What you’re going to learn as future police officers is endless. You’re going to learn about crisis intervention, and you’re going to learn how to de-escalate a situation. Those are skills you can’t put a dollar value on. You’re going to be learning these skills before you put on the uniform.” Students in Fitchburg State’s police program complete bachelor’s and master’s degrees in criminal justice and full certification to serve municipal police departments in Massachusetts and other states within five years. It is believed to be the first program of its kind in the nation, the majority of whose graduates have job offers in hand before graduation. Chief Martineau recalled the origins of the program and the promise of a new approach to police training. “This vision of the future of policing is what’s right in front of me right now: the best and the brightest,” Chief Martineau said. “I think you’re entering into the finest career you can experience.” “I am thrilled that the police students are being given this opportunity to work for Chief Martineau out in the Fitchburg community,” said Fitchburg State Police Academy Director Lisa Lane McCarty. “One of the goals of our program is to provide more in the four years we have these police students; more education, more training, more job related skill development, more real life experience. These Civilian Traffic Control positions will give them a glimpse into the policing profession while also allowing them to interact with and assist members of their community.”  State Rep. Michael Kushmerek '08, '13 also attended the police program meeting to speak with students about his own path and to commend them for their interest in the profession, as well as lauding the Fitchburg Police Department for its ongoing support of the program and its graduates.  “You are truly the future of law enforcement, and the envy of every other city and town in the Commonwealth,” Kushmerek said. Fitchburg Police Officer Ryan Kreidler, a recent Fitchburg State graduate and a member of the university police program’s training staff, encouraged the students to take advantage of the opportunity presented by the chief. “You’re going to be in the public eye, and you’re going to learn how to interact with people, with contractors and emergency medical technicians,” Officer Kreidler said.

Fitchburg State University this week welcomed dozens of federal, state and local leaders for a discussion and tour of the transformative performing arts center that is being proposed in the heart of Main Street. “Public universities have an important role to play in the communities that host them,” Fitchburg State President Richard S. Lapidus told the assembled guests, including representatives from more than 15 legislative districts, in addition to Congressional staff members and other state and local cultural and business leaders. President Lapidus was joined by speakers including State Sen. John Cronin, State Rep. Michael Kushmerek, Fitchburg Mayor Stephen DiNatale, and North Central Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce President Roy Nascimento in explaining the collaborative process that has kept the project moving forward, with state and federal funding complementing the university’s own investments in the key parcel.  Fitchburg State purchased the long-closed Main Street theater in 2016 and has begun a major project to create a performing arts center at the site. The first phase of the project is already complete, including a state-of-the-art game design studio for students in the capstone game design program, and the ideaLab, a university/community creativity and entrepreneurial space. As the assembled leaders were informed, the next phase of the project will be the new construction of a “black box” theater adjacent to the main building, designed to accommodate a variety of events and programs with a seating capacity of 250 people. It will serve as a teaching facility for students in the university’s performing arts and humanities, as well as community and external groups. Also known as the "theaterLab," this black box theater will be a point of collaboration for students, educators, and the public at large, with the goal of ensuring that new and diverse public audiences have access to quality arts and humanities programming. The final phase of the project will be the renovation of the historic theater itself. First opened in 1929 as a vaudeville theater, the 46,250-square-foot building will become a state of the art venue with up to 1,200 seats. The reception and tour was designed to show the wide economic and cultural impact the performing arts center will have on the city and region. President Lapidus explained the theater project is part of more than $250 million in public and private development now in the pipeline on Fitchburg’s Main Street, including residential, commercial and civic components. The theater project alone is expected to generate millions of dollars a year in ongoing economic activity beyond the initial investments and jobs from the construction itself.  "We've seen other towns in the region enhance their communities and economies by investing in the arts and I'm so pleased to see this initiative happening now in Fitchburg," said Massachusetts House Speaker Pro Tempore Kate Hogan. "As a result of thoughtful and deliberative planning, coupled with partnerships and collaboration at all levels of business, government and the university, the performances, events and programming offered at the new theater are expected to reach audiences beyond the campus and to positively impact visitors, residents and our local workforce." “I’m excited for the future when downtown Fitchburg is a destination for people all over Massachusetts and beyond to enjoy live entertainment and theater alongside city residents,” said Mass Cultural Council Executive Director Michael J. Bobbitt, who was among the visitors who toured the theater project. “The rehabilitation of Main Street started with a vision to use arts and culture to rebuild and rebrand, but what stands out to me most is the incredible collaboration amongst state and local leaders, the business community, the arts community, the university, and private citizens to make it happen. This is a model to be replicated across the state. I can’t wait until the ribbon cutting.” 

Sophomore nursing students at Fitchburg State University enjoyed the ceremonial launch of their clinical experiences at the second annual White Coat Ceremony on Jan. 19.  Professor Tara Mariolis, chair of the Nursing Department, said the ceremony signifies a pivotal transition in the lives of the students.  “Students, today you will take an oath to compassionate patient care,” Mariolis said. “You join a long line of nurses who have made the commitment to put the patient first as they provide holistic, humanistic and patient-centered care. It also signifies the nursing faculty’s commitment to support and mentor each of you as you embark on this next phase of your education.” University President Richard S. Lapidus spoke about the nursing students’ place in Fitchburg State’s history. “For more than six decades, Fitchburg State has prepared qualified and committed nurses to serve their communities in health care settings across the state, the nation, and the world,” President Lapidus told the students. “That history now includes all of you, who embody the values of service, dedication, and excellence that have defined our nursing graduates.” Dean of Health and Natural Sciences Jennifer Hanselman also addressed the students, thanking them for the commitment to their future patients they are making through their studies. “By choosing this program of study, you are showing that you are willing to challenge yourselves so that you may best serve others in your communities,” Hanselman said. “Thank you, for your demonstrated commitment to the nursing mission of serving the whole patient, focusing on their physical, social, and behavioral needs. As nurses, you tend to the medical conditions of those in your care with an added level of personal warmth and attention that will play no less of a role in the successful outcomes of your interactions.” Fitchburg State junior Madison Waterson of West Boylston offered the student address, reflecting on being in her peers’ position a year ago. “The white coat you are receiving symbolizes your entry into clinical practice,” Waterson said. “Your hard work, late night study sessions, and passion for this field has paid off. You have spent the past semester studying nursing history, how to conduct a head to toe assessment, and significance of the beloved fluid and electrolyte balance, just to name a few. “Until now, you have been surrounded by the four walls of a classroom or have tuned in virtually to a zoom meeting,” Waterson continued. “Now it’s time for you to apply these concepts to the real world. This will transform what you have already learned into something tangible, that you will be able to see for yourselves. This next semester will provide many of you with your first patient encounters.” See photos from the ceremony on the Burg Blog The following nursing students received white coats at the ceremony: Ryan Aker, Maryam Ashraf, Vivica Banks, Li Batista-Lin, Macey Bridge, Caroline Doherty, Emily Doran, Jocelyn Dunn, Kirsten Figueiredo, Michelle Flores, Elizabeth Gianni, Oliver Ginnett,  Kyla Guertin, Caroline Hamel,  Ava Hannon, Stephanie Hart, Rachelle Keegan, Nicholas Lafleur, Lindsey Lafrance, Matthew Landadio, Maria Martins, Kaileigh Murphy, Kimberley Norris, Lisette Ortega, Kassandra Patch, Sabrina Patch, Lauren Serratore, Natalie Smith, Brooke Sullivan, Hana Valikangas, and Willow Wildman-Lyon.

Fitchburg State President Richard S. Lapidus has announced the students who qualified for inclusion on the Dean’s List and President's List for the fall 2022 semester. A student is placed on the Dean’s List for the semester if an average grade of 3.20 or better is attained, and the student is attending the university full time. View the Fall 2022 Dean's List. The President’s List honors students for consistently high academic achievement. A student is named to the list after achieving a 3.75 average in each of three successive semesters. View the Fall 2022 President's List.

Fitchburg State University has been awarded a grant for nearly $55,000 through the state’s Hunger Free Campus Initiative program to support students experiencing food insecurity. The funding will help raise awareness of the support services available to students on campus and in the community, in addition to providing direct assistance to students.  Food and housing insecurity is an issue for students in Massachusetts and nationwide. According to the state’s Hunger Free Campus Coalition, 37% of public university students in Massachusetts are food insecure, and only 20% of them utilize the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Fitchburg State’s institutional efforts to address the issue include the Falcon Community Outreach Center that students may access discreetly through the Office of Student Development. The center includes the Falcon Bazaar food and necessities pantry, as well as a professional clothing closet to assist students going to interviews for jobs or internships.  Student interns will be hired through the grant-funded program to design public awareness campaigns around food insecurity and the services available to those who need them, including SNAP. “The entire Fitchburg State community has stepped up to support members experiencing food insecurity, and this program will help us keep moving forward,” University President Richard S. Lapidus said. “We are grateful for the state’s backing of our initiatives and look forward to continuing the work of supporting all students.” The grant was announced at the end of Gov. Charlie Baker’s term in December. “Your commitment to transform higher education institutional cultures to center equity-minded support services for students is commendable, particularly as the Commonwealth engages in post-COVID efforts to both retain and prepare our future workforce,” Gov. Charlie Baker and Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito said in the grant letter. “Through this funding and your continued support, we hope to expand access to great educational opportunities for every citizen in the Commonwealth.”

"Prometheus" is among the New England Wax sculptures on display in the Hammond Hall Art Gallery through March 3. The Fitchburg State University CenterStage arts and culture series presents “Chroma,” a gallery exhibit by New England Wax, through March 3 in the Hammond Hall Art Gallery, 160 Pearl St. There will be an artist talk and reception at 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 1 at the gallery featuring New England Wax members Trina Abbott and Pamela Dorris DeJong. Admission is free and open to the public. (See photos from the opening on the Burg Blog.) New England Wax is a lively and growing professional organization connecting artists in the six New England states who work with encaustic and other wax-based mediums.  The works in “Chroma” use color pigments that are suspended in either encaustic or cold waxes. The exhibition, on display during the depths of a New England winter, is intended to provide a colorful oasis for students and visitors alike.  To learn more about the university’s arts and culture offerings, please visit fitchburgstate.edu/centerstage.

Fitchburg State University’s annual celebration of Black History Month in February includes celebrations and events organized around the theme “Black Excellence: Limitless, Boundless and Selfless.” The theme acknowledges that the history of the African diaspora in the United States is not solely confined to conventional forms of success, and is boundless. It emphasizes communal care, achievement despite significant barriers, and the endless potential of Black and African-American people in the United States. While Black History Month is observed during the month of February, the university’s affiliated celebrations will begin on Monday, Jan. 23, with a screening of the acclaimed documentary “King in the Wilderness” at 6:30 p.m. in Ellis White Lecture Hall in Hammond Hall, 160 Pearl St. Admission is free and open to the public. Events continue at 6 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 26, with a “Black Table Talk” in the main lounge at Hammond Hall on the influence of religion in the civil rights era. The event will begin with a video highlighting different perspectives on the role faith has played in social movements and then move to a collective discussion on its role in current causes. Other programs during the month will include workshops on hip-hop songwriting, a celebration of soul food, a Kizomba dance class, and conversations on investing and relationships. The programs will culminate with the Black Excellence Gala at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 28 in the main lounge at Hammond Hall. The full listing of events can be found on the university website at fitchburgstate.edu/bhm.

This screenshot of the virtual tour shows some of the elements for the stop dedicated to the Fitchburg Athenaeum on Main Street. Did you ever wish you could go back in time and tour the era when Fitchburg erected so many of its magnificent buildings? If so, your wish is about to be granted, thanks to a newly launched virtual walking tour created by Fitchburg State University students in collaboration with the Fitchburg Historical Society and Fitchburg Historical Commission. Students in Assistant Professor J.J. Sylvia IV’s Communications Media classes worked with Fitchburg Historical Society Executive Director Susan Navarre to create the interactive tour, wherein visitors to Main Street may locate directions to significant buildings using their phone and be enlightened by voice or text about their history. Sylvia said the project originated with the city’s Historical Commission, which contacted the university’s Crocker Center for Civic Engagement about launching a collaboration to create a walking tour. The project began with a student-designed brochure and street signs and was followed by curation of the tour itself with students in Sylvia’s Introduction to Communication and Media Studies course. Two cohorts of students have worked on the walking tour project to date. The focus of the latest class was creating a virtual tour celebrating the city’s history in the arts. “I believe the students can benefit from an experience like this in several different ways,” Sylvia said. “At the most practical level, this project gives them an opportunity to work on a hands-on, community-based project in their first year at Fitchburg State. This offers them real-world professional experience that they can use for their portfolios and resumes to demonstrate the type of collaborative work they're capable of producing. Through this process they are not only getting experience working with a client, but learning valuable research and digital media production skills, as well.” Sylvia said he also appreciates how the work deepens students’ connection with the city in which they are studying.  “There is real value in understanding the historical context of the places that we live, work, and learn,” he said. “A project like this allows students to develop new ways of thinking about the community around them, and this way of seeing the world is something that I hope they take with them as they graduate from Fitchburg State and may go on to live and work in other communities.” Sophia Moore, a first-year Fitchburg State student from Connecticut, chose to research content for the tour stop dedicated to the Fitchburg Athenaeum. The site notes that the organization, formed in 1852, had a small private library housed in a room of Fitchburg’s newly built town hall and became a forum for community discussion and welcomed guest speakers including Henry David Thoreau. “There’s a lot of history in Fitchburg,” said Moore. “All of my group members were from Fitchburg, but everything we learned in our project was new to them, too. I’ve never been a big history person, but I did gain an interest through this project, to see the differences from then to now.” Moore is majoring in Communications Media with a focus on public relations and advertising. She is also a member of the university’s women’s soccer team. “This type of assignment uses an open pedagogy approach that respects students' agency, giving them significant input and control in the final projects that they create, which extend beyond the walls of the classroom and make an impact in the larger community,” Sylvia said. “What I like best about this project is that Professor Sylvia’s students are visiting our offices on Main Street and using our wealth of primary source materials rather than the internet to tell their stories,” Navarre said. “It will be a wonderful resource, not only for visitors to Fitchburg, but to residents who want to know more about their city. It is almost like actual, physical time travel.” Stops on the virtual tour include the Whitney Opera Theater, the WFGL radio station, the Iver Johnson Building, the Fitchburg Athenaeum, the Fitchburg Art Museum, and the Rollstone boulder. The tour created by students in Spring 2022 highlighted the city’s historic districts.