Grinnell College announces Mini-Grants deadline

Grinnell College is now accepting applications for the Community Mini-Grants Program. The Grinnell College Community Mini-Grants Program provides catalyst funding for small- to mid-scale projects to help Grinnell become a more attractive place to live, work and play. Mini-grants, which typically range from $1,000 to $7,500, focus on cultural, recreational and educational initiatives, including those benefitting the social needs of the community, as well as projects that enhance the safety, beauty and economic vitality of the local area.

The Grinnell College Office of Community Enhancement and Engagement must receive applications for 2013 by January 25, 2013. Additional application information is available on the office's webpage, linked here: http://www.grinnell.edu/offices/communityenhance/minigrant/. The Office of Community Enhancement and Engagement and an advisory committee of Grinnell College faculty, staff, community residents and students from the local area will review the applications. Awardees will be notified by March 15.

In 2012, Community Mini-Grants were awarded to 12 local projects:

Grinnell Area Arts Council for startup supplies for an artist residency garden initiative ($1,000); also funding for Studio 4 "Free Imagination" pilot program ($800)Grinnell High School for curriculum development of seminar program ($3,000)Grinnell Historical Museum Society for technology upgrade to provide greater public access to local historical collections ($1,600)Grinnell Police Department for new crime scene camera to enhance investigations ($1,695)Imagine Grinnell to support launch of city-wide recycling efforts ($1,940)Mayflower Community for an audio-visual upgrade at the Carmen Center community space ($1,750)Mid-Iowa Community Action for construction of outdoor playscape and garden area ($4,000)New Horizons Alternative School to purchase iPads to enhance science education ($2,400)Poweshiek Animal League Shelter for materials to secure outdoor canine kennels ($1,565)Poweshiek County Mental Health Center for catalyst funding for a supported employment program ($2,850)Rock Creek Alliance for funds to construct an accessible fishing pier at the state park ($2,400)

Smaller requests for scholarships and donations are considered throughout the year on a case-by-case basis. Additional information about the college's community contributions is available at http://www.grinnell.edu/offices/communityenhance/giftsandgrants.

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Three Grinnell students awarded Gilman Scholarships for study abroad

Left to right: Spring 2013 Gilman Scholarship recipients Emily Nucaro '14, Lana Mahgoub '14 and Samanea Karrfalt '14.

Justin Hayworth, communications

Three Grinnell College students have received federally-funded Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarships to support study abroad during the spring 2013 semester.

The Gilman Scholarship is a federal grant program that provides awards for U.S. undergraduate students receiving Federal Pell Grant funding to participate in study abroad programs worldwide. The program aims to diversify the kinds of students who study abroad and the countries and regions where they go by supporting undergraduates who might otherwise not participate due to financial constraints. The three Grinnell students and their programs are:

Samanea Karrfalt, a third-year anthropology and German double major, is from McKean, Penn., and will study at the Humboldt University in Berlin. At Grinnell, she is a student adviser, a member of IndepenDance, and works with the Alumni Relations office. Post-graduation, she hopes to become a Fulbright scholar and pursue a Ph.D. in German.Lana Mahgoub, a third-year psychology major with a concentration in neuroscience, is from Arlington, Va., and will study in Denmark. At Grinnell she is a Posse scholar, president and founder of the Karaoke club, president of the Muslim Student Association, a student adviser to her peers, and she helps to build relationships with parents and alumni to raise money for Grinnell's Pioneer Fund. After Grinnell, she hopes to attend graduate school to pursue a psychology Ph.D.Emily Nucaro, a third-year sociology major with a concentration in global development studies, is from Urbandale, Iowa and will study sustainable development in Quito, Ecuador. A National Merit Scholar at Grinnell, she has worked with Habitat for Humanity through Americorps and as an Anna Beal intern with the Nature Conservancy. After graduation she hopes to work in development, possibly with the Peace Corps.

Grinnell College is a nationally recognized, private, four year, liberal arts college located in Grinnell, Iowa. Founded in 1846, Grinnell enrolls 1,600 students from all 50 states and from as many international countries in more than 26 major fields, interdisciplinary concentrations, and pre-professional programs.

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Grinnell College organist and student organists to perform seasonal music at Herrick Chapel

Linda Bryant, Grinnell College organist, will present a recital that includes seasonal music with student organists Christopher Squier '13 and Peter Aldrich '15 in Herrick Chapel on Wed., Dec. 12 at noon. This program is free and open to the public.

The organists will be playing the restored 59 rank 1949 Aeolian Skinner instrument, which is on the register of Historic Instruments designated by the Organ Historical Society.

Bryant has degrees in organ performance from Drake University and Valparaiso University. She also has earned the colleague certificate from the American Guild of Organists. Bryant is active in the Central Iowa Chapter of the American Guild of Organists and has been the Grinnell College organist since 2001. Christopher Squier is a fourth-year art and Russian double major from Richland, Wash., and Peter Aldrich is a second-year undeclared major from Minneapolis, Minn.

Herrick Chapel is located at 1128 Park St. on the Grinnell College campus, with parking available along the street in front of the venue and in nearby parking lots. Grinnell welcomes the participation of people with disabilities. Information on parking and accessibility is available on the college website, here: http://www.grinnell.edu/app/wermap.html.

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Chinyere Ukabiala Selected as Grinnell College Ombudsperson

Grinnell, Iowa -- After an extensive search and selection process, Grinnell College has named Chinyere Ukabiala as the college's first ombudsperson. Her appointment is effective February 1, 2013.

As ombudsperson, Ukabiala will assist members of the Grinnell campus community who are experiencing problems, conduct critical analyses of the college, and educate and coach Grinnellians on communication and conflict management skills.

Ukabiala currently is a Des Moines-based attorney, mediator and educator, specializing in family law, domestic violence, mediation, negotiation and cross cultural-communication skills. She has taught legal negotiations and family law as an adjunct professor at Drake University Law School for several years, and served as co-chair of the Women and Minorities Committee of the Iowa State Bar Association from 2009 until July 2012. Ukabiala spent many years as an attorney in civil law practice at Iowa Legal Aid, the Iowa Coalition Against Domestic Violence and in private law practice, representing mainly immigrant and low-income clients. In her legal practice, Ukabiala has focused primarily on public interest law, mediation and conflict resolution. She also has practiced law in England and in Nigeria.

"Chinyere Ukabiala has impressive experience working effectively with people of diverse backgrounds and cultures," said Grinnell College President Raynard S. Kington."Her commitment to diversity and mutual understanding, along with her expertise in negotiation, mediation and conflict resolution, will make her an outstanding resource for our entire college community."

"Chinyere's experience and background are impressive; even more so are her wisdom, empathy, insight and intelligence," said Tammy Nyden, associate professor of philosophy and chair of the Ad Hoc Ombuds Committee. "She has an amazing ability to put people at ease and get to the heart of the matter."

Ukabiala holds a J.D. degree from Drake University Law School and received an LL.B. degree from Buckingham University Law School in Buckinghamshire, England. Also licensed to practice law by the Councils of Legal Education in London, England, and Lagos, Nigeria, she holds certificates in negotiations and mediation from various organizations, including the Iowa Mediation Service.

Founded in 1846, Grinnell College is a highly selective, liberal arts college that enrolls 1,600 students from nearly every state and more than 50 other countries.Grinnell has a long history of curricular innovation and thoughtful progressivism; the college awarded the B.A. degree to a woman in 1857 and to an African American in 1871. Grinnell established the nation's first major in political science in 1883, and in 1970 pioneered an individually advised curriculum that allows students to tailor their own education in collaboration with their faculty advisers. Grinnell is a leader in ensuring access to the nation's most talented students from all backgrounds, and Grinnell students graduate with one of the lowest levels of debt in the United States. 

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Grinnell by the Numbers: 138 (Record Points) -- and More

Grinnell, IA – Grinnell College sophomore Jack Taylor smashed an NCAA basketball record Tuesday night by scoring 138 points in one game.

But at Grinnell—long recognized as one of the nation's best liberal arts colleges—138 isn't the only number that matters.

In advance of the Grinnell College Pioneers' next game at 4 p.m. local time Sunday, Nov. 25 (watch live at http://pioneers.grinnell.edu/index.aspx?path=mbball), here are some other important Grinnell numbers.

Grinnell by the Numbers

Year Grinnell was founded: 1846

Number of times namesake Josiah B. Grinnell was purportedly told to "Go West, young man": 2
Abolitionist, U.S. Congressman and ordained Congregational minister Josiah B. Grinnell was the young man whom famed journalist Horace Greeley reportedly urged to "Go west, young man, go west."(Greeley later denied the attribution.) Grinnell established the town of Grinnell, Iowa, where he acted as a "conductor" on the Underground Railroad and sheltered John Brown after his Bloody Kansas raids. J.B. Grinnell convinced the founders of what was then known as Iowa College to relocate their school from Davenport to Grinnell, where it reopened as Grinnell College in 1861.

Students currently enrolled: 1,609

Students in the first-year class: 444

Students who applied for those 444 spots: 4,554

Number of states represented in the student body: 48

Number of other countries represented in the student body: 50

Entering class:
Percentage of entering students who graduated from high school in the top 10% of their class: Two-thirds
Percentage of entering students who graduated from public schools: Two-thirds
Percentage who are U.S. students of color: 24%
Percentage who are first-generation college students: 16%
Percentage who are international: 13.2%, from 28 countries
Average SAT score of the Fall 2012 entering class: 1,366

Student-faculty ratio: 9:1

Number of Grinnell students who are in courses that were chosen for them: 0 (there is no core curriculum)

Number of Grinnellians attending courses that they chose with faculty and staff advising: 100%

Percent of Grinnell students participating in study abroad: 60%

Grinnell's national rank in per capita Ph.D. production: 8th

Percentage of Grinnell students with 3.6 or higher GPA and 30 or higher MCATs who are admitted to medical school: 90%

Med school admit rates for comparably qualified students nationwide: 73%

Percent of domestic students with demonstrated financial need who receive financial aid: 100%

Percent of their demonstrated need met by the college: 100%

Number of accredited Iowa public and private institutions where students graduate with less student loan debt: 0 

Number of Rhodes Scholars who graduated from Grinnell: 14

Number of schools west of the Mississippi that enrolled women before Grinnell: 0 (Grinnell's first woman student graduated in 1857)

Number of schools west of the Mississippi that enrolled African-American students before Grinnell: 0 (Grinnell's first African-American student graduated in 1871)

Number of schools west of the Mississippi that played intercollegiate football before Grinnell: 0 (Grinnell played the University of Iowa in 1889 and won, 24–0.)

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