News

Troy, N.Y. - College graduates with technical degrees are entering into what is being called a "just-in-time" employment market - meaning high-tech companies are waiting until the last possible minute to hire grads. As a result, new tech grads must be patient, get creative, and be willing to fill out their resumes with unique experiences should they not snatch up a job just out of school, says Tom Tarantelli, director of the Career Development Center at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Troy, N.Y. - Richard Radke, assistant professor of electrical, computer, and systems engineering at Rensselaer, has been awarded a Faculty Early Career Development Award (CAREER) from the National Science Foundation. Radke is among 22 Rensselaer faculty members to receive the award in the past four years. The CAREER Award provides a grant of $400,000 over five years, and is the most prestigious honor presented to junior faculty.

Troy, N.Y. - Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute has joined forces with the Junior Museum, Time Warner Cable, and A&E Television Networks to host a day of space-related activities for local youth on nationally recognized "Space Day," May 1. The events will kick off "Space Month," a program of exhibitions, workshops, contests, and discussions scheduled throughout May that are designed to boost area kids' interest in space, science, and technology.

Troy, N.Y. - Students at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute are collaborating a coast apart with their California counterparts in an Internet-based performance that pushes the limits of broadband musical and video performance. Using the ultra-high-speed Internet2 (I2) to carry the action simultaneously in real time, 10 dancers, singers, and electronic musicians from Rensselaer and Mills College will perform in the same virtual space while in two separate locations.

New York, N.Y. - Ghanaian drum master, Troy resident, and Rensselaer music professor Yacub Addy and his band, Odadaa!, will perform two concerts with jazz composer and trumpeter Wynton Marsalis as part of the Jazz at Lincoln Center concert series. The two concerts, titled "African Jazz," will take place May 2-3, at Columbia University's Miller Theatre.

Troy, N.Y. - Three companies affiliated with Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute will vie to win the $100,000 Business Plan Competition at the Summit in Tech Valley in Albany next week. Crystal IS Inc., Evident Technologies Inc., and Orca Gear Inc. will present their business plans to a panel of national venture capitalists on Tuesday, April 29. The winner will receive a cash prize of $100,000 and professional advisory services from several firms. About the Companies

Troy, N.Y. - Governor George E. Pataki has announced that Rensselaer will manage the Upper Hudson Satellite Center that will be part of the Rivers & Estuaries Center on the Hudson - a world-class institute for the study of rivers and estuaries. Columbia University will manage the Lower Hudson Satellite Center. The central Rivers & Estuaries Center will be located at Dennings Point in Beacon, N.Y. The Upper Hudson Satellite Center will be located on the waterfront in South Troy.

Albany, N.Y. - Alan Goldberg, president and chief executive officer of First Albany Corporation, received the first Education Vision and Innovation Award from the Hudson Mohawk Association of Colleges and Universities (HMACU).

Troy, N.Y. - The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) on April 10 accepted the request by SEIU Local 200United to cancel the secret ballot election, scheduled to take place at Rensselaer on April 15. The NLRB accepted the union's request with the stipulation that the union cannot seek another petition for an extended period of time.

Troy, N.Y. - Rensselaer art students have spent the semester collaborating with Rensselaer and Princeton electronic arts faculty on a major multimedia project called "Transfizzle." The multimedia performance combines dance, chamber music, video, and the latest in high-tech wearable computer gear, including an electronic glove. "Transfizzle" will take place on Wednesday, April 23, at 8 p.m., at The Arts Center of the Capital Region, 265 River Street in Troy. It is free and open to the public.