In brief

Selling stuff for homes on campus and afar

Cast-off sofas and retired wastebaskets not only found new life in frugal students’ dorm rooms and suites, they also help families in Appalachia or Nicaragua find affordable shelter, thanks to Harvard Habitat for Humanity’s annual Stuff Sale. As the mother-of-all-garage-sales wound down Tuesday (Sept. 14), Harvard Habitat director Anthony Onah ’05 estimated that this year’s three sales (two in Cambridgeport, targeted at graduate students and the local community, and one on the Science Center lawn that captured incoming first-years and returning undergraduates) were on track to beat last year’s record-breaking haul of $37,000. Onah credits partnerships with Harvard Planning and Real Estate, which donates summer storage space for “stuff” collected at spring move-out, and Harvard Recycling, whose trucks and labor are indispensable for collecting and moving items, for helping the Stuff Sale grow its profits nearly fourfold from two years ago. For the ultimate in bargain hunting, visit Harvard Habitat’s clearance Stuff Sale Saturday (Sept. 18) from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 175 North Harvard St., Allston.

Extension School adds new professional studies programs

The Harvard Extension School has created four new masters of liberal arts (A.L.M.) degree concentrations to provide the practical experience and skills needed by today’s professionals. The new professional programs, launched this fall, include mathematics for teaching, biotechnology, environmental management, and museum studies. These new concentrations build on the School’s strong liberal arts base, and join the A.L.M. in information technology, which was launched six years ago and introduces a new information management systems concentration this year.

All five of the professional degrees have the same general admissions requirements (e.g., prospective candidates must already possess a regionally accredited bachelor’s degree and have completed three of the professional degree courses for graduate credit with a final grade of B or higher), but each degree program has distinctive degree requirements. Visit http://www.extension.harvard.edu for more information.

TAP into Extension School

Through the University’s Tuition Assistance Plan (TAP), eligible Harvard staff can take a Harvard Extension School course for just $40. Enroll to learn something new, to gain new work skills, or to work toward one of the School’s diverse degrees or certificates.

Late registration runs through Sept. 26. For more information, http://www.extension.harvard.edu.

Milton Fund accepting proposals

The William F. Milton Fund makes research monies available to faculty members of the University for studies of a medical, geographical, historical, or scientific nature.

The fund supports research either in the interests of promoting the physical and material welfare of the human race, or of investigating and determining the value and importance of a discovery or invention. The $35,000 award is given between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2005.

Applicants must be members of the University with voting privileges in their respective faculties and must not have received Milton Fund support in the past five years. Preference is given to new and original projects, especially independent work of recently appointed young faculty members.

Applications are available online at http://www.hms.harvard.edu/spa/funding/milton.htm, or through Sponsored Programs Administration, Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck St., Building A, Suite 509, Boston, MA 02115. The application deadline is Oct. 4. For more information, contact kemith_leblanc@hms.harvard.edu.

Harvard-Radcliffe Chorus to hold auditions

The 150-voice Harvard-Radcliffe Chorus is holding auditions for all voice parts on Saturday (Sept. 18) from 2 to 6 p.m., and on Sunday (Sept. 19) from 6 to 10 p.m. at Lowell Lecture Hall. The audition consists of scales, ear and pitch memory exercises, and sight-reading. Auditions are on a first-come, first-served basis, and take approximately 10 minutes. A prepared piece is not required.

This year’s repertoire includes Mozart’s “Vespers” and Durufle’s “Requiem,” for which rehearsals will be held Monday evenings from 7 to 10 p.m.

For more information, contact Kevin Leong at (617) 495-0693, or e-mail kleong@fas.harvard.edu.

Child-care ops at Botanic Gardens

Botanic Gardens Children’s Center, a Harvard-affiliated child-care center, has limited openings for preschool children between the ages of 3 and 5. The center, which is open 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., has both full- and part-time openings. Call (617) 496-0595 for more information.

– Compiled by Andrew Brooks