Rutgers News Center

School of Law–Camden receives gift of moot court

Thanks to the support of attorneys and graduates at the law firm of Archer & Greiner, as well as the firm itself and the family of an honored former state attorney general, students at the Rutgers School of Law–Camden soon will have a moot courtroom.

When completed in 2008, the new law school building will feature the Archer & Greiner Moot Courtroom and the George F. Kugler Jr. Moot Courtroom Lobby. A 1953 graduate of the Camden law school and a widely respected litigator, Kugler was a former New Jersey State Attorney General and partner with Archer & Greiner. He died in 2004.

The leadership gift of $500,000 represents a $250,000 donation from Archer & Greiner, with the remaining $250,000 donated by the firm’s partners and Camden law school graduates; the William G. Rohrer Charitable Foundation; and the family of George F. Kugler Jr. The contribution includes support for the Archer & Greiner Scholarship, which seeks to promote greater diversity among the student body at the school.

The 2,300 square-foot courtroom and lobby will allow law students to test their skills in a courtroom setting while remaining on the Rutgers Campus. For many years, Rutgers law students have relied upon the generosity of the federal and state courthouses in Camden to utilize those facilities for such activity during evening hours.

– Michael Sepanic

Star Jersey tomato back by popular demand

For the first time in 20 years, home gardeners can purchase seeds for Ramapo tomatoes. These hybrid tomatoes were bred at the New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station (NJAES) during the 1960s.

“New Jerseyans still remember the wonderful flavor of the Ramapo,” said Peter Nitzsche, an agricultural and resource management agent for Rutgers NJAES Cooperative Extension of Morris County. “We receive many requests for the seeds every year.”

The Ramapo seeds were discontinued due to market pressures to produce open, pollinated varieties. Because Ramapo is an F1 hybrid, it requires expensive, controlled pollination of two parent plant selections for seed production, making its production expensive for seed companies.

 During the 1990s, Rutgers agricultural agents noticed that while tomato varieties had improved in shipping quality, consumers were complaining about taste. The agents decided to re-emphasize flavor in variety trials. Working with faculty in the Department of Food Science at the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, the agents conducted sensory evaluation studies involving blind taste tests. Not long after, the NJAES Snyder Research Farm in Pittstown implemented its own version of taste testing on tomatoes, a large public event that has evolved into the annual “Great Tomato Tasting” held in August.

The Ramapo emerged from these tests as a clear frontrunner in taste, color, aroma, and beautiful fruit quality. After a long search, NJAES found a seed company that was willing to produce Ramapo seeds. To purchase seeds, download the NJAES order form. For those without internet access, mail a check for $5.50 ($4.00 + $1.50 S&H) and payable to Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey to: Ramapo Seeds, Plant Diagnostic Laboratory, Rutgers NJAES, P.O. Box 550, Milltown, NJ 08850-0550. Seed shipments are expected early March 2008.

                                                                                                                                                               – Michele Hujber

Heldrich Center dedicates Verizon Video Conference Center

The John J. Heldrich Center for Workforce Development and Verizon New Jersey celebrated their decadelong partnership with the dedication of the Verizon Videoconference Room at the Heldrich Center’s new home at 30 Livingston Avenue in New Brunswick.

Four wall-mounted flat screen TV monitors – two 50-inches wide and two 42 inches – and a computer touch-screen control panel were the most obvious signs of the $300,000 investment. Verizon has made since 2004 in the partners’ shared mission to prepare New Jersey’s youth as educated and skilled members of tomorrow’s workforce.

Videoconferencing is enabled through Verizon’s Access New Jersey video network that connects more than 200 schools, universities, and content providers throughout the state to deliver cutting-edge career information.

The donation is an outgrowth of Career Connections, created by influential business and education groups to educate students, parents, teachers. and school counselors about career options; convene statewide conferences to showcase successful business/education/workforce development systems partnerships; and promote use of online career information resources.

Two dozen guests, including John Heldrich, Verizon President Dennis Bone, and Director of Public Affairs Ciro Scalera, who heads the Career Connections project, joined Heldrich Center Director and Professor Carl Van Horn and staff to dedicate the technology-rich facility.

Heldrich staffers and Verizon engineers completed a three-way hookup with Henry Hudson Regional High School in Highlands and the Winslow Township school district prior to a video planning session for a major educational videoconference this spring.

                                                                                                                                                                   – Steve Manas

Douglass Project to host 200 fourth-graders in science ‘stars’ program

Two hundred fourth-graders will come to the Douglass Campus in New Brunswick this month to learn about the human body. The project, which will take place February 8, 22, and 29 in the Douglass Students Center, is designed to enhance the New Jersey curriculum standards for instruction.

The Rutgers students will accompany visiting fourth-graders and assist them in completing work at 12 science stations, including viewing prepared slides of human tissue, blood-typing, naming bones on a skeleton, learning about disease transmission, and testing the thoroughness of handwashing. Participants will return to the Douglass Campus in May for lunch at the Neilson Dining Hall.

The Douglass Project for Women in Math, Science & Engineering, established in 1986, is an award-winning program dedicated to supporting women interested in studying math, sciences, engineering, and technology. The project provides academic development and leadership opportunities, encourages students to recognize their abilities and attain their educational goals, and offers support systems that foster a general competence in mathematics, science, and technology.

                                                                                                                                                              – Patricia Lamiell

Rutgers Division of Public Safety offers free child safety seat inspections

The proper use of child car seats is one of the simplest and most effective ways of protecting the lives of young children in the event of a motor vehicle accident. But according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, approximately 80 percent of all child safety seats are incorrectly installed.

For the third consecutive year, members of the Rutgers Division of Public Safety will provide instruction and guidance on the installation and use of child safety seats. The free inspections are conducted in partnership with the New Jersey Division of Highway Traffic Safety on Rutgers’ Busch Campus.

Last year, the Rutgers University Child Safety Seat Inspection and Education Program checked more than 1,400 safety seats. Since the program’s inception in August of 2005, specially trained members of the Rutgers University Police Department and Rutgers’ Department of Emergency Services have inspected more than 2,600 child safety seats. Nine of every 10 seats they inspect are incorrectly used or installed.

When properly used in passenger cars, child safety seats reduce fatal injuries by more than 70 percent for infants and more than 50 percent for toddlers, according to NHTSA estimates.

The Rutgers University Child Safety Inspection and Education Station is located at 129 Davidson Road in Piscataway on Rutgers’ Busch Campus. The station is open Wednesdays from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. and Thursdays from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.

During these times, individuals can bring their vehicles and child safety seats – with or without their child – to have the seat inspected for safety and proper use. No appointment is necessary.

                                                                                                                                                               – Ernest Miranda